CREATE TWITTERLIKE HEADLINES 45
PowerPoint software designed for Macs. While the actual num-
bers of presentations conducted on PowerPoint versus Keynote
are not publicly available, it’s safe to say that the number of
Keynote presentations given daily is minuscule in comparison
with PowerPoint. Although most presentation designers who
When the “Google guys,” Sergey Brin and Larry Page, walked
into Sequoia Capital to seek funding for their new search-
engine technology, they described their company in one
sentence: “Google provides access to the world’s informa-
tion in one click.” That’s sixty-three characters, ten words. An
early investor in Google told me that with those ten words,
the investors immediately understood the implications of
Google’s technology. Since that day, entrepreneurs who walk
into Sequoia Capital have been asked for their “one-liner,” a
headline that describes the product in a single sentence. As
one investor told me, “If you cannot describe what you do in
ten words or less, I’m not investing, I’m not buying, I’m not
interested. Period.” Following are some more examples of
world-changing headlines that are ten words or less: ”Cisco changes the way we live, work, play, and learn.”—Cisco
CEO John Chambers, who repeats this line in interviews and
presentations ”Starbucks creates a third place between work and home.”
—Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, describing his idea to early
investors ”We see a PC on every desk, in every home.”—Microsoft
co-founder Bill Gates, expressing his vision to Steve Ballmer,
who, shortly after joining the company, was second-
guessing his decision. Ballmer, currently Microsoft’s CEO,
said Gates’s vision convinced him to stick it out. With a per-
sonal net worth of $15 billion, Ballmer is glad he did.Headlines That Changed the World