What is an elevator pitch?
An elevator pitch — also known as elevator speech — is a short, memorable description of what you do and/or what you sell. The goal is to earn a second conversation, not to convince the person you’re talking to that they should hire you or buy your solution.
An elevator pitch is never an opportunity to close a deal. It’s an opportunity to close more of your prospect’s attention and time. It’s a quick introduction to you, your company, and how you can help your prospect.
How long should an elevator pitch be?
An effective elevator pitch is meant to be no more than 30 seconds, just like the length of time you ride in an elevator. You want to keep your words easily digestible, so avoid trying to get too deep into specifics as it can drag on the conversation — and lose your prospect’s attention.
Basic elevator pitch template
When I first started [your trade], I found a common issue: People needed [solution].
For [time period], I’ve been [specializing/provding] just that. [State how]. I also [additional differentiator/advantage].
With this [three adjectives to sum up the above], my customers not only [benefit #1], but they also [benefit #2].
- A personal greeting: Start every pitch by establishing a human connection and making your prospect feel seen and heard.
- A statement of your company’s mission: Your mission can be blended with your value proposition and vice versa. But this piece of information is essential to get your prospect’s buy-in, quickly.
- A hook to get your audience’s attention: The hook can be as simple as a probing question or a highly personalized statement that’s been tailored to your prospect’s needs. Either way, the hook will often seal the deal.
- A real example: See the template in action by reading a filled-out example, allowing you to visualize what your pitch may look like as you refine and edit it.
Some quick examples
“I’m a life coach and I help people get more out of life. Let me give you some information about my services and about life coaching so you can learn more.”
“I coach/help people who want to start their own business, get clear on their direction and put a workable plan in place towards a profitable and rewarding future. If this is you I’d love to chat”.
- Hi, I’m *Wolf* from/owner at *Freedom Shaper*.
- I am a *Community Leader coach* who works specifically with *with local Communities to develop Leaders and entrepreneurs*.
- *I’ve already helped many leaders, from all over the world, preparing them to lead and manage their communities!*
- One thing that makes our business stand out from our competitors is *that I personally do what I love, feel totally fulfilled by my choices, AND lead a balanced and free life on my terms. Our business teaches others how to do the same, from a place of trust and integrity*.
- Something I am specifically looking for right now is *new and creative ways to get even more Community Leaders using our coaching principals*.
- If you have any ideas, I’d love to discuss them with you after the meeting.