How to Write Your Elevator Pitch

An elevator pitch is a short and compelling statement that describes your business, product, or idea in a way that's easy for anyone to understand. It's called an elevator pitch because it should be short enough to deliver in the time it takes to ride an elevator.

Here are 5 key factors to consider when crafting your elevator pitch

Clarity

Your elevator pitch should be clear and easy to understand. Make sure that you use simple language and avoid jargon that your ideal audience won’t understand. Remember that just because something makes sense to you, doesn’t mean everyone will understand it. For that reason, you should always simplify your elevator pitch.  

Compelling

Arguably the most important aspect of your elevator pitch is how compelling it is. Your pitch should be interesting and engaging. You can use storytelling, statistics, and examples to make it more compelling. For example, let’s say you're the Editor-in-Chief of a city-specific publication such as Laguna Beach Living. You might talk about how many visitors Laguna Beach gets every year and how you help local businesses get more foot traffic from both locals and tourists.

Relevance 

Your elevator pitch should be relevant to the listener. And yes, that might mean that you need to tailor your pitch to the specific audience you’re delivering it to. So while you might be thinking you just have one elevator pitch, you might in fact have several – one for each audience type that you have. 

Another example of this, let’s go back to the Editor-in-Chief of Laguna Beach Living example. You have a specific elevator pitch you present to local businesses you want to work with, followers on Instagram, hotels you want to promote, and more! For a single publication about one town, you might have 5 elevator pitches!

Credibility

Now your elevator pitch should be credible. Use specific numbers, statistics, or examples to back up your claims. You don’t want to give anyone false information when you’re pitching to them. It’ll just come back to bite you later. So, if you’re pitching to a local business that you want to promote – share the exact number of website visitors you get, your reach on social media, and how many followers you have. This will help make you more credible to that local business. 

Call to Action

Finally, your elevator pitch should have a clear call to action. You can ask for a meeting or provide a way for the listener to learn more. Maybe that’s giving out a business card with your contact information or inviting that person to follow your social media accounts. Whatever it is, make sure you’re giving them clear steps of what you’d like them to do next. Your call to action should also be tailored to the person you’re delivering your elevator pitch to. 

When you keep these 5 key factors in mind, your elevator pitch will be clearer, more compelling, more relevant, and more credible which will increase the chances of the listener to be more interested and take the next step. 

Keeping those things in mind, how can you write the perfect elevator pitch?

Here are some tips on how to write a great elevator pitch

Keep it short and sweet

An elevator pitch should be no more than 2-3 sentences long. The shorter and simpler your pitch, the more likely it is to stick in people’s minds. And the better you’ll be able to get the whole thing out before people lose interest…

Identify the problem

When you’re crafting your elevator pitch (all versions of it), start by identifying the problem. I suggest making a list of every potential audience type you could be giving your elevator pitch to, and beside each of them list the problem that your business or idea solves. This will help you explain why someone should be interested in what you have to say.  

Focus on the benefits

Instead of just describing what your business, product, or idea is, focus on the benefits it provides. Explain how it will make someone’s life easier or better. For example, you could explain to a local business that your website – lagunabeachliving.com will provide them with the foot traffic they’re looking for from the tourists of Laguna Beach. 

Practice, practice, practice

The more you practice your elevator pitch, the more comfortable you’ll be when delivering it. Practicing will also help you hone and tailor your pitch to make more sense and be more effective. You can practice in front of a mirror, with friends and family, or even with strangers when you’re pitching them! 

Be confident

Confidence is key when it comes to delivering your pitch. And practicing will definitely help you become more confident, so these two go hand in hand with each other. You’ve started this business for a reason! Believe in what you’re saying, believe in what you do and it will come across in your delivery. 

Use personal experience

People are more likely to remember and connect with a story, so you can use a personal story or experience that makes it obvious why they should be looking to YOU as the solution to their problem. Use storytelling to convey the problem your business solves and of course, the benefits it provides!

Your elevator pitch is an important tool for networking and pitching your business idea. By following these tips, you’ll be able to write an elevator pitch that’s short, sweet, and to the point, while also effectively communicating the value of what you have to offer and why you’re the one to offer it. 

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