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The Myth of the 30-Second Elevator Speech
Recently, I was at a networking event - something I usually avoid at all costs, but I was bullied into going by my internal "Should" committee. As soon as I arrived, I knew I was in trouble. About 6 people filled 26 chairs. The facilitator was on her cell phone, ignoring the few attendees. Really, the only reason I stayed was because I saw a friend there from a job I had long ago. Since I missed her, we sat and chatted, waiting for the speaker to well, speak.
After a 20-minute talk on avoiding lawsuits (delivered by a guy who I swear was the incarnation of Droopy the Dog from the old cartoons), the facilitator announced, in kind of a bossy way, that it was now time to introduce ourselves and deliver our 30-second elevator pitches.
I'm not good at being bossed around. It's one of the reasons why I work for myself. So as soon as she said that we were to do these pitches, I thought, "Uh uh, no way, not me, and who decided the 30-second elevator pitch was a good idea anyway?"
Before I knew what my lips were doing, out it came - that part of me that behaves like a cat toying with prey, and there I was, looking this woman in the face, saying, "Or we could just say what we want without feeling pressured by artificial time constraints." She wasn't happy with me.
Yet, when the six of us each had our turn, we talked like real people having real conversations. We asked each other questions about our work. We offered ideas and insights. The evening actually became livable, because suddenly the people in the room were alive. None of us was repeating a well-rehearsed, over-worn, word-burp. We were connecting.
It's really okay not to have a 30-second pitch. When someone asks you what you do, you can even break the ice by saying, "I don't have a 30-second pitch, do you have a full minute?" This will probably make them laugh and open the door to a wonderful conversation.
The next time someone encourages you to follow a convention - especially a business, marketing, or sales convention, I offer you permission to say no, to ask why, to do a one-eighty, to proverbially stick out your tongue.
Good marketing is not about grabbing at people - not grabbing for their attention, not grabbing for their wallets, not grabbing at anything. Good marketing is an open hand, extended for the purpose of building relationships. It may be that the relationship will result in a sale, but that can't be the primary aim. When it is, the relationship becomes exploitive. The other person recognizes the manipulation at some level and resents it, losing trust in you.
So instead of pitching yourself at people, have conversations. Listen. Make open-ended offers where it's really okay for the other person to go slowly, to not get the words out right, even to say "no." You'll be happily surprised by how often you hear yes - and enjoy the firm grounding of getting a yes that is genuine and honest.
[ Go to Part 2 in this Series ]
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