You only have thirty seconds

It's been called your 30-second commercial or your "elevator pitch." Why? The idea is if you are in an elevator with someone and they ask what you do, you have 30 seconds or less to give an answer before the door opens. The same idea applies when you are presenting what you do or who you work for to a client.

You want to keep it brief and engaging; use this time as an opportunity to get your foot in the door when prospecting over the phone and when you are at networking events.

You will need to do a few things to create a successful 30-second commercial:

• Have an opening statement. Simply state who you are and who you work for. Keep it simple.

• Develop a challenge statement. This is your opportunity to let the potential client know you understand the challenge of finding a perfect venue for their event or meeting. If you have done your research, you will know what challenges they have.

• Now it’s time for a positioning statement. This is your chance to give your potential client a clear reason why they might be interested in what you have to offer. Let the client know what differentiates your product or service from others.

• Conclude your 30-second pitch by answering the question on their mind, "What's in it for me?" Include language that explains what you can do to help them.

• And, don't forget to provide your contact information.

Ready for an example? Let's say that you work in Talent Acquisition and you meet a prospect at a networking event. How would you position what you do and how it would benefit this new prospect in 30 seconds or less? Try this as an example:  

Client:  "Who do you work for and what do you do?"

Reply:  "I provide quality temporary and full-time talent to business like yours so that if you have any open positions or if one of your employees is sick, on leave, or on vacation, there is no loss of productivity or service to your clients. My name is Sara, Talent Acquisition Manager at Opt-In Staffing. I'd like to find time to discuss how we may be of service to you."

The best way to hone your pitch is no surprise. It takes practice. It will not sound natural at first, and that's because it isn't natural. Not until you've done it a few (hundred 😅) times. But, the more you practice, the better and more natural it will become. Until one day it will become second nature and you won't even have to think about it. That's when you know it's pitch perfect.

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