Do you have an Elevator Pitch? Have you heard of an Elevator Pitch? If you have an Elevator Pitch; is it limited to one audience or do you have numerous variations readily available to fully take advantage of any given opportunity?
Although the Elevator Pitch has been the most fundamental business/sales skill for decades, it appears to be a skill that has been lost with the millennial generation. What is an Elevator Pitch? An Elevator Pitch is a short summary used to quickly and simply define a product, service, or organization and (most importantly) its value proposition. The term “Elevator Pitch” is based on the idea that it should be possible to deliver the summary/value proposition in the time span of an elevator ride (typically 30 seconds to two minutes).
I recently participated in an industry event which included approximately 30 of my competitors as well as several hundred customers. While I had my account representatives focus on existing and potentially new customers, I focused on possible recruitment opportunities. These events provide a great opportunity to witness a potential future employee in action with a customer. Given the size, nature, and environment of these events, an account representative has minimal time to engage a customer and truly capture their attention.
Therefore, a strong Elevator Pitch is often crucial for success. It was amazing to see how ill-equipped many account representatives were. The extreme regulatory restrictions and the significant reduction in product offering throughout the industry can make it challenging for one to differentiate themselves from the competition. With that said, one should always be able to provide an honest and attractive value proposition when engaging a potential customer – at a moment’s notice. It is this brief and distinct value proposition that will often differentiate the account rep and/or company from the competition.
The unfortunate harsh reality is that this millennial generation of business professionals lacks many of the most basic sales/business skills and drive. They often can leverage modern technology to their advantage, but often they lack the most basic communication sales skills.
If tomorrow you happened to enter an elevator and when the doors close you realize that the only other person in the elevator is the largest client of one of your competitors, would you be able to leave that elevator confident that you may have just successfully developed a new client? So once again…………….do you have an Elevator Pitch?
Husband, father, coffee connoisseur and lover of all things hockey. At 51 I sometimes wonder have I done enough. I have been married to my best friend for 30 years. She knows all my faults and loves me anyway, As a father of “almost always” perfect boys, I am always surprised at what life has to offer. It is messy, scary, thrilling, and always fun.
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