An "elevator pitch" is a one minute speech designed to sell yourself. The name comes from the idea of bumping into a key decision maker in an elevator and trying and sell them on an idea by the time they reach their floor. They can be used to pitch products as well as people but this post will focus on using an elevator pitch as a way to promote yourself with the goal of getting a job or promotion.
It takes some serious thought to write a good elevator pitch because you have to really know what you want. Vague, generic, elevator pitches rarely work because you want the other person to walk away with some specific ideas about you. Spending time with a career coach can help you figure out what you really want.
How to create an elevator pitch.
- Start with a one line explaining who you are.
- Then describe what you do.
- Move on to what kind of company you want to work for.
- Explain what is unique about you.
- Finally, tell them what you want to happen next.
Example
An example would be: "Hi, I am Sam. I am an experienced accountant with 20 years of experience working for a big 4 company. I am looking to move to a local business in the metro area. I really want to use my tax experience to help a company maximize their investments. Do you know anyone I should talk to?"
Once you have your elevator pitch written out, share it with some trusted advisers and get their feedback on it. When you have finalized it practice at home until you are comfortable and then set yourself a goal of using it at least once every day. The more you use it, the more natural it will become.
A career coach can help you with the process of crafting an elevator pitch.
You might also be interested in reading: Example emails to use in your job search.
