Guest Blogger Fred Miller is a speaker, coach and author of the book ‘NO SWEAT’ Public Speaking!  He has written this blog which highlights excerpts form his book… 

A great Elevator Speech should:

• Clearly articulate what you do, and if time allows, something that indicates expertise. (We like to work with Experts, don’t we!)
• Be succinct.
• Have impact

My Elevator Speech

What follows is my Elevator Speech. It is the culmination of much research, testing, and tweaking. It is the one I deliver, when given the opportunity, in front of groups. It goes “from the ground floor to the top floor.” Since it covers everything I want to tell a group, I refer to it as “The Ultimate Elevator Speech.”

Please read it and “hear” my voice as you do.

Kindly read it a second time and consider how it might look in your world. Remember, I did much testing and tweaking when developing this, and finding the right wording for yours will not be done the first time you compose it. It’s a process, not an event!

We’ll then take a look at each “floor” and see how it was crafted. It’s about thirty-seven seconds in length.

My “Ultimate Elevator Speech”

Hello. 

My name is Fred Miller.

I’m a speaker, a coach, and an author.

The title of my first book is, “NO SWEAT Public Speaking!”

Businesses, individuals, and organizations hire me because they want to improve their public speaking and presentation skills.

They do that because they know: Speaking Opportunities are Business, Career, and Leadership Opportunities.

They also know, we perceive really good speakers as experts! We like to work with experts.

I show them how to develop, practice, and deliver, a ‘Knock your Socks Off!’ presentation with – NO SWEAT!

Note: I did not go to the 8th floor, but sometimes I do. (More on this floor in a bit.)

The Elevator Speech
Floor by Floor

Now that you’ve read it, what do you think?

My goal is that you know exactly what I do and my expertise for doing it. You can now make an educated decision:

• “File” for future use if needed for myself or to refer.
• Refer to someone I could help.
• Have a conversation with me to learn more for myself or people I know.
• You may decide to Hire Me!

Let’s get into the Elevator!

1st Floor – Describe Who You Are

Hello! My name is Fred Miller

That may be all someone wants to know about you – Your Name.

Often, in the One-on-one Situation, they may just be being polite. If that’s the case – fine.

Move on to someone you’ve targeted to meet (more on targeting in a future chapter), and initiate a conversation. “Hi, Bob. I’m Fred Miller and I’ve looked forward to meeting you.” They’ll probably respond, when shaking your hand, “Pleased to meet you. What do you do?” (Great! I’m taking Bob to the next floor!)

Some people have names that are difficult to pronounce. (Fred isn’t one of them!) They can also be challenging, for those hearing them, to visualize. If that happens, the name can become a distraction, keeping the recipient(s) focused on the person’s name. They might be trying to figure spelling, derivation, or ethnicity of it and they’ll likely miss the next “floors.”

When the last name is one that falls into this category, use your first name only when introducing yourself. You can give them your last name and other contact information later if your Elevator Speech leads to a future conversation.

If the first name is an odd or difficult one for people not familiar with it, pronounce it slowly, and, if useful, relate it to something they are familiar with.

Another solution is to say it without hurrying, spell it at a slow pace, and say it, again.

2nd Floor – Describe What You Do

I’m a Speaker, a Coach, and an Author.

That’s what I do. Those three descriptions are clear, succinct, and easily understood.

Sometimes people tell me they wear a lot of hats and do many things. They have a hard time deciding what to say they do. Think about the tasks that make you money and you like doing. Use those and limit it to ‘three’. (More on why ‘three’ is important later.)

Hopefully, with both the Group and One-on-one audiences, they want to know more:

• What I speak about.
• What I coach.
• What I’ve written.

What describes you?

• Describe it simply.
• “I’m an insurance rep.”
• “I’m a CPA.”
• Most people know CPA stands for Certified Public Accountant. However, other alphabet abbreviations may not be as well know and should be either followed by the words they stand for or eliminate the abbreviation.

• Examples:

• EVP, Executive Vice President.
• CFO, Chief Financial Officer,
• CMO, Chief Marketing Officer.

• “I’m a graphic designer.”
• “I’m a patent attorney.”
• I’m a doctor.”

• You want them to know what you do, and not feel ignorant they don’t know what you’re talking about.
• People “see the emperor with no clothes, but don’t say anything.”
• If it is a profession that may need some explanation, give that clarification after stating what it is.

