Comments on: 5 Reasons Not to Have a Cookie Cutter Elevator Pitch

By: 3 Ways to Use Social Media to Boost Your Client Base : Freelance Writing Jobs | A Freelance Writing Community and Freelance Writing Jobs Resource

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:33:29 +0000

[...] Engage: I’m not a big fan of elevator pitches mostly because I don’t enjoy being cornered to hear a sales pitch, and I don’t know [...]

By: Query Letter Writing: Dissecting a Successful Query Letter : Freelance Writing Jobs | A Freelance Writing Community and Freelance Writing Jobs Resource

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 21:11:05 +0000

[...] must tailor your query letter writing approach every single time; cookie-cutter pitches are a waste of your time as most editors can smell them from a mile [...]

By: Deb

Deb — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 22:36:09 +0000

Thanks, Jeff. I just don’t feel people like to be cornered and pitched too. It makes us uncomfortable.

By: Jeff Van Leuvan

Jeff Van Leuvan — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 22:33:25 +0000

Deb, you rock! This is exactly how I feel about the subject. Many blog posts I have read lately seem to be badgering me into having an elevator pitch.
Who cares?
Your statement that “I have some ideas that I’d like to share with you…” is perfect for most occasions. If I’m at a social gathering and someone asks me what I do, I just say “I’m a writer” and things take off easily from there. Most folks don’t come into contact with writers of any stripe so they are immediately interested in learning more about what I write.

By: Freelance Friday - Marketing, Social Media Branding, Feature Creep & More | Kristi Hines

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:52:34 +0000

[...] 5 reasons not to have a cookie cutter elevator pitch [...]

By: Damaria Senne

Damaria Senne — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 13:07:24 +0000

I don’t have an official elevator pitch, because I don’t walk up to strangers and pitch to them. Mostly, I mention what I do as a normal part of conversation (if the subject comes up or if we get chatting at a fair/workshop/conference). If the person is interested /needs what I offer, they can ask questions and we can let the nature of business negotiation take its course. If they’re really interested, I take their contact details with the promise that I will be in touch with more info (better than expecting them to remember who I am and to follow up when they have likely met other people who offer a similar service.)

By: Deb

Deb — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 23:26:20 +0000

I don’t have a problem with elevator pitches per se, I’m sort of against any kind of generic, impersonal pitches. I think it’s important to know the market and the client first and tailoring a pitch to that person or market. Also, I believe there’s a time and a place for everything. I don’t know of anyone who wants to be cornered in an elevator and given a sales pitch.

It’s good to know how to approach people and talk about yourself and your business to them, but be careful before cornering someone into a sales talk because it may have the opposite effect.

As for tradeshows, I attend conferences all the time. I don’t pitch there, I have conversation. I talk and I share ideas. If it looks like someone and I can do business I’ll offer him my card and ask if we can continue the discussion after we all get back home. Many times you can tell during a conversation if there’s an interest in working together.

My approach may not be for everyone, but it’s been my experience that a personal touch works better than a sales pitch.

By: kazari

kazari — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 23:05:02 +0000

I have an elevator pitch, but only because I have a particularly technical dayjob that few people have heard of. It varies based on how interested my listener is. I can start off saying ‘I manage a big database of mapping information’, and if they are interested I can say ‘It’s called GIS and it allows people to analyse information based on where things are’. Usually that’s the point where people’s eyes glaze over…
Either way, I think it’s useful to have something prepared – it just requires some empathy (intuition?) to know when to diverge from the script.
People don’t always have the luxury of researching their potential client beforehand, especially somewhere like a tradeshow.

By: JulieF

JulieF — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:21:25 +0000

No. Each client is different and they should be treated as such.

I won’t be serious in a humor column pitch nor would I be a twisted comedian in a parenting blog pitch. Well, not unless they asked for humor.

By offering a pitch that’s exactly the same you run the risk of someone who has seen your pitch before wondering if you bothered to read the submission guidelines or ad. As often as editors change, that’s a very good possibility.