Making an “elevator speech” work

May 21st, 2006

Elevator pitches are a key part of most b2b sales and I read a good article by on this topic by Mike McLaughlin a site called “Guerrilla Consulting”

Although this particular article is focused on consultants, the essence of what is an effective answer to the question “so, what does your business do?” is no different.

The key observation in this article is that you need to create the “pitch” from your customers/clients perspective, not to grand-stand and to ask questions instead of blowing your own horn.

Now that may not sound too revolutionary to a lot of people, but it is by far the greatest mistake people make when they are put in the position to sell themselves or their service; they either undersell by giving some confused, convoluted, technical explanation or they go in to “sales” mode and lose credibility instantly.

Here is my spin on elevator pitches:

Write it down, rehearse it (tape it and listen to yourself) and refine it.

3 Responses to “Making an “elevator speech” work”

  1. Philip Woodgate Says:

    Great summary. Going through those simple key points really force businesses to think about what they are actually selling. I wonder how often the customer actually works it out before the seller.

  2. David Koopmans Says:

    Thanks for your comment. You might have a point there. I think one of the main reasons why companies struggle with this is that it requires some clear thinking about your own position, about how you differentiate.

  3. Will Says:

    Hi David - A lot of people I talk to are keen to come up with a great “elevator speech”. I like the idea too but it’s very hard to come up with one that works without sounding too rehearsed, salesy or corny. Can you share any examples of successful elevator speeches?

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