Dive Deeper: Introduction to the Elevator Pitch
An elevator pitch is a brief, persuasive speech that you use to
spark interest in what your organization does. You can also use them to create
interest in a project, idea, or product – or in yourself. A good elevator pitch
should last no longer than a short elevator ride of 20 to 30 seconds, hence the
name.
They should be interesting, memorable, and succinct. They also
need to explain what makes you – or your organization, product, or idea –
unique.
When to Use an Elevator Pitch
Some people think that this kind of thing is only useful for
salespeople who need to pitch their products and services. But you can also use
them in other situations.
For example, you can use one to introduce your organization to
potential clients or customers. You could use them in your organization to sell
a new idea to your CEO, or to tell people about the change initiative that
you're leading. You can even craft one to tell people what you do for a living.
Creating an Elevator Pitch
It can take some time to get your pitch right. You'll likely go
through several versions before finding one that is compelling, and that sounds
natural in conversation.
Follow these steps to create a great pitch, but bear in mind
that you'll need to vary your approach depending on what your pitch is about.
1. Identify Your Goal - 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?
2. Explain What You Do
Start your pitch by describing what your
organization does. 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.
Ask yourself this question as you start
writing: what do you want your audience to remember most about you?
Keep in mind that your pitch 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.
Example:
Imagine that you're creating an elevator
pitch that describes what your company does. You plan to use it at networking
events. You could say, "My company writes mobile device applications for
other businesses." But that's not very memorable!
A better explanation would be, "My
company develops mobile applications that businesses use to train their staff
remotely. This results in a big increase in efficiency for an organization's
managers."
That's much more interesting, and it shows
the value that you provide to these organizations.
3. Communicate Your Unique Selling
Proposition (USP)
Your elevator pitch also needs to communicate
your unique selling proposition, or USP.
Identify what makes you, your organization,
or your idea, unique. You'll want to communicate your USP after you've talked
about what you do.
Example:
To highlight what makes your company unique,
you could say, "We use a novel approach because unlike most other
developers, we visit each organization to find out exactly what people need.
Although this takes a bit more time, it means that on average, 95 percent of
our clients are happy with the first beta version of their app."
4. Engage with a Question
After you communicate your USP, you need to
engage your audience. To do this, prepare open-ended questions (questions that
can't be answered with a "yes" or "no" answer) to involve
them in the conversation.
Make sure that you're able to answer any
questions that he or she may have.
Example:
You might ask "So, how does your
organization handle the training of new people?"