You Only Have 30 Seconds

August 25th, 2009

When initially speaking with prospective customers, you typically have 30 seconds or less to not only get their attention, but establish a reason for them to engage in a conversation. During your “30-second commercial” you must let prospects know what you do and, more importantly, why it’s relevant to them.

So, what do you say? Have you perfected your commercial highlighting key features and associated benefits of your product or service? When you give your pitch to prospects, do you obtain a favorable reaction? Probably not. At best, you may hear, “That’s interesting” – even though they really aren’t interested. You may get a request for information as a way to end the encounter.

Why does that happen? Prospects have seen and heard it all before – radio, email, and direct mail marketing and advertising. Your commercial is just more of the same. Regardless of how unique, timely, and important you believe your message is, it’s just more noise to the prospect.

So, how do you change the prospect’s response from, “Send me some literature” to “We need to talk”? Stop telling prospects about your company and your product or service. Stop telling them what you can do for them. Don’t make your pitch about you. Make it about them. If a prospect is going to invest any time talking with you, he wants to very quickly know “What’s in it for me?”

Use your 30 seconds to focus on the prospect’s world. Relate your product o r service from the perspective of the problems and issues the prospect is dealing with or the goals the prospect is attempting to achieve. This approach establishes credibility by quickly getting to the “What’s in it for me?” question – distinguishing you from the rest of the pack. When prospects believe that you understand their problems, concerns, challenges, and goals, they listen – making it easier to convert your 30-second commercial into a meaningful conversation.

Can you describe in 100 words or less what you do and how it is relevant to your prospects – from their perspective? Your opening statement will either draw prospects into a conversation or turn them away. So , carefully consider what you are saying. Are you quickly answering their “What’s in it for me?” question? Are you putting your product or service in the prospect’s world and telling the story from his perspective?

Whether you call it an elevator pitch, a commercial, or a positioning statement, a carefully considered and constructed opening with a prospect – one that focuses on the prospect’s world and the prospect’s issues – can make the difference between a prospect remaining a prospect or becoming a customer.
© Sandler Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

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