What It Is and How to Design a Great One Pager Part I

In 2013 I faced designing a One Pager for the first time. It was for Onfan, my personal master class in entrepreneurship, brand design, product design, and being a partner at a company that didn't turn out the way it was supposed to.

From 2014 onwards, Wayra started tapping me to help with designing one-page executive summaries for their startups in Madrid and Barcelona (and some in London too).

Since then, first as a freelancer and later from Soluble Studio, I've worked on the design of nearly 100 documents of this kind. Here's a summary of what I keep learning along the way.

There are probably errors, and certainly imprecisions. The goal is to share and help those facing their One Pager for the first time, and of course, to receive feedback that makes all this information more rigorous and useful.

What is a One Pager and what is it for

The good first impression

You've probably heard more than once that there's only one chance to make a good first impression. If so, the One Pager is likely that single opportunity for your startup in front of certain audiences.

This document is "a summary of the executive summary" of the company that typically—must—fit on a single page. It's the pitch document startups use when introducing themselves to audiences they want to interest with the company's major milestones: investors, institutions, programs…

• The One Pager is the extended version of the company's business card or the condensed version of the executive summary.

Look at me. I'm sexy.

The goal of the One Pager is none other than to make people notice your company. Generate interest. Be sexy and get them to want to know you better, to have you tell them more.

But hey! Look at me! Here!

It's critical to be aware of the context in which these documents are received. You might be lucky and be the only one sending your One Pager at a given moment, or it could happen that your executive summary is just one more in a pile of many others.

In any case, it's more than likely that your precious work—which you've spent hours or days on—will barely get a few seconds of attention (if you're lucky, minutes).

Think about how hard it is for us to read any unsolicited text that reaches us: a brochure, a website, a newsletter, a post… Reading is usually skimming, and we're looking for the two or three key points that help us decide whether to read more deeply or not.

Applying this to the One Pager, we need to be able to highlight those crucial points and present them in a way that gives us peace of mind that we've done everything possible for our message to land. Then we'll try to convince, but first let's make sure we have the opportunity to do so.

And that's where design comes in.

• The One Pager only has a few seconds to grab attention and tell who you are, what you do, and why you matter to whoever receives the document.

If you like yourself, you're likeable.

It's essential to be aware of our strengths and capitalize on them. We need to identify as many promising, unique, or differentiating aspects of our project as possible.

Once we've done that, it's time to prioritize the information and organize how we want the other person to discover it.

• The One Pager is the place to show confidence and trust in what you're building, without falling into arrogance.

Building a One Pager

There are as many One Pagers as there are companies, but I'll try to bring together basic aspects along with the most common cases (or ones we encounter most frequently) to give you useful guidelines to get started.

Whether to stick to these standards or deviate from them to differentiate ourselves is a decision we should make with proper guidance.

Offhand, I'd say if breaking from convention helps us communicate what we want to say better, we should do it. Ultimately, design is a communication vehicle that must serve the reaction we're looking for from the message receiver.

That said, we need to be able to assess the risks we take if we deviate from the norm. And the first step to doing that is knowing it.

Format Standards

There are a series of aspects related to document size and presentation that are key when you start:

• A4 format or the equivalent depending on the country. It will make it easy to reproduce, store, and transport. Make sure it's A4 (or the equivalent format depending on where you are), especially if you deliver it physically: standing out from the rest will cause it to deteriorate faster, and being smaller can make it more prone to getting lost in the pile.
• One side only: the name wasn't chosen by accident. We need to be able to communicate everything necessary for a first contact on a single side. I'm not talking about cramming all the content into minuscule text, but about being able to decide what's relevant for whoever receives the document. If you fail to do this, important information will easily end up on the back and nobody will flip the page to read it.
• It has to be printable. The One Pager will likely end up being printed even when sent in digital format. For this reason, it's important that when designing it you take into account aspects like the fact that not all printers print bleed (borderless) or that all text needs to be readable comfortably (watch sizes, contrast, structure, etc.).
• Vertical orientation. Imagine having several pages together that you need to flip through quickly. If most are vertical, having one appear in landscape will be, at best, uncomfortable. Add to that the fact that shorter line lengths are more comfortable to read and it's the format we're most accustomed to (books, magazines, printed documents), and it becomes clear we need to think twice before opting for a horizontal orientation, since we'd be deviating from the standard.
• Two-column layout. By organizing content into two columns, we give the recipient the opportunity to grasp key information at a glance and, furthermore, know where to find it next time they need it: by dividing content into rows and columns, we help readers locate information faster and build photographic memory of it.
• What we tell and where we put it. There are also standards in what information is included and where it's placed. Data that anyone receiving a One Pager expects to find in a specific location within the document.

Content standards

Along with design, we must use content to make the document ours and put it to work to highlight the most compelling aspects of our company.

Not everything in the list that follows will be equally relevant to our project, so we'll have to give up some points to make sure our document is worth reading.

