I am very likely to get some flak for what I’m about to say but I think elevator speeches are a bad idea. Everyone even remotely engaged in networking will profess the absolute need for a canned and short verbal snippet that you can whip out at a moment’s notice to wow some prospective client. The theory is that everyone is sooooo damn busy and in such a hurry that you only have 30 seconds tops to hook them and make them beg to know more about how your product/service will rock their world. Anyone not able to master this artful verbal pitch is doomed to fail in the lightning quick business world we inhabit. Once again, I’m calling BS.

I’ve been networking like a fiend for 4 solid months as I develop my new company. I’ve heard upwards of 500 of these elevator gems and I’m here to tell you that your elevator speech sounds exactly like what it is: a canned verbal commercial with about half an ounce of humanity and maybe the same amount of sincerity. You sound like an actor in a high school play. The words are logical but the delivery is stilted and the timing is off. The truth is that there are very few people who can swing this type of performance (and it is a performance) and come off with any success. Despite the rarity of this skill (how many people make it in professional acting?) legions of would-be business developers, recruiters, applicants, and sales folks are honing their doomed weapon. Sad.

I have a better idea. How about instead of focusing on these 30 seconds of fame, you learn absolutely everything there is to know about your product or service and the industry in which it resides? If your product knowledge reaches a certain point, you won’t have a rote response to all situations, you will have the exact RIGHT response to SPECIFIC situations. The difference may seem subtle, but it is important. If your focus becomes knowing the ins and outs of everything related to your product/service/industry, you will have all of the right words at your disposal. When faced with those situations that used to call for the canned speech that would be laid OVER the conversation, you will have relevant content to ADD to the conversation. 

If you are able to add relevancy to a conversation rather than pour your pitch over a conversation, people will want to stay connected to you. It is flattering to have someone pay attention to what you say and then continue the conversation by adding value. It is much more likely that the people you touch will see you as someone to seek out and remain connected.