One Page Sketch Test
Exploring different Indonesian islands on our way to Bali
While sailing through Indonesia we had to switch electronic nautical charts. They’re not entirely accurate, which makes navigating anchorages with reefs unnerving.
The same disorientation happens in marketing when teams lose their reference point. Ideas start to blur, campaigns drift off course and conversations scatter in too many directions.
It’s a reminder that collective clarity comes from being able to have a reliable reference before executing a creative direction.
Let’s jump into it
In sailing, the right route keeps you off the reefs. In marketing, it keeps you away from creative clutter. Vague thinking can hide in a strategy presentation, but not in a simple sketch.
The reef shapes in our new charts are not accurate enough
Sketching isn’t just for designers. It’s a powerful tool for anyone shaping campaigns, stories or messages. A quick sketch exposes weak spots long before any presentation ever could.
Many teams get caught up in how the drawing looks, when it’s really the intent that matters. I often tell my creative teams that I love ugly sketches. It’s probably because mine are far from perfect.
When the core idea becomes clear, everything else starts to form around it. As the outline sharpens, words, visuals and execution fall into place.
A colleague once told me that you don’t need a million ideas to change the world, only one. I could not agree more. Collective clarity on that one idea often begins with a simple sketch.
A helpful resource
The One-Page Sketch Test is a simple way to see if an idea is clear enough to move forward. It works for creative reviews, brand workshops or campaign planning.
One-Page Sketch Test
Each person gets a sheet of paper and five minutes. No slides, no templates, just a quick sketch of how the idea would look or feel. It could be a moment, a message or a single frame.
When time’s up, everyone shares their sketch and explains it in one sentence. If the drawings all look different, the idea isn’t defined yet. If people spend more time explaining than showing, the story isn’t clear.
When sketches share the same essence, when the tone and intent align, then you’ve found something worth building on.
Here are five questions to guide the test:
- Can this idea be shown in one image?
- Do multiple people draw it in a similar way?
- Does the sketch convey emotion as well as function?
- Could it live across formats without losing meaning?
- Would the audience understand it instantly?
The One-Page Sketch Test turns thinking into something you can see. It bridges strategy and creativity, reminding us that clarity in brand and marketing is something built together, not decided alone.
One idea clearly drawn amongst a team is worth a thousand clever ones
And there’s more
✏️ Join: CX Leaders Advanced for 2026 was officially announced and registration is now open.
📚 Read: The Light Eaters is a fascinating read about plant intelligence, and the title is pretty great as well.
🎧 Listen: Is Empathy in Fact Immoral? by No Stupid Questions looks at empathy research from a different perspective.
📍 Visit: Indonesia is a great place to snorkel with whale sharks, the largest fish in the world.