Elevating your Elevator Pitch

Are you familiar with elevator pitches? These aren’t proposals for elevator installations, they’re a valuable tool meant to quickly and effectively sell someone on an idea. Called an elevator pitch because it should take about 30-60 seconds — roughly the length of an elevator ride. Because of the brevity, it’s important to prioritize the most important information and convey it in an impactful way. To ensure you’re making the strongest first impression possible, use these helpful tips to take your elevator pitch to new heights.

Know Your Audience

When it comes to elevator pitches, there is no “one size fits all.” You will be pitching to a variety of different people and can use a variety of communication styles, so it’s important to vary your pitch by your audience. By understanding your audience’s wants and needs, you can craft the most effective pitch possible. This is also your opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge and proficiency in your field.

• Use language that your audience will understand and respond well to.
• Anticipate what your audience is looking for and provide them proof points for how you can fulfill those needs.
• Consider yourself a product that you’re selling. You want to make your audience feel as if they need you and the value you bring.

Once you’ve established your best approach and identified the audience you want to reach, it’s time to perfect the pitch.

Exude Confidence

If you want someone to believe in you, you must believe in yourself. Ask yourself what the goal of your elevator pitch is. Are you trying to make a connection? Trying to secure an interview? Promote a business? By establishing a clear goal, you can craft the most effective communication strategy possible.

After identifying your goal, it’s time to put your best foot forward. Confidence comes across in many different ways. Body language, word choice, and eye contact can quickly make or break a pitch completed in under a minute.

Practice, Practice, and Practice

The best way to feel confident and prepared about your elevator pitch is to rehearse it. Familiarize yourself with what you’re saying to avoid any rambling. You also don’t want your pitch to sound robotic or forced so be mindful of not sounding too scripted. You want to demonstrate a strong understanding of what you’re conveying, without memorizing and reciting out of nervousness. The more you practice your pitch, the more natural you’ll sound. A natural pitch displays confidence and strong communication skills, two highly valued professional traits. 

The more you work on your elevator pitch, the more likely you are to reach your goals — to sell that product or win that job. The right preparation, practice and positive attitude will transform an elevator pitch to an elevated pitch. No matter your career path, eventually having the skills to create a strong elevator pitch could come in handy. Herzing University has a variety of online and in-person classes to help you perfect your pitch and strengthen other valuable professional skills.