By The Princeton Review
Whether you are out at a business conference, mingling with friends, or you just so happen to know somebody who knows somebody who's able to help you take you or your company to the next level, you'll get this question: "What do you do for a living (or want to do)?" or, "what is your company about?"
The elevator pitch is the most powerful, concise and well-practiced description of you, your company, or your products boiled down in less than a minute.
What is the purpose of the elevator pitch?
Elevator speeches are supposed to leave an exciting, impactful and meaningful impression with whomever you come in contact with. It is a conversation, or an ice breaker, that will (hopefully) lead into a deeper dialogue about the functionality, and specialty, of what you and/or your company can offer. The goal of a successful elevator pitch is to prompt your recipient to ask you the all-important "tell me more." Your pitch should be something you have in your every fiber of your being. It’s the first, and potentially last, impression; the goal is to make it the beginning of an opportunity. But remember, there’s a fine line between crafting a memorized pitch and delivering what sounds like a canned speech.
Getting ready to ride the elevator
Building an elevator pitch consists of three steps. The first step is to develop answers to the following questions:
- What is your objective? Start by thinking about the objective of your pitch. For instance, do you want to tell potential clients about your organization? Do you have a great new product idea that you want to pitch to an executive? Or do you want a simple and engaging speech to explain what you do for a living or what you want to be doing in the future?
- What does your company do (or you do) OR what is your product/service? Describe in concise detail. Focus on the problems that you solve and how you help people. If you can, add information or a statistic that shows the value in what you do. What do you want your audience to remember most about you? This should excite you first; after all, if you don't get excited about what you're saying, neither will your audience. Your pitch should bring a smile to your face and quicken your heartbeat. People may not remember everything that you say, but they will likely remember your enthusiasm.
- Who is your market? Briefly discuss who you are selling the product or service to. What industry is it? How large of a market do they represent?
- Why do they care? Or what's in it for them? For example, include in your answer "so that they can," "who can no longer afford," or "who are tired of." Make them care bypersonalizing the problem into a question and give them the best solution: you or your company.
- Why is your company different or what is your competitive advantage? Or if personal, your unique proposition? Briefly discuss who the competition is - successful competition is an advantage-they are proof your business model and/or concept work. For advantages, begin your answer with "As opposed to" or "Unlike." A better distribution channel? Key partners? Proprietary technology? Maybe the single thing you or your company does better than anyone else.
- What is your revenue model? More simply, how do you expect to make money?
- What is your company and who is behind it? Tell them a little about you and your team's background and achievements. If you have a strong advisory board, tell them who they are and what they have accomplished.
- What is your hook? Open your pitch by getting attention with a statement or question that piques their interest to want to hear more.
- What is your call to action? Let your goals be known. If you are raising money or trying to win over a client, let them know exactly what you want from them.
The second step is practice, practice and practice. Keep editing it; rehearsing it; practicing it by saying it to your spouse, your friend, and people inside and outside your industry. Know it up, down and sideways; plus express your passion freely as energy and dedication will be expected. Make sure that they get your elevator pitch. Keep improving your elevator pitch until it becomes routine for you to say and crystal clear for your audience to understand. Like a fine wine, it can only improve with age.
The third step is to adjust to your audience. Every audience is different so make sure that your terminology and your acronyms fit your audience members. Keep your elevator pitch at their level. You can easily see how an 80-year-old will be interested in different features than a 21-year-old, and an affluent middle-aged man will want to know different things than a struggling single mom. A similar spread of profiles may exist in your business-to-business efforts, so tailor there as well.