I have worked with many clients who aren’t networking face to face. They are playing online and not getting any traction in their business. Too often networking is NOT working because of a lack of clarity around the transformation and impact they provide. See if this sounds like you! (All names are changed for privacy purposes.)
The Perfect PitchThe Symptom:
When Sue came to me, she had a full social media presence in place but it wasn’t getting her clients (social media is a visibility tool, first and foremost, not a lead generation tool.) She lived in an upscale small town in close proximity to Manhattan. Sue had previously spent over a decade as a real estate agent and she was active in Rotary, an excellent organization for growing your small business through giving back to the community (Rotary’s mission.)
She had expertise, experience, training and a passion for health and wellness, and created her new business around showing women how to live diet-free and healthy. While she was still going to Rotary, she wasn’t talking much about her new business, and wasn’t exploring other real time networking opportunities because she didn’t know what to say about her business.
The Actual Problem:
As smart and savvy as Sue is, she wasn’t clear on the value she brings to clients and struggled to articulate it. This led to a lack of confidence surrounding her new business and avoidance of networking events that would help her connect with potential clients.
The Goal:
Work with Sue to craft a handful of powerful pitches so that whenever she was asked what she did (which is the same as asking “what difference do you make and who do you make it for”) she’d have a clear, focused statement at the ready that invited connection and had the listener asking for more.
The Solution:
Sue was a quick study. We worked first on getting crystal clear on her ideal client. She created three Most Wanted posters (an essential exercise and foundational piece for every business.) Then we created a short list of big benefits that her services offered. We crafted a couple of powerful pitches and included a second format of storytelling.
Template Shortcut:
I work with (WHO) YOUR IDEAL CLIENT, who struggle with (WHY)NAME THE PROBLEM, to (WHAT)NAME THE BENEFIT YOUR SERVICE HAS. And I do that with (HOW)UNIQUE SERVICE YOU OFFER.
Sue now has flexibility when she is networking to fit the pitch to the person asking. With her reclaimed confidence she is connecting with prospective clients, moving them to breakthrough session meetings to explore her services, and filling her practice with her ideal client. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE TO HEAR SUE’S NEW 30 SECOND IRRESISTIBLE PITCH!
Storytelling Format:
When you are asked what you do, you can always illustrate with a quick story. In Sue’s case she would say,
I recently worked with a successful real estate agent. She had been so busy building her business that she’d not taken time for herself and had gained forty pounds over the last decade. Her daughter is getting married and she wanted to look fantastic for the wedding and keep looking great and not battle her weight again. We worked together over six months and she lost thirty pounds without going on a diet or living with limitations. We worked together to eliminate both the weight and the reasons she gained it. She is still losing weight, feels fantastic and is totally excited about the upcoming wedding and her new found confidence and energy.
This is a simple and powerful alternative to the 30 second elevator pitch template, for an irresistible networking introduction!
COMMENT BELOW on your experience crafting your elevator pitch or networking.
And if you’ve got a business challenge you’d like a solution to, please share it here or shoot me an email at melissa@173.254.10.202. You may see your issue solved in a future episode.
