Communications Plan One-Pager

What it is

A communications plan one-pager distils your full strategy onto a single page, forcing clarity and prioritisation. It answers the essential questions: Why are we communicating? Who are we trying to reach? What do we want them to do? How will we reach them? How will we know if it’s working?

This isn’t a replacement for detailed planning—it’s the executive summary that gets stakeholders aligned before you build the detail.

When to use it

Use a one-pager when you need to:

• Get senior leadership approval for a communications approach quickly
• Brief cross-functional teams who need context but not granular detail
• Align internal and external partners on strategic direction
• Create a “north star” document that keeps detailed execution on track
• Document strategic thinking without over-engineering the planning process

Don’t use a one-pager for:

• Detailed campaign execution planning (use Campaign Brief instead)
• Complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives requiring extensive detail
• Initial exploration and brainstorming (this comes after strategic thinking is done)

Inputs needed

Before you start, gather:

• Business objective: What organisational goal does this communications plan support?
• Target audiences: Who are you trying to reach? (Maximum 3-4 distinct groups)
• Timeframe: When does this plan run? (e.g., Q2 2026, January-March, 12-week campaign)
• Budget indication: Even a rough sense of resources available
• Success criteria: How will you know this worked?
• Key constraints: What limitations exist? (budget, time, resource, regulatory, etc.)

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The template

Background & Context

Business objective:

[What organisational goal does this communications plan support? One sentence.]

Communications challenge:

[What problem are we solving? Why do we need to communicate? 1-2 sentences.]

Timeframe:

[When does this plan run?]

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Audiences & Objectives

Audience	What we want them to do	Why they’d care
[Primary audience 1]	[Specific action or behaviour change]	[Their motivation or benefit]
[Secondary audience 2]	[Specific action or behaviour change]	[Their motivation or benefit]
[Secondary audience 3]	[Specific action or behaviour change]	[Their motivation or benefit]

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Strategic Approach

Core message:

[Your single most important message in one sentence]

Key channels:

[Top 3-4 channels you’ll use to reach audiences, with brief rationale]

1. [Channel] — [Why this channel for this audience]
2. [Channel] — [Why this channel for this audience]
3. [Channel] — [Why this channel for this audience]

Content themes:

[2-4 content themes that will run through your communications]

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Execution Overview

Key milestones:

Date/Week	Activity
[Timeframe]	[Major activity or deliverable]
[Timeframe]	[Major activity or deliverable]
[Timeframe]	[Major activity or deliverable]

Resources required:

• Budget: [Amount or range]
• Team: [FTE or roles needed]
• External support: [Agencies, freelancers, vendors]

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Measurement

Success looks like:

[Qualitative description of success—what does “working” look like?]

Key metrics:

Reporting:

[How often and to whom you’ll report progress]

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Risks & Mitigation

Risk	Mitigation
[Potential issue]	[How you’ll address it]
[Potential issue]	[How you’ll address it]

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AI prompt

Use this prompt to generate a first draft of your one-pager, then refine with your specific organisational context and strategic thinking.

Base prompt

I need to create a communications plan one-pager for [INITIATIVE/PROJECT/CAMPAIGN].

Context:
- Business objective: [WHAT ORGANISATIONAL GOAL THIS SUPPORTS]
- Communications challenge: [WHY WE NEED TO COMMUNICATE]
- Timeframe: [DURATION]
- Primary audience: [WHO - with brief context on their role/needs]
- Secondary audiences: [WHO - with brief context]
- Budget indication: [ROUGH AMOUNT OR CONSTRAINT]

Please create a one-page communications plan that includes:
1. Background & Context (business objective, communications challenge, timeframe)
2. Audiences & Objectives table showing each audience, what we want them to do, and why they'd care
3. Strategic Approach (core message, 3-4 key channels with rationale, 2-4 content themes)
4. Execution Overview (3-5 key milestones with dates, resources required)
5. Measurement (success description, 3 key metrics with targets, reporting approach)
6. Risks & Mitigation (2-3 key risks with mitigation strategies)

Keep everything concise—this must fit on a single page. Focus on strategic clarity over tactical detail.

