Why one page
A long brief hides the decisions. One page forces them: if the first version doesn't fit on it, it's more than a first version. And every team you show it to prices the same thing, so the quotes can be compared.
The template
Copy it, and fill one section at a time:
# <Product name>: first version
## The problem
Who has it, how they solve it today, and what that costs them.
## Who it's for
The first users, specifically. Not "everyone".
## The one job
The one thing it must do well for those users to come back.
## Must have
- The few features without which the job can't be done.
## Not in this version
- What people will ask for, and you'll answer "later".
## How we'll know it works
One or two numbers, and the date you'll read them.
## Constraints
A budget range, a date that matters, the systems it has to talk to, the rules it has to follow.
## Open questions
What you don't know yet, and how you'll find out.An example
A made-up product, filled in the way we'd want to receive it. Notice how much is in "Not in this version":
# Tutor booking: first version
## The problem
Parents find tutors through friends and school group chats. Tutors fill their
week by hand and chase payments.
## Who it's for
Parents of school-age children in one city, and the tutors we already know there.
## The one job
A parent finds a tutor for a subject near them and books a time that's free.
## Must have
- Tutor profiles with subjects and area
- Search by subject and distance
- Booking against the tutor's free slots
- Card payment, with our fee taken out
## Not in this version
- Reviews and ratings
- A mobile app (the web app works on phones)
- Chat between parents and tutors
- Packages, discounts, other cities
## How we'll know it works
Bookings per week, and how many parents book a second time, read at the end of
the first school term.
## Constraints
Live before the term starts. Payments through Stripe. A budget range for the build.
## Open questions
Will tutors accept a fee per booking? Do parents pay before or after the lesson?How to fill it
- Write "Not in this version" as carefully as "Must have". It's where the budget is decided.
- Name real people or businesses under "Who it's for", even if only in your head.
- Pick numbers you'll actually read, and the date you'll read them.
- Leave technology out, unless it's a constraint: a system you already use, a rule you must follow.
- Put what you don't know under "Open questions" instead of guessing. It's the most useful section for whoever prices it.
What happens next
With this page, a team can price a first version, or tell you what it needs to know first. When the open questions are big, a Product Sprint answers them and turns the page into a written spec and a priced plan.
You can also send us the page as your brief. A person reads it and replies with questions or a first plan.