It’s your only shot and you haven’t got much time. It’s the things you read about in business biographies. What do you do? Elevator pitch — literally.
Having a well prepared pitch ready to let loose at any moment is priceless. How do I know? I’ve bombed a few times. But a well prepared pitch, and a lot of luck, helped me win a massive marketing fulfillment bid for the 2013 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four Tournament.
Our prospects appreciate brief, but interesting pitches. Here’s how to take your business’s main points & build short pitches, using Bob’s Dental Machinery as our fictitious business example.
Three Point 5-second Pitch
Quality, speed and customization are the points of this micro-pitch:
At Bob’s Dental Machinery, we supply high quality, custom machinery quickly.
That’s simple enough, right? Is it a pitch or a tagline? Depends on how you use it. But injecting this into a conversation at the right time is a great way to break the ice.
Five Point 15-second Pitch
Now your listener is interested. They’ll probably want you to continue, but not for too long. You’re in an elevator, remember? 🙂
This 15 second pitch’s topics are:
· Ease of ordering
· Quick order turnaround times
· Custom products
· Knowledgeable staff with years of experience
· Competitive pricing
So your pitch might sound something like:
Bob’s Dental Machinery cost effectively produces your high quality machinery quickly. Our machinery is also customizable, helping you manufacture products more economically. Combine that with an experienced staff & ordering becomes a breeze, giving you more time to run your business.
Explaining how our product’s features benefit our prospects — ‘ordering becomes a breeze’ & ‘manufacture products more economically’ — helps them see what’s in it for them instead of spouting off a list of features & achievements. Now go for the win by adding facts.
Add Cases & Facts for a 30-second Pitch:
Fast
Our client XYZ Orthodontics now has faster, same day delivery. Keeping their components in-stock helps us deliver custom products in 3 days less time than the industry average.
Custom
One of XYZ Orthodontics orders used 340 different parts sourced from 15 different suppliers — all of which we had in stock.
Knowledgeable & Expertise
Since 1995 we have built over 6,000,000 different widgets for customers across all industries.
Price Competitive
We saved XYZ Orthodontics $3000 per month after they left their previous supplier. Our solutions cost around 20% less than our direct competitors.
With those facts, your 30 second pitch might read:
Bob’s Dental Machinery can turn around orders same day at prices as much 20% less than our direct competitors. Our on-site inventory of 10,000 unique components allows us to be responsive while saving our clients freight costs. And 20+ years of experience, and execution of 6 million projects means you can order with assurance. We’re doing this today for businesses like XYZ Orthodontics, who saved $3000/month switching to Bob’s Machinery.
And that’s it. You’ve turned a cold lead into a warm one. Now stay in touch & keep marketing.
Let’s keep our pitches crispy & ready. It’s true, we never know who we’ll meet. And have you ever opened your mouth only to let the flies out? We’ve been there before, that’s why we write articles like this. We can’t go wrong with concise, clear & prepared.
Check back soon, we’re always posting new articles of our own or posting great marketing content from around the web. Or schedule a call with us today so we can talk about your business’s marketing goals.