The Elevator Pitch: You’ve Got 30 Seconds…or Less!

From its origins as a device to pitch script ideas to its now customary place in business and networking introductions, the elevator pitch is used to sell something—your company, a product, a script, a business plan, or yourself. With business moving faster than ever and the never-ending distraction from smartphones, the elevator pitch has never been more critical to business and career development.

Unfortunately, the elevator pitch for many has become a wordsmithing exercise, akin to many vision/mission statements that need more focus, coherence, or memorability. Even worse, most elevator pitches lack the sizzle of a sell. A good elevator pitch identifies one key pain, solution, for whom, and why you or your company is best at it.

First and foremost, a good elevator pitch should pique the listener’s interest, encourage them to want more info, and remember one key message from the pitch. The biggest sin in an elevator pitch is trying to say everything about yourself or your company—the elevator pitch is not an executive summary.

Length and flow can also make a big difference between a successful and forgettable elevator pitch. A general rule of thumb is that 75 words fit in a 30-second pitch (the average time it takes to ride an elevator from the penthouse to the ground floor). However, that is approximately 54 words too many to fit in a Twitter tweet if you consider the average English word to be 4.5 letters. Therefore, a better guideline is now 20-25 words. However, those 20-25 words only become effective sales tools if stated in conversational English. They must flow easily out of one’s mouth without speaking too fast, putting words together that don’t flow, or using slang and abbreviations.

Also, avoid technical and industry jargon and acronyms. People outside your field will lose interest immediately when confronted with unknown nomenclature. Those in your industry will already know to ask about specific items if they’re interested in your pitch.

Finally, test and refine your elevator pitch regularly. Test it on your best customer and test it on your mom. Suppose either party doesn’t understand it or feels it doesn’t have enough sizzle to warrant asking more about what you are selling, then go back to the drawing board. Also, go back the next day and ask them what they remember about your pitch—one message should be uniformly memorable by both parties.

More than any other, two rules can make the difference between a successful elevator pitch and a lost opportunity: 1) The KISS (keep it simple stupid) principle is golden, and 2) ensure your message is selling one unique aspect of you or your company.