How to craft the perfect elevator pitch

Can you describe what your business does in a couple of sentences? We have all heard about the need for an elevator pitch: a succinct and inspiring rundown of your business that captures someone’s attention in the time it takes to ride between floors.

To our reckoning, the tallest building in the Highlands has eight floors. The Taipei 101 building in Taiwan holds the record for the fastest lift in the world – it could travel those eight floors in two seconds. If we assume that lifts in the Highlands are not quite as fast as this, you probably still only have a maximum of 30 seconds* in which to make the right first impression.

We know from experience that lots of our clients struggle to neatly introduce their business. Maybe you used to be able to sum up what your business offers but the business has now changed. Perhaps your company offers so many different services that it seems impossible to find a brief catch-all descriptor. Or maybe you’re great at summarising what you do but at the end of your pitch nobody seems that interested in knowing more. We firmly believe that, with a bit of effort, every business can be presented in an engaging and succinct way.

The starting point is your customers. Why does your business exist? What common pain do all of your customers have that you solve for them? Number two: how do you solve it, and how does that make you different from your competitors? At Dynam we have moved away from telling people that we’re a branding, marketing and web creative agency (even though that is what we are). Instead, we talk about making a good first impression, and the fact that we ensure our clients are noticed for the right reasons, from the very start. We do this via a thorough Clear Thinking analysis of all businesses that we work with - and we believe that it’s this analysis that sets us apart.

Have a go. Sit down with a blank piece of paper and make notes about the problems that you address for your different customer types, looking out for commonality. Once you have worked that bit out, jot down some ideas about how your product or service addresses these issues. Add some notes about what sets you apart from the competition. After that, put all the words into a few sentences. Make it clear and use plain English: jargon and abbreviations have no place in your elevator pitch.

This collection of sentences doesn’t just have to live in your head or be learnt by your sales team. Use it on your website, your brochures and your introductory emails to prospective customers. And if you’re struggling, you might benefit from one of our Clear Thinking sessions…


* Estimated height of an 8-storey building is 38 metres tall (Tall Building Height Calculator)