How to Create an Elevator Speech

In case you are unfamiliar with an elevator speech, it is a verbal pitch about your company or a client's that will hopefully encourage other people to want to learn more about it.

No matter the circumstance, whether you are out at a conference or you are just out and about, you should have an elevator speech about a particular topic, company, or person. When you are promoting yourself, your company, or a client, you need that elevator speech to answer questions like, "What is your/their company about?" "What can you tell me about yourself/them?" etc. You need to get people interested in the topic of your elevator speech, you need to make it short (around 30 seconds) and you need to make it compelling.

Why is it called an "elevator speech"? Well, it's supposed to be something you can tell someone when standing in an elevator and be able to say in the time it takes to ride an elevator. In that short amount of time, you have to make a big impression. As someone in franchise public relations, I have to deliver these all the time.

So how do you make one of these guys a good one?

1. Make people care. People want to know, "What can the company do for me?" The answer to this question is going to really make or break whether or not the person cares to carry the conversation past the elevator speech. Explain the benefits of your company or your client's company and personalize it. 
2. Make it easy to join the club. Feel free to drop some big names that you company or your client's company has worked for/with, even if they are competitors with the person you are pitching too (this could actually work to your benefit). 
3. Make them want to hear more. The pitch is supposed to be nice and short so do not try to stuff it with detail, put enough in there to peak their ear but not so much that they have to double back. A few good details, your credibility, and what the company can do for the person. 
4. End with a call to action. What are you willing to do for the person, to win over a client or customer? What is your end goal? Etc. 
5. Be yourself. Be professional but do not act like a stiff board, have a smile and be comfortable. No one is likely to buy a pitch from someone who is rigid and awkward. Be comfortable with your pitch and say it nicely. 
6. Get feedback. Tell it to people who can give you feedback like coworkers, friends, family, etc. Just don't test it out on the people you are trying to win over. 

If you have any questions about elevator pitches, then contact All Points PR - a Chicago PR agency.