Too often do you meet business owners or business development managers at events and when asked what they do, they reply with a roundabout, broad, confusing and long winded explanation of what their business does. An elevator pitch is the business tool that stops this confusion and lets people know everything they need to know about your business in 60 seconds.

 

A business owner needs to think about it as a 60 second chance to sell their business. Less is best and the more concise you can be, even better. Far too many business owners shy away from doing this (and sticking to it) because they perceive the creative process as too long. Well, good news for you is it won’t take you long. Just two minutes, a pen and paper (or your iPhone notes) is all you need!

To start creating an elevator pitch you need to think about the outcome of the pitch. You need to leave people knowing who you are, what you do, why you’re important and you want them to not only listen, but remember.

So to write a winning elevator pitch in two minutes, here’s what you do…

  1. Who are you?

Write down your business name, where it exists and what your role is within the business.

E.g. Langano Business Strategists is a Brisbane based strategic advisory firm.

  1. What do you do?

Write down your services or give a synopsis/summary of your services so they know why your business exists and mention who your target clients are.

E.g. We work with small to medium businesses across the areas of financial management, leadership and HR, strategic marketing and strategic planning with the aim of making each business more successful. 

  1. Why are you valuable?

Write down why you’re valuable and why businesses choose you over your competitors (but don’t actually name your competitors – it’s about you not them!)

E.g. Our team have diverse business experience from either owning their own businesses or in top level management and directorships so they have an unparalleled understanding of the positions our clients are in and what they are trying to achieve.

  1. Say it out aloud!

Now it’s time to read back what you’ve written, tweak it to make it flow and practice.

Two minutes and you have an elevator pitch that will help you to win business and create a brand that people remember.

Additional tips for presenting an elevator pitch

  • Learn it off by heart but use your own language so you feel comfortable.
  • If you present it like an infomercial, people won’t buy into it so make it authentic -remember it’s much easier to sell when there’s an emotional connection, not a logical one.
  • If people ask questions midway, answer them and bring it back to the next phase of the pitch.
  • Let your personality through – especially if you’re a business owner because often this is part of your brand personality.