The bookends of pitching an idea. First slide and last slide. Starting with the one slide and ending with the roadmap “stair steps” slide.
Builds on?
- External concept: Wardley Maps
- #23 - versioning blog posts
Why?
I’ve found that I need a hook drive initial engagement, and a roadmap to drive continued engagement.
- These refinements began with pitching startups for funding, but evolved quickly during my full time gigs as a Software Engineer.
- A fair amount of recent success by blending the “top down” (directors and above) along with the “bottom up” (developers, designers).
- For the “top down” I’ve found that the one slide is the best way to get the attention of the decision makers.
- For the “bottom up” I’ve found that the details slides are the best way to get the attention of the implementors.
- For everyone, the roadmap slide gives a sense of the scope of the idea, and the steps to get there.
What?
- Essentially ~the elevator pitch for the idea~ a “before and after” look with 3-5 bullet points. I typically bury the best ones later in the slide.
Examples?
One Slider
List out 3-5 top of line “before and after” bullet points. These should be the main value points.
- Example: “Unclear/inconsistent patterns to implement blog posts” -> “Standard templates to copy/paste”
![One Slider Sketch](/future-thinkers/bookends/paper-one-slide.png)
Roadmap
Highlight the steps to get to the end goal, but also to highlight the current state of the idea.
- Example: “Goal One: 10 posts” -> “Goal two: 100 posts and feedback from < 10 people”
![Roadmap Sketch](/future-thinkers/bookends/paper-roadmap.png)
Mapped out
A document or slideshow that contains this flow:
- I find this becomes a network of points all relating between the bookends. You kick it off with an overview, ending with the roadmap of getting to this wonderful value.
graph TD
A[One Slider with 5 values points]
A --> B[Details first point]
A --> C[Details second point]
A --> D[Details third point]
A --> E[Details fourth point]
A --> F[Details fifth point]
G[Roadmap slide with current/future state]
B --> G
C --> G
D --> G
E --> G
F --> G
click G href "#roadmap"
click A href "#one-slider"