I attended a BNI meeting this morning in Norwich (for details see the base of this article), the first I’ve been to in a while and I really enjoyed it.

I wrote up a script to read out and when I timed myself I found it to be 60 seconds… and I knew that, as the group was so large, I needed to cut 15 seconds from it to fit the time restrictions. No small task when you want to get as much information across as you can, as succinctly as possible AND include a call to action. But I managed it and the experience has prompted me to write this blog post.

You see, an ‘elevator pitch’ is mentioned by many a marketing person, myself included, and rightly so because it is a massively useful tool to have for occasions when you need to get your message across fast.

There are a ton of situations where this comes in handy; waiting at the school gates, mingling at parties and so on – times outside of work where you get asked the question “So, what do you do?”.

But the point I am getting to is that as great as a 60 seconds pitch is, actually cutting it back to 45 seconds is even better… and even better than that? Try 10 seconds!

I personally recommend, as part of the ‘Mastering Your Message’ workshop, that you write a 10 word, 25 word and 50 word ‘pitch/intro’ for your business and if you do this I can assure you , it will come in handy time and time again!

For example, I lost count of the number of times I was asked this morning what I did. Having been a member for 7 years previously I knew to expect this and so I was ready with “I teach business women how to create and develop their own brand” and when asked to elaborate went on to say “Oh you know – create a strong identity, have more work/life balance and attract lots of lovely customers in the process. That sort of thing…” Needless to say this resulted in further conversation and fun conversation at that!

I cannot even begin to count the number of times, when I’ve asked the same question at networking events over the years, I’ve heard the standard response; “Oh, I’m an accountant/solicitor/graphic designer/{insert business type here}” – I know I’ve done this and I’m guessing that you have too at some point… perhaps you still do now?

Well this is the point where I say STOP! You need to get inside your client’s head and ask: What are they looking for you to help them with?

Then use your brand knowledge to create specific responses for such occasions… and if you can make it fun or witty even better. Everyone likes to be happy and if they can be happy whilst remembering your business – all good!

So, whether you’re actively networking or not, having these things ready really can have a huge impact on your business.

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Homework

Your homework for this week, should you wish to accept it, is to write your own 10, 25 and 50 word pitches and I’d love for you to share them on the Brand Kitchen’s Facebook page.

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The Brand Kitchen’s mission is to help passionate business women achieve their business dreams from creation to fruition and onwards along their journey to success through creating a sting brand that will help deliver the life of their dreams. Get FREE branding tips with our Cake Break weekly emails.

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Business Network International (BNI), is a global networking organisation and well worth a visit to your local one to meet some folk and promote your business. The one I visited this morning was Kett Chapter in Norwich. You can find out more and find your local Chapter here:  http://www.bni.co.uk/