Introducing Your Business: The Elevator Pitch

(Note from Tara: This guest post is by MJ Petroni, Causeit, Inc. Principal. I asked him to contribute to "Ditch the Dusty Widget" on the topic of networking and the elevator pitch because he's so darn good at it! Used with the author's permission.)

If you have only a couple of seconds to introduce your business—standing in line, in a group networking meeting, or, you guessed it, in an elevator—what will you say? The brief moment afforded you by a senior exec or a networking group is intended to give you a chance to demonstrate why your listener(s) should be interested and ask you for more information. Keep it short—and try following these steps.

Introduce who you are first.
Who are you? What are you committed to? What is the core product of your business (safety, innovation, partnership, etc.)?

My name’s MJ Petroni of Causeit, Inc. and we partner with businesses &
individuals to help them translate their intentions & visions into reality.

Most people only listen to the very beginning and very end of what you say—the times when they have to check in to manage a transition into or out of a conversation. Leave them with the essence of you, your business and your brand. Don’t go into the specifics yet; that’s the next step.

Explain briefly the tangible elements of what you do—in lay terms.
How do you deliver on the promise of what you just introduced?

We help you discover the core intention and vision of your business and then
translate it into plans and tools you can use now—drawing on proven business
methodologies and marketing techniques.

Hopefully we didn’t lose them—if they were interested, they stuck around and are about to hear a real example of what we do. If not, we’ll close the conversation with a brief reminder. If for some reason you do want to lose ‘em, just dive into describing the features of your business with all the details. Go ahead, toss in the jargon! If, however, you do want to keep their attention, use simple language and common concepts, and keep it short. I would love to explain our coaching process, our business development process, and our web & branding partners, but there isn’t time.

If you have time, and they look interested, give an interesting, brief example of a recent project or showcase client.
Demonstrate the fun, exciting, engaging and unique portions of your business.

Recently, we’ve been working a great company called Fliptography to showcase
their product. Rather than explain the booth that makes flipbooks from people
dancing in front of a camera, we coordinated with local trend-setters, and
helped them secure an article in The Mercury in less than two weeks after
launch.

Make your work tangible, real, and interesting—but only if there’s
time.

Tell them what to do to take action—or continue the conversation
if it’s one-on-one.
Do they need to call you to set up a meeting? Is there a promotion for them to take advantage of? Will you take them to lunch? Should they go to your website?

Check out our website for more useful, fun articles, workshops and business
development resources at www.causeit.org.

Have you asked for their business? Make sure that if you have only a few seconds to speak with them, you provide an opportunity for them to take action and find out all of the information you were aching to tell them. A simple, appropriate invitation to meet up for lunch can work, as can a referral to a source of more information.

For more information about how to introduce your business, meet new clients and build on existing relationships, contact Causeit, Inc., a business development firm committed to the success of love, work and life.

©2008 MJ Petroni and Causeit, Inc. All rights reserved.