Product vision elevator test

A product vision model helps team members pass the elevator test -- the ability to explain the project to someone within two minutes. It comes from Geoffrey Moore's book Crossing the Chasm. It follows the form:

for (target customer)
who (statement of need or opportunity)
the (product name)
is a (product category)
that (key benefit, compelling reason to buy)
unlike (primary competitive alternative)
our product (statement of primary differentiation)

Creating a product vision statement helps teams remain focused on the critical aspects of the product, even when details are changing rapidly. It is very easy to get focused on the short-term issues associated with a 2-4 week development iteration and lose track of the overall product vision.