The value of an elevator speech....

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Permalink Reply by Nesh Thompson on April 2, 2008 at 1:39pm

Greg, I wasn't familiar with the term which I haven't come accross over here, but then in my line of work I don't get to make cold pitches but rather respond to prospect enquiries and referals from other sales guys who need me to follow up on my area of expertise. I have no doubt that our guys who sell our software have to face situations where in order to break into a potential client situation they have a limited time to set out their stall.

I guess you can consider any sales situation will have an initial snap period in which to base decisions on carrying further on, whether it is a cold call situation, response to an enquiry etc. That initial five minutes is all important in deciding whether you carry on to the next level.

I guess the potential problem with a formalised 'short pitch' is that there is little to base a solution proposition. We castigate some sales people who go in 'all guns blazing' offering solutions before they have had the chance to diagnose the problems their prospects are facing. The problem with this is also there is so much pressure, at least from the sales persons point of view. The tendency, I would think, is to panic and try and cover everthing you can do in a matter of minutes.

My MD often tells me that initial meetings are little to do with the fundementals of the solution or your product but about impression and personality. Where he has succeeded, where others fail, is that in a pressurised situation like that, he doesn't at all seem concerned about the time but focuses on answering questions and diagnosing problems. Sometimes this may not cover anything to do with the product at all, and may not involve much talking from himself either.

Like I said, I don't really do this kind of pitch, but I do think this really does depend on the type of sales person you are.

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Permalink Reply by Greg Lester on April 2, 2008 at 5:51pm

Very interesting insight.....when I do a more detailed write up on things I'll touch on a few of the items you brought up. Thanks for getting my wheels churning Nesh! Hope all is well for you...

Regards,
Greg

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Permalink Reply by Brad Trnavsky on April 2, 2008 at 9:06pm

Greg,

I'm going to give you the counter point to Nesh's argument. I don't think it is something I would use in a cold call either, but in the right situation a killer elevator speech is a truly powerful tool.

I personally use my elevator speeches (I have several) in situations where I only have a moment to interact with the individual and will want to follow up later with a phone call and or e-mail. An example would be networking meetings, social events, conventions, trade shows, etc...

The reason I think they are important is because in these situations you usually only have 30 to 60 seconds to hook them, and I want to be able to leave a voice mail that is reflective of that elevator speech in order to jog the memory later. In addition to that I think most people myself included will try to tell too much if they know time is short, so what you will end up with 60 seconds of rambling and no real coherent information. The advantage of the elevator speech is that you can pre-plan your message for the event and even come out with an effective communications strategy.

One way I will do this is when we have several people covering one networking event we may have several key people picked out that we want to target. Pre-event we will construct different related, relevant elevator speeches we will give those individuals to give a larger message and hopefully perk interest. This helps us in several ways. First every time that person meets someone from my company we are giving different messages (have you ever been to an event where everyone you talk to from one company says the EXACT same thing?). Secondly, we ensure several well thought out messages get out instead of whatever the rep says randomly as they meet each key individual. and finally, we are able to ensure that the message was clear, concise, and targeted.

I think you should have lots of fodder for your blog post now. I'm interested to see what you think...

-Brad

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Permalink Reply by Paul McCord on April 3, 2008 at 5:29am

Greg,

Let me give a slightly different perspective. I'm not a big fan of USP's although I think each salesperson should have one--or more as circumstances dictate as Brad indicated.

My problem with them is what most salespeople expect from them is unrealistic because they view the USP as being something that pricks interest and sets them apart. Neither is true for the majority of salespeople.

25 years ago when sales decided to steal the concept from marketing the elevator speech worked great. it was new. It was unique for prospects to hear. It did set the user apart from his competition. It did prick interest.

Seldom does it do that anymore.

The UPS has become so ubiquitous that it has lost its impact. In addition, most salespeople have tried to make their UPS sound like they do some miracle work that will just blow the prospect away in an effort to hide what they actually do.

A salesperson will spend hours working on and honing their elevator speech and then the first time they have the opportunity, they pull it out. When asked what they do, they're ready: "I work with business owners to manage current and future negative business fluctuation while maximizing their cash flow and enhancing their employee's job satisfaction."

They're expecting the other person to say something like, "Wow! How do you do that? Do you a few minutes, I think I'd like to see how you might be able to help me?"

Instead, the response is, "Oh, you sell insurance, huh?"

In addition, when it's all said and done, most every elevator speech sounds very similar to all the others. It is very difficult to develop an elevator speech that really sets you apart, pricks interest, and accurately informs.

Again, this isn't to say I think one should not have one. I just think the expectations should be real, the person has to invest real time and effort in forming their speech, and it has to have some relevance to what they really do.

