How to make a good pitch－向Facebook、Uber創辦人學找出產品的「關鍵一句話」
電梯簡報(elevator pitch) 這個詞大家不陌生：想像在電梯裡巧遇想接觸的客戶、潛在投資者、前輩，你得在非常有限、不超過三十秒的時間裡，重點式介紹你的產品、服務、或組織。
但有時候，一句話比一段三十秒精華更重要。美國Inc.雜誌文章討論到，做口碑行銷時，大眾顧客沒機會聽到你精心準備的電梯簡報，而且很多時候，別說三十秒，你可能只有三秒鐘引起注意。
進入本文前，想想以下單字英文怎麼說：
(A) 打造 (B) 引發 (C) 引起共鳴
How do customers talk about your product? How do they (1) spread the word? An article in Inc. magazine on "The Art of Describing a Product in One Sentence" discusses the necessity of (A) crafting this 'sentence' early on.
顧客怎麼談論你的產品？他們怎麼讓其他人知道這個產品？ Inc.雜誌有篇文章「一句話描述產品的藝術」討論研發初期，為產品打造出關鍵一句話的必要性。
In a typical word-of-mouth scenario, something (B)triggered your customer to bring up your product. He is very likely to ask others, "Have you heard about ABC(the product)?" He follows up with a simplified description of how it works, which usually is a single sentence. It'd be great if the description (C) resonates. If not, your customer will explain why they think it's relevant and move on.
口碑行銷的典型情境中，你的顧客因為某件事而提起產品，他們很可能像這樣問其他人：「你們聽過ABC（產品名）嗎？」接著簡單敘述產品的功能，通常只用一句話。敘述如果引起共鳴，就成功了，沒有引起共鳴的話，顧客會解釋為什麼自己提起這個產品，然後繼續其他話題。
When researching "how founders of successful startups presented the products before they were well-known," the author found that viral products tend to have a "lead feature"which you can simply describe. In an early interview before Facebook's IPO, Mark Zuckerberg describes Facebook as:
"Something where you can type someone's name and find out a bunch of information about them. "
Simply and practically, Mark Zuckerberg describes the "ability to view profiles of real people," one of Facebook's key features. He didn't talk about "social networks" or "helping the world to connect with each other."
文章作者研究「成功的新創公司創辦人，都怎麼描述還默默無聞的產品」，發現獲得病毒式傳播的產
品，都有一個容易描述的「主打特色」。早期在Facebook 公開募股前，Mark Zuckerberg 在訪問中這
樣描述Facebook：「打出一個人的名字，就可以找到一堆他的個人資訊。」簡單又實際地描述了Facebook的關鍵特色—瀏覽一般人的個人檔案，沒有談到「社群網路」或「幫助世界連結彼此。」
Travis Kalanick, founder of Uber, also described Uber in a 2011 interview as a mobile app where
"You push a button and in five minutes a Mercedes picks you up and takes you where you want to go. "
There are no buzzwords like platform or marketplace. He focuses on just one button and the appealing outcome. Today, it's been simplified to "Tap a button, get a ride."
Uber創辦人Travis Kalanick 在2011的訪問中，也將Uber形容做一個手機app，「按個鍵，五分鐘內就有一台賓士載你到想去的地方。」這段話沒有平台或交易市集這樣的熱門字眼，重點在一個按鍵帶來吸引人的結果。這句話現在更精簡成：「tap a button, get a ride. (點一下就搞定一趟車。) 」
"The format of both descriptions is the same: 'You do X and Y happens.' X is the input and Y is the output. This input-output pair matches our intuition about how software works. Simplifying the product as a straightforward input followed by a desirable output creates the sense that it's an ingenious idea," says the author. "Facebook and Uber have thousands of features, yet Mark and Travis elevate a single feature above the others, making the product easy to understand, easy to remember, and, most importantly, easy to talk about.'
「上述兩句描述他們產品的方法如出一撤：『進行X，Y就會發生。』」X是輸入， Y是輸出，只因為輸入輸出的概念符合人對軟體運作的直覺。把產品簡化成直接的輸入，和具吸引力的產出，構想就顯得巧妙、獨創。」作者這麼說。 「 Facebook和Uber功能何其多，但創辦人只提升了其中一項特色，讓產品易於被理解、被記得、最重要的是易於被談論。」
The author believes that even the most complicated one-line description is not just another communications tactic. It's one of the most strategic decisions for a founder. "Figuring out this sentence early in the process can focus our product development on the inputs and outputs that really matter and our marketing efforts on helping us enter the right conversations. (2) Seize the opportunity to craft and test single sentences early - before you build something that's too hard to describe."
關鍵一句話的描述並不是傳播手段，而是最需要創辦人策略思維的決定之一。 「 早期階段想出這句話，產品發展就能聚焦於重要的輸入、輸出，行銷也能幫助我們開啟合適的對話。把握機會，盡早打造、測試關鍵一句話，以免等到作出太難描述的產品就來不及了。」
1. Spread the word 散布消息
Please join us and feel free to spread the word.
