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| How to Promote Yourself Quickly and Easily |
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When I was starting Shanghai Networking News, I had a problem explaining to people what it was all about. I'd just stand there umming and aahing about helping people connect, making it easier to network and all sorts of other vague verbiage. I was in a bind; How could I get people interested if I couldn't even explain what I did? Then I remembered reading something ages ago about an "elevator pitch" -- a quick summary you can rattle off about yourself, your company or anything else in the time it takes to make an elevator journey. An effective elevator pitch can help you stick in the mind of the people you talk to, without boring them while you stutter out an explanation of what you do. Whether you're an entrepreneur explaining a new business idea or a job seeker asked to talk a little about yourself, an elevator pitch'll help you get to the point without having to put your brain into gear first. My pitch for Shanghai Networking News is: Shanghai Networking News tells business networkers what on, what's worth going to and who goes where.Since I've been using it, I've been getting less confused questions and more interested questions from the people I talk to. It's short, catchy and tells people exactly what it is we do.
To start crating your own elevator pitch, write down the keywords of how you help people. People want to hear about what you can do for them, not just the name of your job. So, instead of saying: I'm a Chinese teacher.try something like I help people improve their language skills to make it easier for them to live and work in China.Especially for jobs with a stigma (like, oh, financial services) this could be an effective way of not mentioning your actual profession. Also, if you're in a competitive field, highlight what makes you different from the competition. We've all met dozens of Chinese teachers and financial advisors. Let us know why we should use you above the rest.
The key to any elevator pitch is practice: it's all very well coming up with an amazing pitch, but having to wrack your brain every time you say it won't make a good impression. Try repeating it to yourself any chance you can get. If it feels weird doing it in public, pretend it's a cellphone conversation or just endure the puzzled stares. Above all, don't slip into a full-on sales presentation. Keep it brief, light and not too pushy. There's loads more information about elevator pitches all over the net:
As Scott mentions, "A good business story should help someone understand more clearly what it is you do." I think there's a place for both stories and elevator pitches -- use a pitch to catch people's attention and then reel them in with a story. They'll be hooked in no time. Bookmark this article:     
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| Written by Alex C-G | |
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Make your networking work better Learn how to network more effectively and boost your business from the founder of Shanghai Networking News. |