Paul

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Permalink Reply by Dr. Ken Jones on April 11, 2008 at 12:10pm

Interesting comments, Paul. I remember the eras you speak of and the intent to try to control situations and relationships that was so prevalent then. Yuk. I have a question: How do you feel about elevator questions?
Ken

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Permalink Reply by Paul McCord on April 11, 2008 at 1:31pm

Ken,

I think elevator questions are far more effective than elevator speeches. People are far more interested in talking about what they do than hearing what someone else does. They're more engaged by a quality question than by an advertisement--no matter how well the advertisement is constructed. They're far more likely to respond if you take an interest in them than if you try to pry into their world. They're more open when asked than when told. They're more impressed when you demonstrate a high level of competence by constructing a quality question than when simply stating your competence.

In addition, questions allow me to gather information so I have something solid on which to respond. Questions also allow me to qualify.

I'm a strong believer in the idea that I'm always prospecting and always qualifying and I prefer to only approach qualified prospects. By constructing a quality question I can gain a tremendous amount of information in just 20, 30, 40 seconds that helps qualify a prospect.

Finally, I find little credence in the concept that a well constructed elevator speech will impress someone to the point that even if they don't need me they'll remember me and pass my information on to someone else. However, if I have shown a high degree of interest in them and competence in my question(s) that may well leave a lasting impression.

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Permalink Reply by Dr. Ken Jones on April 11, 2008 at 2:17pm

Interesting Paul. Do you have favorite questions that you use?
Ken

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Permalink Reply by Paul McCord on April 11, 2008 at 2:22pm

Not really. I generally try to take the question from the introduction of the person I just met. As a sales trainer and consultant, not surprisingly I try to focus somewhere within their sales area but not always. Not necessarily a favorite but one that comes up often is something to the effect of "That interesting. How do you sell your (whatever)." Often that leads to a brief statement of not only their process but issues they have within the process.

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Permalink Reply by Jeff Rossi on April 3, 2008 at 11:28am

Greg - Here's my take -

I ask my sales folks to make two behavioral checks when engaging a prospect or a client -

1 - Make sure that what you're saying gives that person a "compelling reason to listen to you". The only way someone can say yes to this is if they've done pre-call planning and have at least a basic understanding of the person's need or potential need.

2 - Know your organization's value add/competitive advantage before making any contacts.

Now, whether it's a cold call or an impromptu networking situation, you're ready to speak intelligently about your offering.

I connote the elevator speech with something that was prevalent in sales situations from the 1960's. Consultative sales was just beginning and the initial "grab" or elevator speech was critical to starting the sales process. The elevator speech explained the salesperson's offering from the salesperson's point of view and didn't consider what would help the client. Clients are a bit more savier these days and there is a lot more competitiion - so being buttoned up with a "compelling reason to listen" and knowing your competitive advantage equals the elevator speech of today.

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Permalink Reply by Dr. Ken Jones on April 11, 2008 at 11:58am

Hi Greg,
Forgive my ignorance. I am new to this community. You indicated that you have blogged about the notion of an elevator speech, but I don't see a link for it. I'm very interested in your observations. Where can I find your blog?
Ken

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Permalink Reply by Greg Lester on April 16, 2008 at 11:25pm

Hey gang.....I have to apologize....I've been a bit out of touch lately and haven't had the chance to do a blog on elevator speeches quite yet. It's been about a week since I was on here and finally Brad sent me an email and told me to get my backside in gear as there has been some great ideas, thoughts, etc. on this topic. So....I will absolutely do my best in the next few days to get the blog up on what I wanted to write about regarding elevator speeches. Sorry for not being a bit more proactive on things.

By the way, I absolutely love the discussion on here...thank you! (And Paul, I have to admit, I've never heard of an elevator question other than "What floor ma'am?" You have me intrigued about what you are referring to.)

Regards,
Greg

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Permalink Reply by Eddie on April 17, 2008 at 10:12pm

Any business communication should be concise and add value.

Neither concise nor of added value; "I work with business owners to manage current and future negative business fluctuation while maximizing their cash flow and enhancing their employee's job satisfaction" would NOT be a part of the elevator speech. Even now I don’t see how this guy is an insurance salesman.

We are here to achieve the company goals. If you consider the 80/20 rule … 20% of what we do achieves 80% of the results. I believe the elevator speeches are a part of that 20% activity achieving desired results.

I agree with Dr. Ken Jones and Paul McCord. The question is a powerful tool. I feel like it is closer to the 10/90 rule because it is flattering to the individual to see that someone is actually interested in what he does for a living; that he adds value to the company; that YOU care about what this guy has to say. (Of course you have to listen to him)

See http://www.articlegeek.com/business/sales/how_to_get_your_customer_...

Also by asking you start a process of determining where your product or service fits. This is what is important. The questions you ask will determine your fit with this customer. You also find out quickly if you CANNOT help him. If this is the case don’t waste your or his time. Discover the critical problems that your service or product can solve for him. What benefits does the he gain from knowing you?

I used this process at tradeshows. Our booth always performed. While all the other booths were trying to sell, we were finding out how we could help. Our leads were easily 10 times what the other booths were and they were relevant. It always started with, “Hi …What do you do?”

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