Thursday, August 31, 2006
Elevator Speech: Going Up!
For some reason, the term “elevator speech” makes me feel sleepy. These self-introductions tend to be dreary and boring. They follow a predictable fill-in-the-blanks pattern. The first time someone explained the concept to me, he used Option 1: “You know how stressed-out people get when they’re moving? Well, I have a three-step easy-move system...” Yawn. Option 2 starts off more marketing oriented. “I work with solo-preneurs who are struggling to sell themselves without sounding sales-y.” True. But I’ve discovered a better way to tell my story...by telling a story. Recently I met a financial consultant who opened with, “I help clients manage money. For example, one client was a recently divorced woman who just suffered a devastating financial loss. She was afraid she’d have to declare bankruptcy. Two years later, she’s living in her own home and buying investment property...” Well, I may have gotten a few details wrong, but that was the gist of her story. Everyone in hearing distance leaned over to ask, “Can I have your card?” So I went home and, just for fun, created some examples from my own experience. “For example, one client had a beautiful calling card website but all the revenue came from face-to-face networking events. We overhauled the website, added an e-course and created a section to showcase her services. Now the website brings in serious inquiries – and occasionally a sale after a single phone call.” “For example, I wrote a press release for an arts group’s annual seminar. The story got picked up by the big city papers and a couple of suburban weeklies. We tripled attendance rates from the year before and the group had to go out and find a new meeting room.” No success stories? Too new? “For example, a client might come to me with a brilliant information product on a hot topic – and a track record of zero. I would help the client discover hidden benefits, develop some bonuses and write a direct response sales letter that would bring in revenue almost immediately.” Isn’t this a lot more fun than, “I help people who...” After all, an elevator speech is copy, just like your web site and your sales letter. And this blog. |
# posted by Cathy Goodwin @ 11:21 AM 