• Logo*. Getting into the details of what makes a logo good work can pull us too far from the main topic, so we'll say that you should focus above all on making it legible. Plus, it should be representative, recognizable, and memorable.
• Tagline. That short phrase that usually accompanies the logo whenever the opportunity arises. Landing on a good tagline isn't trivial: so many variables are at play that there really should be a different one depending on the brand's maturity level or how the company's value proposition has evolved.
• Company profile. It helps to include a brief summary of the company's situation with key data typical of a first contact: sector, product type, founding date, investment to date, team size, burn rate, etc. A small table or list will do.
• The one-liner*. Being able to sum up who you are, what you do, and why you matter to others in a single sentence of just a few words is key. Beyond helping whoever reads it get oriented quickly, it signals that whoever wrote it understands and commands the project, has their story straight, and is ready to deliver accurate information next.
• Tweet pitch. Along the same lines as above, but with a bit more room to include additional data. You can use it to anticipate what you're looking for or what you've achieved, beyond just the project itself. The 140-character constraint serves to keep the sentence concise.
• Metrics*. Essential. Don't expect to captivate with anything other than numbers. It doesn't matter how long you've been in the market—there's sure to be data that can spark your audience's interest: market figures, study findings, MVPs… whatever it takes. The goal is to demonstrate your project's potential. If these metrics speak to traction or revenue, even better.
• Round. If you're seeking investors for an upcoming funding round, it can be useful to include some general information about it—like the amount you're looking for and where it will go. Remember this is a first contact, so if it's not asked for, it might not be the right time to get into too many details.
• Team*. A key section for more experienced and demanding audiences who may request your One Pager. It's important to be especially concise: names of the founding team, roles, and relevant backgrounds. Adding mentors or investors whose personal brand can help capture the recipient's attention may be a good idea. To provide more information, you can add LinkedIn profiles.
• Contact*. Seems obvious, right? Well, trust me: it's worth hammering home. Include your contact details. Keep it concise and personal. Who's going to pick up the phone when a potential investor calls? What's your preferred way to be contacted? An email and phone number (and a name), plus your project's website, usually does the trick.
• Problem*. When it comes to diving deeper into the information you want to convey, the standard approach is to start by describing the problem or situation your project is solving or improving, and if relevant, explaining how it's being done now and why it doesn't work or could be better. If our pitch opens the same way, it'll help solidify our message.
• Solution*. After laying out the right context, you need to explain what your proposal, solution, or improvement actually is; and why it's the best option among all the alternatives. Be crystal clear about what type of solution it is: an app, a SaaS, a physical product… It sounds obvious but you'd be surprised how often people get it wrong.
• Product. If that solution is a product of any kind, and you've got it fairly well defined, it's worth giving details on the key features: those that let people better understand what the story is about. Don't hesitate to reinforce this section with images.
• Market*. Getting a sense of the team's ambitions is easier when you have market data. Current size, evolution over recent years, potential size… Data that helps you picture how big a slice of the pie you're going after with your project.
• Competition. Talking openly about competition—all those chasing the same slice (or part) of the pie—demonstrates you're not alone in the race, that others are trying at the same time as you, and that the project is viable. If no one else is doing what you're doing, look harder or be suspicious. Mentioning data specific to each company (revenue volume, company valuation, sale price…) will strengthen your message.
• Business model*. Making money, or at least being clear about how to do it, will make whoever receives your One Pager look at you differently for obvious reasons. The business model will evolve and change as many times as needed, but giving it space will make clear you're actively pursuing it.
• Strategy. Having a plan is key to determining whether you're hitting your targets or not. If your strategy for entering the market, growing your user base, or exponentially scaling revenue is differentiated and relevant, don't hesitate to include it in your One Pager.
• Timeline or roadmap. A good way to tell your story is to place the milestones you've achieved along a timeline. This same format can be used to represent your next goals, the project roadmap.
• Other information. And finally, if you think any other information about your project is relevant and could help you capture your audience's attention, go ahead. Take care of the hierarchy between blocks and the layout to give each topic the weight it deserves and a reading order that helps with understanding what you're telling.
• Content you can't miss.

Design standards

For your sanity, and to keep the content manageable, I'll save the rest for another article. Suggestions and requests are welcome, and applause, notes, and comments are appreciated.

And please, share if you found it useful!

Part two

We've published a second part, where we discuss why it's important to care for your One Pager design and offer basic tips for you to start doing it yourself even before working with a professional designer.

We also included a free template to help you with the first versions of your document.

What it is and how to design a good One Pager Part II (includes template)

Need personalized help?

From Soluble Studio we're launching onepager.design, a parallel project through which we want to reach more entrepreneurs who need personalized help with their One Pager design.

Prepare your content with our template, choose when you want to receive it (72 or 24 hours), and win over new investors and institutions with a professional document.

Visit onepager.design to learn the details

Ismael Barros 🙌🏼