The Elevator Pitch: Going Up – or Down?

If you had never heard of Toastmasters – which of the following pitches would motivate you to find out what the fuss is about?

• In 1924, Ralph C. Smedley organized the first meeting of the organization that eventually became Toastmasters International, in the basement of the YMCA in Santa Ana, California.
• I would have never had the courage to present at the last customer meeting without the experience in public speaking that I gained through my Toastmasters club.

While the history may be interesting at a later point, it does not answer the initial core question of what Toastmasters is, and the benefits that your target – the potential member – can personally derive by joining this organization.

The “elevator pitch” has its name because it should be possible to deliver a message during an elevator ride. That does not allow much time – especially if the building is not high! The pitch should be easy for anyone to understand, not just for insiders, so it’s important to concentrate on the big picture, the one key benefit, and an action item. What action item? For Toastmasters, it is to visit a club, of course!

And remember to leave out abbreviations and jargon. Do not, for example, say, “My club had a very interesting Table Topics yesterday.” You are not conveying a benefit, and will only confuse your listeners. (For non-Toastmasters readers, Table Topics refer to the part of the Toastmasters meeting in which participants are given a random question, and must respond for 1-2 minutes, thereby practicing their impromptu speaking skills. It’s more fun than it sounds – themes have ranged from drawing a penny out of a hat and speaking about the year on that penny, to choosing what year in the future they would like to visit.)

Above all, show your excitement – if you are not passionate about the subject of your elevator pitch, why would your listener be intrigued enough to follow up?

Think of it this way – the ultimate elevator pitch is on Twitter. Instead of this entire blog, I would have only 140 characters to get my message across to you. So here goes (in 139 characters, with spaces):

Learn to speak with confidence – advance your skills in a fun, supportive community – visit a club to experience the magic of Toastmasters!