THIS AIN’T A LECTURE

Elevator Pitch Part 5

Just because you have 30 – 60 – 90 seconds doesn’t mean you should plan on utilizing every second with a memorized “speech.” This is when your pitch stops being an introduction and attention-getter and turns into a lecture.

I’m all for “knowing your opening.” It prevents hemming and hawing, but even then, it is best to be in the moment and listen. Answering the question, “What do you do?” requires a very different opening from, “So tell me about yourself.”

There are also times you will want to start the conversation. You recognize the CEO standing next to you. It is your dream to work for his or her organization. You can’t miss this opportunity, so you want to jump right in. “Mr. Smith, we crossed paths in Boston last month at the supply conference. Your panel discussion of bringing manufacturing back to the United States was truly compelling.” OR “Ms. Smith, I loved your quote in last month’s Vanity Fair. I couldn’t agree more.”

Both of these examples simply open the door to a conversation and you will listen in order to respond. You will have the opportunity to introduce your expertise, but demonstrating your ability to listen and respond, while engaging your audience, expresses your respect of his or her value.

At a recent industry fair, I was standing with my client who had paid her fee, decorated a booth, invested in specialized brochures as well as complimentary product give-a-ways. We had been working on her 30 second pitch and I was there to see her in action and offer feedback as well as moral support. I noticed how many people were so frantic to talk about themselves, they made no attempt to feign interest in the person whose booth they stood before. Without having made the same investment (in a booth or materials) they succeeded in conveying a sort of desperation, blurting out their credentials. The lack of simple courtesy or curiosity negated the best elevator pitches. Sometimes it is what we don’t say that is most obviously communicated.

Yes, have a pitch ready; know your opening. And then, do the unexpected, simply show interest and knowledge in the other person’s business. Now, you’re talking.

WHO SAID "ELEVATOR PITCH?"

Elevator Pitch Series

Part 4

Hopefully, not you. There’s nothing worse (well, yes, there is, but for the sake of this conversation…) than someone announcing, “Get ready folks, I will now present MY elevator pitch!”

Overheard in, of all places, an elevator:

Person #1: “So, what do you do exactly?”

Person #2: “Oh, OK, you want my elevator pitch? Here goes…”

UGH! If I had been Person #1, I think I’d have said, “No, I simply asked you what you do.”

Rather than announce your upcoming broadcast, simply answer the question, and if possible, say something clever, such as:

“My business card says ‘Presentation Coach and Media Trainer” but I believe I’m best at helping my clients clarify and execute their true message.” (Obviously I’m talking about me.)

Now, this might lead to the question, “What do you consider a ‘true message’? And now, we’re having a conversation.

I’m a big believer in INTENTION. Have an intention when forming an elevator pitch… and no, I don’t mean, “to get that job, a client, a promotion...” That’s everybody’s intention. Make it your intention to start a conversation, build on a relationship, earn trust, show personality…

Now your audience has something worth riding two more floors for!

WHAT YOU DO IS NOT WHO YOU ARE

Elevator Pitches Part 3

What you DO is not who you ARE.

And visa versa. Who you are is not necessarily what you do… and the true purpose of an elevator pitch is to reveal not only what you do, but why you are special.

Therefore, starting your pitch with a job title isn’t necessarily the most effective way to go. It doesn’t say HOW you do what you do… what makes you intriguing and unique. It doesn’t say anything about the kind of person you are or the way in which you do business. Let’s look at 2 examples:

1. Saying, “I’m a software designer,” doesn’t sound nearly as intriguing as, “I design computer software used in the space station by NASA astronauts.” OR “My last computer software design was for an on-line hotel room reservation program that saved my client over $2 million last year.”
2. Saying, “I’m a Financial Planner,” doesn’t peak the curiosity that this might: “I specialize in custom financial planning that centers on the 2 most significant dynamics of most portfolios.”

If we examine #1, the NASA statement says a great deal about you as a human being. Without being so blatant, it says you are obviously trust-worthy to get such security clearance, above average intelligence, that you think “outside the box,” and you probably work well in a team environment. All of these statements open the door to further conversation.

Rather than start with a job title, work backwards. State something about what you do that makes you unique, or perhaps, a particular accomplishment that gives you pride in your trade.

If you have trouble with this assignment, you might want to examine the way you approach your work. How one feels about themselves and their work comes across, whether we know it or not!

The bottom line of this conversation is that only you know what makes you special, unique, most qualified, etc and must be answered by you, first and last. It is impossible to be all things to all people and those who try, usually wind up being nothing to most.

Aim Low to Hit High

ELEVATOR PITCHES, PART 2

Chris O’Leary states in his business book, Elevator Pitch Essentials, that the goal of an elevator pitch is to set the hook or start a conversation. I mentioned last week that a pitch in golf is your chance to get the ball close to the hole for an easy putt.

According to Wikipedia elevator pitch “reflects the idea that it should be possible to deliver the (job) summary in the time span of an elevator ride, or approximately thirty seconds to two minutes. Another website went so far as to say three (3) minutes, which in my book is one heck of a long an elevator ride. Can you imagine being stuck in an elevator with someone speaking non-stop for 3 minutes, on what and how he or she does what they do? You might find yourself hoping the elevator cables snapped… before your neck does.

I overheard two people in Starbucks, talking over their laptops and lattes. They were discussing Elevator Pitches: “30 minute elevator pitches” to be exact! I don’t know how many people take 30 minute elevator rides, but in the mass hysteria of today’s mass media, I say aim for 15 seconds and you might hit 30.

Under any kind of pressure, it is difficult for anyone to gauge time. People are prone to over-explain and over-sell themselves. Remember the first rule: this is simply an introduction… a taste, not the whole bowl of ice cream.

This may be the only time to aim low in order to shoot high.

Think I’ll go and have some ice cream.