Have an elevator pitch? Of course you do! Wouldn't leave home without one, right? Because you never know when you're suddenly going to be face-to-face with someone and need to be able to tell them all about your business and why it's so much better than the other eighty-four businesses out there doing the same thing in less than sixty seconds. (The sixty seconds or less time originated as a estimate of how long it would take an elevator to move between floors - which might be all the time you had to speak before the person you were talking to left.)
But how many elevator pitches do you have? One might not be enough.
You see, the same person won't be standing in the elevator all the time - and the type of elevator pitch you use should be tailored to your audience, in my opinion.
Suppose, for instance, that you're at a party and introduced to a person you don't know, who innocently asks, "And what do you do?"
Now does this person have a genuine interest in knowing the details of your manufacturing process or how you started your business from scratch? Do they care what your ultimate goals for the business are?
Probably not. In this case, and in almost every case where you are being introduced to someone, either socially or through networking, I would say you should use the cut-and-dried version of an elevator pitch that Rick Spence describes in "Why nailing your elevator speech is crucial", Financial Post); use the formula "We do XXX for YYYY so they can ZZZZZ" (X being what you do; Y being your target customer; and Z being the value you create for clients) - and then shut up. Don't say more, Rick advises, until you hear those three magic words, "Tell me more". That's your cue to talk more about your business, keeping your conversation as focused on your customers (rather than you) as you can.
However, there's an entirely different kind of elevator pitch that you also need to have polished and ready to use - the sales pitch to an important person speech.
Like the plain elevator pitch, it has to encapsulate what you do and how what you do benefits your customers in 60 seconds or less. But it also has to convince that person to buy from you or invest in your business.
So, says Rhonda Abrams in 6 Components of an A+ Elevator Pitch, besides what your business does and how what you do benefits your customers, your elevator pitch should also include:
- how you plan to make money;
- why you will succeed;
- your ultimate plans for the business.
Rhonda says that the why-you-will-succeed part is the most important part of the elevator pitch: you need to be able to explain (succintly) what the market conditions are that make your idea a sure-fire success.
But as you see, these are all points that your usual customer won't be interested in and in fact, will make his or her eyes glaze over if you go into them in any detail at all.
So make sure you have several versions of your elevator pitch thought out in advance so you can deliver the right elevator pitch to the right person.
More on Elevator Pitches
- Don't Forget Your Promotion Kit!
- The New Elevator Pitch (About Small Business: Information)