How to write your company one-liner
Stride Funding offers a textbook example of how to write a description.
One line wonder
When did you last update your one-line company description?
Perhaps you nailed it from the get go? I'm guessing not.
Every week as I research the funding updates from Crunchbase, I see first-hand how companies are positioning and messaging. Most try too hard or wind-bag the exercise, thus missing an opportunity to help customers, investors and media quickly understand your company.
Let's use this week's Funding Update as a lesson in how to write a one-line description that can be the foundation of your integrated messaging framework. That may sound complicated —"integrated messaging framework"—but it's really just a simple, structured approach to how you tell your story consistently across marketing channels.
Your one-liner anchors your messaging. It's what you say at networking events when someone asks, "What do you do?" It's the text you put into your About Us box on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Crunchbase, etc.
After that, your one-liner sets up add-on messaging such as home page copy, and supports value propositions. I'll show you an outstanding example below from Stride Funding.
Components of a one-line description
A great one-liner conveys the following info:
Company name
Service or product offering
Target audience
Don't get fancy with this. Be direct and explain what you do, for whom.
Best one-liners
Here are three of the best examples from women-led companies who raised money this week:
Decent one-liners
Here are a few examples that are so close. One or two tweaks and they'll be 👌:
Snaps to Kira Biotech for brevity, but for whom? Which markets or patients?
Here's another biotech that needs to clarify the audience:
Hells, Tmunity could be focused on the same patient populations as Kira.
Here's another concise description:
"Animal lovers" is a nice touch. Upon digging further I learned they use ethically sourced ingredients. Add "ethically sourced" before "pet food" and this becomes a stellar description.
Bad one-liners
Most of these are bad because they're unclear or too long. I cringe when I see the ... to the right of the descriptions. That means there's more copy. There shouldn't be more copy. Your description should fit within the limits.
This one is trying too hard, or they forgot to revisit their Crunchbase description after setting up a profile:
Integris does data-privacy compliance automation—an essential service for enterprises who have to comply with strict data-reporting policies. They're close in their description but would be better served by keyword loading with "data protection" and "privacy."
Here's another missed opportunity:
WTF? I have no idea what they do other than retail, and they just raised $6 million dollars. I dug deeper to learn RUTI is developing a proprietary CRM and facial/body recognition technology with an affluent female fashionista GTM strategy.
Another one that makes me go 🤔:
Yeesh, turns out they make hair-care solutions for African American women, sending a box of personalized ingredients each month for customers to mix up at home. That's cool. JUST SAY THAT!!!!!
Finally another miss from a brand that's otherwise crushing their market launch thanks to a collaboration with Chrissy Teigen:
Again with the ...
They could say, "from the team that brought you the corn test." Not really, but they should use their Twitter description and call it done: Burst is a Sonic Toothbrush and oral care subscription-only service delivered direct to consumers at a fraction of the cost of big name brands.
Key takeaway
Revisit your description. Now. Make it consistent across channels. Include your Crunchbase profile, if you're raising.
BTW, your personal brand description can take this approach, too. 😘
I leave you with Stride Funding as a stellar example of how to do it best.
Stride Funding’s Crunchbase description clearly states what they offer and for whom (student loans implies the audience).
The Twitter description slightly tweaks the language but all of the necessary components are included.
Stride's home page sticks to the core messaging and expands the story. Bravo Tess Michaels and team!