How to Not Be Boring

We are headstrong in the midst of conference, networking, and holiday party season, which means that you’ll be meeting tons of new people (and fingers crossed, leaving your mark.)

But in these water cooler hellos and networking elevator pitches, you will want to stand out in the crowd rather than being part of the white noise.

So, here are my four top tips to not be boring (or annoying, or abrasive) when pitching yourself.

Practice Your Elevator Pitch

I wish it was not as in-your-face as this, but you do have to practice your elevator pitch. If your pitch is longer than 60 seconds, then let us go back to the drawing board.

It needs to be snappy, concise, and a teaser to what you do in your business.

Often times, business owners don’t practice this enough verbally, which leads the listener down a five minute rabbit hole about your entire business journey.

Make Your Pitch Personable

People meet people before they meet your product or service. You are the face of your business, so humanize what you do.

Share a bit about why you do what you do, or illustrate the motivation behind your venture.

These personal tidbits can add a real punch to the connection you are trying to make.

Nail Your Small Talk Follow Up

Now that you have practiced your pitch, it is time to also think of some small talk follow up questions in advance.

We are beyond the days of “How’s the weather?”

I like to have a few small talk questions ready about current events in the entrepreneurship space, what I am reading, or questions that require a story from my listener. (Do not prep ‘yes or no’ questions because we want this to be a two way street not an interrogation…)

Think about Equality in the Conversation

I understand that we, as entrepreneurs are excited about what we do. We are passionate people, but you can’t let that enthusiasm dominate the conversation.

I like to think of a conversation in terms of a scale. You want the listener to be equally contributing, rather than being a one-sided firehouse of information.

I see founders often mess this up when they are speaking to someone they admire or really want to know, like an investor.

Remember, people like to talk about themselves, so give your listener the space to do so.

Give the Listener a Reason to Follow Up

Like a traditional business pitch has an ask, design your elevator pitch in a way that gives your listeners a reason to follow up.

No one likes to be ‘talked at,’ and by having a call to action, even as simple as follow our journey on Linkedin, allows the listener to have some control and connection to you.

Now, these are just some of my top tips to not be boring in your elevator pitch. I would love to hear yours, so drop them in the comments below.

If you want more support pitching and communication , be sure to check out my NEW pitching services at Pitch Pilot Training and listen in to the Everyday Entrepreneurship podcast.