If you could have a movie trailer created about you, what would you want it to say? That’s essentially your elevator pitch..
What is an elevator pitch.
Career counselor Jenn Dewall explains: “A elevator pitch it is a brief summary explaining who you are and/or what you do, and it is a way to get to know someone in a professional way.”
Keep in mind that an elevator pitch is fast, “no more than 60 seconds. No one is going to pay attention to anything for more than a minute,” says Dewall.
Although we are talking about a few seconds, a well-crafted and designed elevator pitch can be the difference between getting a job or not, or obtaining a new client or not.
If you can speak confidently and eloquently about who you are and what you offer; you are giant steps ahead of the competition.
Now that you know what an elevator pitch is, it’s time to learn how to make a great elevator pitch in 10 steps.
How to make an elevator pitch.
- Determine your goals.
- Identify the way you want to be remembered.
- Make a sketch.
- Know your audience.
- Make sure you’re not giving up everything.
- Practice.
- Say it with confidence.
Let’s see each step one by one:
Determine your goals.
“Find out what’s important to you and what you want to accomplish by presenting the elevator pitch,” says DeWall. “The #1 thing to remember about an elevator pitch is that you are offering yourself as a solution to a problem that needs to be solved.” HOW are you the solution? Also, ask yourself these three questions:
What do I want to transmit?
What is important that others know about me?
What do I want them to remember about me?
Identify the way you want to be remembered.
DeWall recommends thinking about this question: “What accomplishments, skills, and strengths do you want to highlight about yourself?” You don’t have enough time to recite all your work experience, or all your interests and skills; Instead, you should focus on the highlights and the things you enjoy talking about the most.
Make a sketch.
“Write it down, get it out of your head,” says DeWall. “Getting your elevator pitch down on paper helps you take all your words and ideas and put them into a simple sentence structure. “It shouldn’t be more than 5-6 sentences to make sure it’s less than a minute. As DeWall points out, the goal here is to be fast, but with some room to spark curiosity about who you are.”
Know your audience.
Your elevator pitch should be tailored to your audience, similar to how a resume is tailored for specific jobs. DeWall recommends doing it with 2-3 audiences in mind (eg companies, customers, potential customers) and customizing it for each one. Essentially, “different things for different people”.
Make sure you’re not giving up everything.
“Thinking of a powerful way to engage your audience,” says DeWall, “leaves people wanting to know more about what you do and how you do it.”
Practice.
An elevator pitch is only as good as you say it is. Your job is to make the pitch come alive and the best way to ensure success is through practice. “Practice out loud, on your own, saying all the words. Memorize it,” advises DeWall.
Say it with confidence.
Confidence is necessary to say your pitch like a pro. Make eye contact with your audience and make sure your body language is appropriate. For example, don’t cross your arms. “Do it with a smile. You are presenting yourself and you want to be accessible!”
An elevator pitch is a quick, persuasive speech that smart people use to attract interest. It’s a well-crafted “breakthrough” that can make or break your next big opportunity. So get it ready and give it all you’ve got!
If you are really interested in creating your own business and want to find more information on this subject, buy our book “How to create a company while working: Discover how to manage your time, manage your money and motivate yourself while creating a company and working for another” , where you will find all the information you need to found your own company, without having to leave your job.
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