ELEVATOR PITCH

Career and Personal Development

Elevator Pitch

What is an Elevator Pitch?

An Elevator Pitch or 60 Second Commercial is a short introduction of yourself including your current career goals, skills, and experiences. The name Elevator Pitch reflects that it should be possible to “pitch” your self-marketing summary in the time it takes to complete an elevator ride. Imagine you step onto the elevator and meet the CEO of a company you have been learning about in class. In this scenario, you want to be prepared to sell yourself and have a business card in hand by the time you exit the elevator.

Tips for Creating Your Elevator Pitch:

Make a list of five things you want an employer to know about you. Make sure your key points match what the employer is looking for – this means you may need to revise your elevator pitch based on each job.

Develop a hook, or a way to get the employer interested. A hook will come at the end of your pitch, and will help the employer remember you and your qualifications later. A good hook is to ask an employer for something, such as a business card or a chance to schedule a meeting.

You want to keep the pitch simple and brief, and always include who you are, what you want to do, and why it matters. You should use a story or example to demonstrate your best qualities. Practice is very important, but you want to be natural in the delivery.

Samples:

Hi. My name is Joanna Smith. I am currently a senior at Neumann University majoring in Business Administration. I recently completed an internship with XYZ Company in their sales and marketing internship program. I learned a great deal during this time including marketing strategies, management, and b2b sales. I have been researching your company online and through social media and I am very interested in your management training program. Here is my card and a link to my personal blog that goes into more detail of my internship experience. I would like to have the opportunity to talk to you more about the program. Could I give you a call next week?

Hi. My name is John Smith. I am a recent graduate of Neumann University. I obtained my degree in Communications and Media Arts, and I have over two years of experience in website design. I held two internships that gave me opportunities to develop websites for small businesses, in addition to beginning social media marketing campaigns. I would love to connect with you via social media where you can see more of my work. Here is my card. I look forward to connecting with you shortly.