Who Are You and Why Should I Do Business With You?

Quick. What do you do? Can you tell me --- or anyone --- exactly what you do? Can you tell it in plain English? Can you tell it in 30 seconds? If not, you're not marketing profitably.

You need an elevator speech.

"What do you do, Susanna?" People ask me that all the time. Fact is, that's the one thing people ask each of us when we meet. What if I told them exactly what I do? "I'm a copywriter." Guess what? Very few people know what that means. They either pretend they know or they go on to something else. Either way, I've no chance to tell them what I can do for them. I give them no exciting sound bites. I don't say a damn thing of interest.

Some people think a copywriter copyrights music! Hell, they don't know what I do. So what's my elevator speech?

"Susanna, what do you do?"

"What Armani does for your personal image, I do for your business image.™"

How's that for an elevator speech? Would you want to know more? Sure you would. And that's what a good elevator speech is all about.

Here's another elevator speech I use. It starts with a question. That instantly engages people. This one is slightly longer.

"What do you do, Susanna?"

"Have you ever seen an ad for Sears or heard a radio commercial for Remax? Or have you gotten mail from Reader's Digest convincing you to subscribe? Well, I write those."

You have to admit, that's a pretty powerful elevator speech.

Another person uses a similar one. "What do you do, Bob?"

"Have you ever bought anything online from Amazon.com or Ebay or paid any bills online? Well, I write the software that makes that possible."

Pretty powerful stuff. There's no way he could explain to you what he does for a living. Beyond that, there's no way you'd care or understand. But when he tells you this way, you're interested.

That's the power of an elevator speech. Do you want me to write one or two for you?

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Simply put, an elevator speech or elevator pitch is a clear, short, compelling and very easy to understand explanation of what your company does. It can be a bit longer than mine. But not much.

Most marketing professionals agree that an elevator pitch should be about 30 seconds long. But there are others who believe it can be up to two minutes. I think it really depends on the basic purpose of the elevator speech. If you are going to investors for money, I support the latter. If it's for your Web site or a speech or talking to a prospect, I'm in favor of the former. Either way, it's short. Very short.

A good elevator speech has no corporate speak. No jargon. You're not trying to impress anyone with your knowledge. If you are, you're sure to fail.

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I critique Web sites and marketing material every week that is full of corporate speak. It contains a lot of crap. The material is written to make the writer or the company or the CEO sound like someone or something important. What it does, however, is turn people off.

No one likes to read corporate speak. Everyone wants to read things they can quickly and easily understand. They want to read words upon which they can base a buying decision or, at the least, a decision to ask for more information.

So you say you have an elevator speech? Tell me. Is it any good? Do people still have no idea what you're trying to say? Do they know who you are? What you are? What you sell?

Let me write a compelling elevator speech for you. I cut through the crap. I dig out what it is you're about and write that in 30 seconds or less. No one is going to care enough about you to search around to see what you're selling. There are too many other people they can turn to. Why do they need you?

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Ah --- that's what we want to know. That's why you need an elevator speech! Tell them why they need you and not the other guy.

In the time it takes you to ride an elevator with a stranger I will give you the words to:

Do you need an elevator speech? Of course you do. Ask me for a quote now. A powerful elevator speech will put money in your pockets and make your life easier. Get a quote now. It won't cost you a dime. But if you wait or if you don't get one, you'll pay big time. Because who really cares what you do but you? And who else can make them care if you can't?