As you look at the week ahead, what is that 'something big' that you have the chance to influence? It may be that you...
- Need to socialize the refreshed strategy or FY priorities
- Need to tell others about your serving offerings
- Are preparing a summary of key findings from your research, or
- Are updating a roadmap of milestones for your project.
Yes? Then, what you need is a one-pager.
Yes, I know. You have a lot to say. There are so many super important details. There’s a lot of context you need to provide, and of course you don’t want anyone to not have the FULL story. Right.
Really, what you need is a one-pager.
It’s the single most powerful thing you can create to increase your influence and get people on board with an idea. Consultants have known this for years. Busy execs, too. The one-pager is the PowerPoint MVP! It’s the one thing an exec will choose to print out. It’s the thing they’ll grab as they head to a meeting.
The brain science behind it is called Dual Coding (Allan Pavio). With a one-pager, you’re giving equal weight to the words and the visuals.
So how do you create one? How do you get ALL THAT INFO onto ONE page?
(And of course we’re saying a “page,” but we’re actually talking about a slide in PowerPoint. But you already knew that.)
Three Steps to Developing a Winning One-Pager
Step 1: Figure out what you want to say
Step 2: Package it
PRO TIP: I keep a “Frankenstein” folder on my desktop where I dismember and re-use good slides. Recycling is efficient!
Step 3: Test it
PRO TIP: Remember, word economy. Every word counts. Avoid long narratives and phrases that may cause confusion or have multiple meanings.
You ready? Now get going!
- Set a timer for two minutes. Get out a piece of paper and your favorite pen. What is your idea in 20 words or less? Jot it down.
- What images come to mind? Jot down your ideas, or better yet – sketch them.
- Step back and see what you have. Are there groupings or buckets? Is there a sequence or path? Is there a list?
Step 2: Package it
- Open up PowerPoint, and start building your slide. You’ve seen a zillion slides with columns, boxes, cycles, and pyramids. Don’t overthink it. Pick a design that matches the meaning and keep it as simple as possible.
- If you don’t have access to a professional designer, use the smart art, sign up for services such as SlideTeam.com, SlideModel.com, SlidesGo.com, or others.
PRO TIP: I keep a “Frankenstein” folder on my desktop where I dismember and re-use good slides. Recycling is efficient!
Step 3: Test it
- Give your draft slide to a trusted friend. A good one-pager is like a kids’ picture book. It tells a story. Ask someone who is seeing the slide for the first time to voicetrack it for you. (“If you were presenting this slide, what would you say?”) Ideally, there’s enough info on the slide to build the narrative.
- Listen to what they say, and in what order. That will tell you how the eye “reads” the slide. Adjust your one-pager accordingly.
PRO TIP: Remember, word economy. Every word counts. Avoid long narratives and phrases that may cause confusion or have multiple meanings.
You ready? Now get going!
Examples & Samples