• Examples:

• “I’m a Ironmonger. That’s someone who sells things made out of iron. My specialty is yard sculpture.”
• “I’m a pediatric hematologist/oncologist. I treat children and teens with blood diseases and cancer.”

• You may think your profession doesn’t need an explanation, but it might. Clarity is essential to a great Elevator Speech.

• Example: Everyone doesn’t know what a Sous Chef is. (That individual is the second in command in a kitchen and reports to the head chef.)

3rd Floor – Describe Your Expertise or Experience

The Title of My first Book is “NO SWEAT Public Speaking!”

If not pressed for time, I might include the subtitle: “How to Develop, Practice, and Deliver a ‘Knock Your Socks Off’ Presentation with – NO SWEAT!”

The perception of someone who wrote a book is they are an expert. That’s one of the reasons I wrote several books, and why I mention it on the “Expertise Floor.”

• If you haven’t written a book, consider doing it!
• It doesn’t have to be the next “War and Peace.”
• A PDF available on your website makes you an author, doesn’t it?
• POD, Print-on-demand publishing makes the entire process easier than ever.

Look into it at Createspace.com, LightningSource.com, Lulu.com and other self publishing sites.

Other examples of Expertise are:

• Years in business.
• Industry awards.
• Family owned, third generation.
• Largest in area.
• Academic degrees.
• Published papers, articles, and books.
• News articles about the individual or company.
• Patents and copyrights.
• Only one of its kind.

Titles can convey expertise and prestige, a good quality to have!

Examples:

• Owner.
• President.
• VP of Sales.
• Proprietor.
• InnKeeper.
• Charge Nurse.
• General Manager.
• Managing Partner.
• Chief Resident.

Note: A person’s Title can be used with the second floor, as in:

• I’m the Owner of City Hardware.
• I’m the VP of Sales for Computer Hardware and Repair Service.
• I’m the Head Librarian.

This floor is important because it lends credibility to your Elevator Speech. Get help with this. Often we’re “too close to ourselves and don’t know what we know.” Have people who know you well, tell you what your expertise is. You might be surprised!

4th Floor – Why They Hire Me

Business, Individuals, and Organizations Hire Me Because They want to Improve Their Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.

“Hire me,” is the phrase my classmate, Roy Reichold, used that resulted in everyone in class, writing those words on a piece of paper and incorporating them into their elevator speeches. Those two words pushed me into researching Elevator Speeches and writing this book.

“Hire me,” grabs our attention, doesn’t it?

I prefer the words Hire Me rather than. . .
“I work with people who. . .
“I help companies. . .

Hire Me says, “I’m Proud of what I do.”
Hire Me says, “I’m Good at what I do.”
Hire Me makes it clear I don’t do this for free!

Hire Me can be an excellent Dis-Qualifier, especially with the One-On-One Audience.

If Hire Me turns them off – fine!
Move on to someone who might “want to know more,” and appreciates the message, “Hire Me,” implies.!

During the Q&A segment of one of my Elevator Speech Presentations, one attendee commented she thought my “Hire Me” phrase had an “Attitude” attached to it. I agreed and replied it was a good Attitude! Would you rather deal with someone who is wishy-washy about their expertise, services, and products? Not me!

If you don’t like the phrase, “Hire Me,” try one of these:

• Businesses and individuals pay me to. . .
• Businesses put me on their payroll to. . .
• People give me money to. . .
• Companies invest in my expertise to. . .
• Individuals spend money with me to. . .

Depending on your profession, one of the following could fit:

• People become my patients. . .
• Individuals and companies become our clients. . .
• Home owners have their major appliances serviced by us. . .

An individual delivering an Elevator Speech for their company might say. . .

• Companies become our customers. . .
• Home owners hire our company. . .
• Local governments engage our services. . .

Non-Profits might say. . .

• People write us checks. . .
• Individuals give us money. . .
• Companies donate to us. . .
• Service clubs volunteer for us. . .

“Because” is an important word in this floor of the Elevator Speech. It is an “Influencer Word” that has an impact on recipients about what the speaker is saying.

Dr. Robert Cialdini, in his famous book, “Influence,” points out this word has a unique motivational influence.

Do you remember something like this from your childhood?
“Why do I have to do that, mom?”
“Because I said so!”

Other examples:

• Because it’s the right thing to do.
• Because we have to.

Use the word “Because” in your Elevator Speech because it makes a difference!

Please consider reaching out to Fred Miller and PURCHASING his book 

‘NO SWEAT’ Public Speaking!

Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com