What’s Your Elevator Pitch?
Written by PR Etc., Inc.
Published by Rockford Register Star
Monday, June 13, 2005

How do people outside your organization perceive your products and services? What do vendors or clients say about your business? How do employees explain your organization and its offerings?

In an ideal world, external audiences, such as customers or business associates, would have the same description of your organization and in the exact way you’d like to hear it depicted. But too often this is not true.

A consistent portrayal of your business is essential to ensure that your key messages are communicated on an ongoing basis.

This messaging can be accomplished by developing a straightforward “elevator pitch” which is a concise, carefully planned and well-practiced description about your company that your mother should be able to understand in the time it would take to ride up an elevator – approximately 30-60 seconds. It is the basic introduction of who you are and the foundation of your "tell me about your company" answer.

The elevator pitch is not a sales pitch, but should briefly describe your products/services, your competitive advantages and your key differentiators. The rest are details about your organization and should not be included in this introductory elevator pitch.

To be most successful, the elevator pitch should be shared with, and practiced by, all members of your organization, including your board and senior management.

Think that everyone at your company is on the same page? Try this test: ask up to 10 people of your staff to call into a voicemail line to give their 30-60 second description of your business. Then decide if you need to develop an elevator pitch.