Anatomy of an Elevator Pitch

The current issue of Inc. — You Know What Your Company Does. Can You Explain It in 30 Seconds? is the first spot-on description/ how-to/ playbook that traces an actual branding session with a company that is hard-put to explain its business in a compelling (and understandable way).

Most folks have imbibed the Kool-Aid: they know they need this mis-named tool. (How many of us really spend time in elevators anymore?) In my work, I spend a great deal of time peeling back the corporate or personal onion, helping people to put words to what it is that they do (sell, offer, etc.), and then putting those words together in way that their listeners will immediately understand. Sometimes this takes the form of an organizational boilerplate; others a personal brand statement. It is not easy or for the faint of heart–the really tough part is framing your pithy description in terms that describe your "what I can do for you" terms.

In the Inc. example, here’s where the company starts out in response to the question, What does your company do?:

Their answer: UControl provides home security and automation services to a number of
markets, primarily, you know, to consumers and enabling other service
providers to provide that service to their consumers as well.

Here’s where they end up: We bring home security out of the closet and onto the Web.

As Inc. sums it up:

The magic comes when you can talk like a human being about your
business, and when you can really deliver a punch on why this is
important to your prospect.

And magic it certainly is.