Creating Your Perfect Pitch!

Why should you describe your business to others in 5 to 10 seconds?

How long do you think you have to get anyone's attention? 5 minutes? 2 minutes? 30 seconds? It is actually 10 seconds. I know it does not seem like a long period of time but you will be amazed what you can say in 10 seconds. It is enough time to put your foot in your mouth and then try to get it out again, and it is also enough to tell someone your expertise and have them smiling and wanting to converse about it. Of course, I would suggest that you try and put together the pitch so that you can converse about it.

First of all, you need to gain the interest of the prospect you are talking with, and then you also want them to be your next client and buy from you. Is it that difficult to put forward your best foot and get them interested? Of course not! Start by simplifying your message, write down your core competencies, then describe it to the customer. Keep the customer in mind. Ask yourself, why would they want to buy from you? Then tell them why! Put on your customers shoes and see what is in it for them.

This can all be accomplished in just a few seconds - they may even have time to respond to you. Just make sure that you know what you are talking about. There is nothing worse than putting you foot forward and tripping over your tongue. We will deal with how to practice in a later section of the book. Now just follow the simple rules:

Define your core competency.
Describe that competency in layman's terms.
Put it in writing and see how long it takes to say.

Have you ever watched another person practice their pitch? Not likely! Most people do not practice, they prefer to wing it and see what happens. If you take the time to memorize the pitch and make it a part of you and what you do, you will likely win more customers. You need to pull out that mirror and get the camera rolling to see what you look like and how you can make improvements. In this next section, we will give you some ideas on how to practice your pitch.

Creating Your Pitch

Why would a customer want to buy from you?
______________________________________________________________

_______________________________ _______________________________

______________________________________________________________

What is my core competency?
______________________________________________________________

_______________________________ _______________________________

______________________________________________________________

List the benefits of buying from you (do not list the features but state what you or your product can do for them).
______________________________________________________________

_______________________________ _______________________________

______________________________________________________________

My Pitch
______________________________________________________________

_______________________________ _______________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

________________________ ______________________________________

_______________________________________________________ _______

Bette Daoust, Ph.D. has been networking with others since leaving high school years ago. Realizing that no one really cared about what she did in life unless she had someone to tell and excite, She decided to find the best ways to get people's attention, be creative in how she presented herself and products, getting people to know who she was, and being visible all the time. Her friends and colleagues have often dubbed her the "Networking Queen".

Blueprint for Networking Success: 150 ways to promote yourself is the first in this series. Blueprint for Branding Yourself: Another 150 ways to promote yourself is planned for release in June 2005. For more information visit http://BlueprintBooks.com

In The News:


pen paper and inkwell


cat break through


Lead Companies, Eight Features To Consider

So now the time has come to invest in Lead... Read More

More Cleaning and Janitorial Customers Using Yahoo

We use this method to find new cleaningcustomers, and it... Read More

Count Down To An Advert

There are hundreds of books available to teach you how... Read More

UK Sales and Marketing Terminology

Terminology / AcronymsABC figures: This is the independently audited sales... Read More

Five Deadly Sales Letter Mistakes

To be effective your sales letter must be opened, read,... Read More

How to ASK for Business -- WITHOUT appearing Pushy --

GIVING Vs "SELLING"Never lose sight of the importance of providing... Read More

The Doors Of Opportunity

Alexander Graham Bell once said, "When one door closes another... Read More

Leads, Prospects, and the Huge Gap Between

The leads marketing delivers to the sales team never seem... Read More

Dress as Though You Mean Business

Could casual Friday be undermining your leadership ability?One of the... Read More

The Relationship Between Colour & Sales

Make no mistake that emotions are the driving force behind... Read More

Consumer Effort And The Purchase Decision

It is a basic tenet of behavioral psychology that people... Read More

Business Lessons Learned At The Mall

Normally in this column I dispense highly-intelligent small business advice... Read More

Youve Got a Great Business, but Nobody Cares!

I would like to share a disturbing little secret with... Read More

Recommending Products Vs. Selling Them

Some of the best sales people I have ever met,... Read More

Lazy Man?s Way To Get Customers

No matter how big or small your business is and... Read More

Making the Sale When the Customer Wont Buy

Ever had a party online or offline, and had guests... Read More

Selling: an art of a skill?

Selling is as much an art as it is a... Read More

Your Voice is Your Instrument

On an introductory call, your voice is your instrument. During... Read More

Generating Sales Leads

Any company that relies on selling a product or service... Read More

Why People Use Long Sales Copy

Have you ever wondered why some people use long sales... Read More

A Look at Mannequin Heads

A mannequin head is a life-size head that includes all... Read More

Schedule Telemarketing Time For More Success

Telephone canvassing, or cold calling, is the practice of sitting... Read More

Doomed Before You Dial?

Several weeks ago, I conducted a "Mastering the Cold Call"... Read More

Ten Tips for Choosing the Right Direct Sales Company

Direct sales can be your ticket to a profitable home-based... Read More

A Pause For Thought

You can have your cake and eat it.What is it... Read More

Before They buy What You Say - 10 Steps To Selling Yourself

You are the productWe're all in the selling business whether... Read More

The Truth Behind Linear Selling: Why It Can Make Prospects Run The Other Way

Sean works for a major telecom company.During one of our... Read More

How to Eliminate Objections to Price

Have you ever stepped your way through the sales process... Read More

Three Ways to Increase Mortgage Applications

If you are in the mortgage business, the very first... Read More

7 Strategies for Writing Fundraising Letters

Writing fundraising letters can be an effective way to request... Read More

The Trusted Advisor Relationship: What Is It, and What Should It Be?

For the past months, maybe a year, I've been hearing... Read More

How To Seal The Deal In Seven Seconds

Can you close a sale in just seven seconds? If... Read More

How to Really Benefit from Associations (Part 1 of 3-Part Series)

Looking for new leads, new contacts, new business opportunities? Do... Read More