Focus on one thing
The biggest difference between an elevator pitch and all other kinds of sales pitches is in what you don't say. Usually, a classical pitch contains:
- Founders' backgrounds
- Addressable market size
- Overview of competition
- Other important information
With your elevator pitch, you need to focus on the problems you deal with and how you approach them. Omit any description of how your firm itself functions; instead, focus on why the firm does what it does.
Memorise – but don't get stressed
With only 40 seconds available, you need to memorise your pitch almost word for word. You can even rehearse it while doing something else, just to make sure that you are able to make the pitch even if you are being somehow distracted.
But there is no need to panic. In such high-pressure situations audiences tend to be more tolerant.
Count on the intimacy factor
You might shine with all your dynamism and charisma when on stage but using the same tone in a more private environment would come across as shouting. The elevator pitch is more like am ordinary conversation than presenting from a podium. You may therefore need to reduce your level of enthusiasm.
Don't sell – communicate
Don't ask too much of your audience. Don’t ask for commitment, only for attention. Realise that you only need to communicate your message. Don't regard pitching as a competition: this is the conclusion of the inc.com website.
It is possible that you will never actually get to deliver a pitch in an elevator. Nevertheless, being able to describe your company in 40 seconds or less may prove useful elsewhere. Even if you don’t currently have a startup you want to present like this, one day you might.
-jk-