There are few times in life so terrifying as that “So, tell me about yourself!” moment – particularly when it’s in the high-pressure environment of a job interview (sell yourself to me!) or some kind of networking event (you have 60 seconds to make a new pal!).
Our professional introductions – what we might call our “elevator pitch” – need to be impressive, persuasive and reasonably slick… but we still want to sound like ourselves, and have people remember us fondly.
It can help to think about your elevator pitch in three steps: who (who you are addressing), what (what is the structure of your story) and why (why do you do what you do?). Some of this you can prepare in advance, but some of it will need to be adjusted in the moment.
Step 1 is to think about your audience. What do they care about? What is relevant to them? What value can you bring to them?
The “Who”: Consider your audience – and what you want from them
The way I like to think of this is: what challenge or problem am I (or my company) able to solve for this person? You may need to make an educated guess. Or, you could see what someone tells you before you start speaking!
You should also consider your ideal outcome: what is your goal in speaking to this person? When you talk about yourself or your business, are you hoping this person will look you up online, sign a deal today, or refer you to someone else? Or are you just hoping to make a memorable, likeable impression, to be held in their mind for future?
There is no right answer here: you are allowed to just go to a networking event to make friends. However, be clear in your own mind about your aims when you introduce yourself, so you can tailor what you are saying.
Example: A job interview. Your goal: a new job! You research not only the company (what is the big problem it’s solving?) but the hiring manager (what are THEY most interested in achieving?). You’d think about how you solve those problems: examples of when you’ve done it, and skills you have that make you a hero in those areas. Your introduction would be a neat summary of those things.
Or consider a networking event, where you are meeting potential clients for your business. What industries are people coming from? What job titles will they have? Give it a thought, then you can think about tailoring the “value proposition” of the company into a simple statement of “how we help YOU”.
Of course, the best thing to in any situation like this is listen first. What are the ACTUAL, rather than IMAGINED, scenarios your audience is facing? But if you’ve given this some thought and research in advance, you’ll be able to tailor your pitch on the fly with ease.
Next up: learn about Step 2, the “what” of your introduction.