“Creating a Killer Elevator Pitch”

My previous two articles have covered the topics of “Selling in a Time of COVID” and “5 Step Template for Sales Success“.  Both of these articles have been very well received. 

Soon we move on to how to create exciting content to populate your template and hold your audience’s attention for a period of time.  

The meeting length is dependent on where you are in the sales process. 

The Elevator Pitch

At a Conference or Networking event, you must get your message across in a short few minutes and then hope the person you were speaking to says, “tell me more” or makes arrangements to meet you again. [getting another meeting is a big success]  

The Why Meeting – Reasons to Move Forward

If it’s a prearranged meeting as a result of some prior contact, you will probably be allowed 45 – 60 minutes. If the meeting is online more likely 30 minutes; online is always more focused with fewer distractions.  

It’s a Conversation 

Do not turn up, open your presentation and proceed from slide to slide with little or no interaction.  If you do this, you will be out the other end with no understanding of your audiences’ expectation or requirements. 

What’s Next? 

The desired outcome is a meeting when at the end of the time allocated, your audience is engaged in your presentation and are asking questions and wanting to know more.  

A Good Outcome  

A sales presentation must be a two-way conversation with your audience ideally doing most of the talking while you use my template to guide the conversation to your desired destination [You must control the conversation, not your audience].

• When asked questions like the following, you know you are on the right track –
• Can you install remotely, or do you need to come to our site?
• What is the lead time on this product?
• Is it available in blue?
• Can we pay in our local currency?
• Who else that we know has purchased this product?
• Can we have this as an additional feature?
• How many cupholders does the vehicle have? [this is a story for another day!]

What Now – Call for Action 

it’s now time to close the sale or move to the next level;  

My Call to Action

I am proposing to host a Workshop entitled ‘Creating a Killer Elevator Pitch’ soon and I would welcome your thoughts as to what questions this Workshop should answer.  

• What do people need to do better to win more opportunities for business?
• What do you think people’s biggest fears are when presenting?
• What’s the number one challenge when a vital pitch is looming in a few weeks?

Before I finalize the Workshop, could you tell me what is your number one challenge when asked to pitch?  

Your thoughts on this would be especially welcome as I want to be sure of covering everyone’s requirements. Please let me have your comments.

By Executive Coach Andrew Keogh of Aristo.ie