I'm sorry, but the writer was super clear about the exact formula. It's a simple I/O arrangement that opens with what a user does and closes with what happens (e.g. Push a button, get a ride).
Not sure if sarcasm? The writer was super clear about the desired end state, which is: "Write a statement that distills your product into Action/Output". But arriving at that action/output is far from simple, especially with products that aren't so simple.
Take any major PaaS/SaaS/IaaS product (AWS, Heroku, SalesForce) and try to distill it into an action/outcome. Can it be done? Probably to a certain degree, but not every product can be described in terms of pushing a button to get something.
Back to the original point and your assertion that the exact formula was provided, this really feels like the "Draw an Owl" meme to me. For those not familiar, here's how you draw an owl:
1. Draw some circles
2. Draw the rest of the fucking owl
It's a great formula if you know how to draw the rest of the owl. But in general, not a great formula at all.
As the end of the post notes, if you're having an especially hard time with this, that's a pretty good indicator that your company may be screwed. Noting how hard it is to unscrew a company that lacks clear focus, it makes a strong case for defining the core I/O very early on.
It may turn out that the I and the O are, themselves, fairly complex concepts that are only understood within particular, highly-specialized markets. That's fine. People in those markets can still easily describe and discuss what your product does without anyone from your company being there. And that's the goal.
It's not about what the marketing team says. It's about what's said when the marketing team doesn't even know the conversation is happening.
Take any major PaaS/SaaS/IaaS product (AWS, Heroku, SalesForce) and try to distill it into an action/outcome. Can it be done? Probably to a certain degree, but not every product can be described in terms of pushing a button to get something.
Back to the original point and your assertion that the exact formula was provided, this really feels like the "Draw an Owl" meme to me. For those not familiar, here's how you draw an owl:
1. Draw some circles 2. Draw the rest of the fucking owl
It's a great formula if you know how to draw the rest of the owl. But in general, not a great formula at all.