floor 'em with a great elevator speech

Floor ’Em with a Great Elevator Speech

Anthony Juliano

Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce May 14, 2009

Hello!I’m here to bring you

some bad news!

(And some good news…but that comes later)

Today’s communication environment is challenging,

cluttered, and chaotic …

and you have about 2 min. to convince your audience you

deserve their attention

(Actually, you have a lot less

than 2 min.)

And there’s more bad news!

The “world's least reassuring elevator sign”

WIIFM?

Most elevator

speeches are

BROKEN

Common elevator speech problems

• Too broad – don’t try to say everything!• Too bland• Too long• Not targeted• Focused on you, not your audience

I want to plummet to my death

My name is John Doe, and I’m the marketing and communication manager for Doe’s

Widgets, LLC. We design, manufacture and distribute widgets of all shapes and sizes for OEMs worldwide. We have 4 plants located

throughout northeast Indiana, and 150 employees statewide. We have been in

business since 1985 blah blah blah, your audience has stopped listening…

What’s wrong?

• Title• “LLC”• Don’t say what you do, say what you can do for them• “OEM”: don’t use jargon; your audience will be trying to decipher it instead of listening to the rest of your pitch• Stats: only if you’re quantifying a benefit

Now here’s the good news…

How do you GET and KEEPyour audience’s attention?

Six ways to floor ’em

1. Use the word “you”

2. Differentiate yourself

3. Use a memorable analogy

4. Be conversational

5. Have a call to action

6. Rehearse (but don’t memorize)

Remember Mad Libs?

Your Outline

Hi! I’m [Your name] with [Organization].We [something unique] for [a very specific

audience]. We’re like [memorable analogy]. My goal is to [sum up an outcome]

for people/organizations like you/yours who [something they need].

[Call to action].

An example

Hi! I’m Anthony Juliano with Asher Agency.I’m a marketing strategist dedicated to helping

organizations and individuals like you understand and respond to today’s challenging communication environment. I strive to be kind

of like a communication Swiss Army knife: readily available when needed, with all the right

tools. My goal is to help you develop clear, concise messages and effective marketing

strategies. I’d love to meet sometime to talk in more detail and learn more about you.

What’s included?

• Name• Company name• Brief description of what I can do for them• Analogy• Call to action

Adapt for specific audiences!

• Prospective investors• Prospective business partners• Prospective employees• Prospective employers

THEIR NEEDS ARE DIFFERENT THAN THE NEEDS OF YOUR PROSPECTIVE CUSTOMERS

Use the outline, or

adapt from it

And try it out at the Chamber’s Morning Mix on

May 21

Questions?

Thanks!anthonyj@asheragency.com

(260) 424.3373

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