Prompt variations

For executive audiences:

Add: “This is for C-suite approval. Emphasise business impact and ROI. Use confident, outcome-focused language.”

For internal change communications:

Add: “This supports organisational change. Emphasise employee engagement, two-way communication, and clear timelines for information sharing.”

For product launches:

Add: “This is a product launch plan. Include market context, competitive positioning, and clear launch phases (pre-launch, launch, post-launch).”

For crisis or reputation work:

Add: “This addresses a reputation challenge. Include stakeholder concerns, transparency commitments, and clear success criteria beyond just metrics.”

For limited budget scenarios:

Add: “Budget is constrained to [AMOUNT]. Prioritise owned channels, employee advocacy, and creative earned media approaches.”

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Human review checklist

Before using your one-pager, verify:

• Business objective is genuinely clear — Could someone outside your team understand what organisational goal this supports?
• Audiences are specific, not generic — Have you moved beyond “general public” or “stakeholders” to named groups?
• Actions are realistic — Are the “what we want them to do” items actually achievable?
• Core message is memorable — Can you say it without looking at the page?
• Channel choices are justified — Have you explained why each channel, not just listed them?
• Metrics are measurable — Can you actually track these things with available tools/data?
• Timeline is realistic — Have you accounted for approval processes, production time, and contingency?
• Risks are actual risks — Are these genuine threats, not just things that “might be challenging”?
• Everything fits on one page — If printed at readable font size, does it actually fit?
• Stakeholders have reviewed — Have key decision-makers seen and approved this direction?

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Example output

Climate Advisory Service Launch — Acme Consulting

Business objective: Establish Acme as a credible climate strategy advisor to FTSE 250 companies, generating 15 qualified leads by end Q2 2026.

Communications challenge: We’re known for financial advisory but unknown in climate/ESG. Need to build awareness with sustainability directors while reassuring existing clients this isn’t mission drift.

Timeframe: January–June 2026 (6 months)

Audiences:

Audience	Action	Motivation
Sustainability Directors (FTSE 250)	Request exploratory conversation	Pressure to deliver net-zero plans with limited expertise
Existing clients (CFOs)	Understand service as complementary	Climate risk is now financial risk

Core message: “Acme brings financial rigour to climate strategy—helping organisations move from commitment to implementation without greenwashing risk.”

Key channels: LinkedIn thought leadership (demonstrate expertise), industry events (face-to-face credibility), trade media (third-party validation).

Key metrics: 15 qualified leads, 500+ LinkedIn followers for Practice Lead, 5 pieces of trade coverage.

Primary risk: Greenwashing accusations. Mitigation: hire climate advisor to review all comms; be transparent about our learning journey.

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Related templates

• Campaign Brief — Expand your one-pager into detailed campaign execution planning
• Objectives & Measurement Framework — Develop your metrics section into a comprehensive measurement approach
• Quarterly Comms Planning Grid — Translate your milestones into a detailed 90-day activity plan
• Stakeholder Mapping Matrix — Deepen your audience analysis with systematic stakeholder mapping

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Tips for success

Lead with “why,” not “what”: The business objective and communications challenge sections set up everything else. If these are weak, the rest won’t land.

Be honest about constraints: A one-pager that acknowledges limited budget and proposes realistic scope builds more trust than one that overpromises.

Make it scannable: Use tables, bullet points, and white space. If someone can’t grasp the plan in 90 seconds, it’s too dense.

Test the “elevator test”: Can you verbally explain this plan in under two minutes? If not, simplify.

Update as you learn: One-pagers shouldn’t be static. Update monthly as you learn what’s working.

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Common pitfalls

Trying to include everything: A one-pager with eight audiences, twelve channels, and twenty metrics isn’t strategic—it’s a brain dump. Prioritise ruthlessly.

Vague success criteria: “Increase awareness” isn’t measurable. “500+ LinkedIn followers” is.

Channel lists without rationale: Saying you’ll use LinkedIn, Twitter, email, events, PR, and advertising doesn’t explain why those channels for those audiences.

Unrealistic timelines: If your milestones don’t account for approval time, production lag, and inevitable delays, you’re setting yourself up for failure.

Missing the “so what”: Every section should answer: “So what? Why does this matter?” If it doesn’t, cut it.