請加入我們，也歡迎把消息傳出去。
2. Seize the opportunity 把握機會
We should seize the opportunity to launch the product.
我們應該把握機會，推出產品。
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*本文收錄於英語島English Island 2017年6月號
但有時候，一句話比一段三十秒精華更重要。美國Inc.雜誌文章討論到，做口碑行銷時，大眾顧客沒機會聽到你精心準備的電梯簡報，而且很多時候，別說三十秒，你可能只有三秒鐘引起注意。
進入本文前，想想以下單字英文怎麼說：
(A) 打造 (B) 引發 (C) 引起共鳴
How do customers talk about your product? How do they (1) spread the word? An article in Inc. magazine on "The Art of Describing a Product in One Sentence" discusses the necessity of (A) crafting this 'sentence' early on.
顧客怎麼談論你的產品？他們怎麼讓其他人知道這個產品？ Inc.雜誌有篇文章「一句話描述產品的藝術」討論研發初期，為產品打造出關鍵一句話的必要性。
In a typical word-of-mouth scenario, something (B)triggered your customer to bring up your product. He is very likely to ask others, "Have you heard about ABC(the product)?" He follows up with a simplified description of how it works, which usually is a single sentence. It'd be great if the description (C) resonates. If not, your customer will explain why they think it's relevant and move on.
口碑行銷的典型情境中，你的顧客因為某件事而提起產品，他們很可能像這樣問其他人：「你們聽過ABC（產品名）嗎？」接著簡單敘述產品的功能，通常只用一句話。敘述如果引起共鳴，就成功了，沒有引起共鳴的話，顧客會解釋為什麼自己提起這個產品，然後繼續其他話題。
When researching "how founders of successful startups presented the products before they were well-known," the author found that viral products tend to have a "lead feature"which you can simply describe. In an early interview before Facebook's IPO, Mark Zuckerberg describes Facebook as:
"Something where you can type someone's name and find out a bunch of information about them. "
Simply and practically, Mark Zuckerberg describes the "ability to view profiles of real people," one of Facebook's key features. He didn't talk about "social networks" or "helping the world to connect with each other."
文章作者研究「成功的新創公司創辦人，都怎麼描述還默默無聞的產品」，發現獲得病毒式傳播的產
品，都有一個容易描述的「主打特色」。早期在Facebook 公開募股前，Mark Zuckerberg 在訪問中這
樣描述Facebook：「打出一個人的名字，就可以找到一堆他的個人資訊。」簡單又實際地描述了Facebook的關鍵特色—瀏覽一般人的個人檔案，沒有談到「社群網路」或「幫助世界連結彼此。」
Travis Kalanick, founder of Uber, also described Uber in a 2011 interview as a mobile app where
"You push a button and in five minutes a Mercedes picks you up and takes you where you want to go. "
There are no buzzwords like platform or marketplace. He focuses on just one button and the appealing outcome. Today, it's been simplified to "Tap a button, get a ride."
Uber創辦人Travis Kalanick 在2011的訪問中，也將Uber形容做一個手機app，「按個鍵，五分鐘內就有一台賓士載你到想去的地方。」這段話沒有平台或交易市集這樣的熱門字眼，重點在一個按鍵帶來吸引人的結果。這句話現在更精簡成：「tap a button, get a ride. (點一下就搞定一趟車。) 」
"The format of both descriptions is the same: 'You do X and Y happens.' X is the input and Y is the output. This input-output pair matches our intuition about how software works. Simplifying the product as a straightforward input followed by a desirable output creates the sense that it's an ingenious idea," says the author. "Facebook and Uber have thousands of features, yet Mark and Travis elevate a single feature above the others, making the product easy to understand, easy to remember, and, most importantly, easy to talk about.'
「上述兩句描述他們產品的方法如出一撤：『進行X，Y就會發生。』」X是輸入， Y是輸出，只因為輸入輸出的概念符合人對軟體運作的直覺。把產品簡化成直接的輸入，和具吸引力的產出，構想就顯得巧妙、獨創。」作者這麼說。 「 Facebook和Uber功能何其多，但創辦人只提升了其中一項特色，讓產品易於被理解、被記得、最重要的是易於被談論。」
The author believes that even the most complicated one-line description is not just another communications tactic. It's one of the most strategic decisions for a founder. "Figuring out this sentence early in the process can focus our product development on the inputs and outputs that really matter and our marketing efforts on helping us enter the right conversations. (2) Seize the opportunity to craft and test single sentences early - before you build something that's too hard to describe."
關鍵一句話的描述並不是傳播手段，而是最需要創辦人策略思維的決定之一。 「 早期階段想出這句話，產品發展就能聚焦於重要的輸入、輸出，行銷也能幫助我們開啟合適的對話。把握機會，盡早打造、測試關鍵一句話，以免等到作出太難描述的產品就來不及了。」
1. Spread the word 散布消息
Please join us and feel free to spread the word.
請加入我們，也歡迎把消息傳出去。
2. Seize the opportunity 把握機會
We should seize the opportunity to launch the product.
我們應該把握機會，推出產品。
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*本文收錄於英語島English Island 2017年6月號