Job Search Marketing Toolkit – Your Elevator Speech
So, what exactly is an Elevator speech? Imagine you are a media sales assistant working for a small marketing company. Your dream job would be working for Big Media Company Inc in the sales department. You are meeting a friend for lunch, step into the elevator in his building and push your floor. You look up and who steps into the elevator but the Head of Sales (Mr. Big) for Big Media Company Inc. You have 30 seconds to strike up a conversation and convince Mr. Big why he should consider interviewing and hiring you. What do you say? Are you prepared? You would be if you had your elevator speech.
I’m sure that for some of you your first thought is “Elevator speech?”. But your elevator speech could be one of the most important and powerful tools in your Job Search Marketing Toolkit. In addition to the links below, you will also want to check my post ‘Do you have your 30 second Elevator Speech?‘
- How to Craft an Effective Elevator Speech – This article, by Creativekeys.net, explains what it is, how to prepare it, when to use it and also provides a short example. The article covers just the basics, but it’s a great way to get an overview and get started on yours.
- Elevator Speech Do’s and Don’ts – As with everything, there’s a wrong way and a right way. This article, by Quintcareers, has a nice touch by showing both sides of the equation. The advice to write and re-write your elevator speech is great advice. You will not get it right the first few times. But in addition to telling you the Do’s of writing, the article also tells you what to do during the actual speech (should you get the chance). As with most of Quintcareers’ articles, there are additional helpful links in the article for related topics. Last, but not least, the last recommendation to join a Toastmasters course is a great idea.
- The 30-Second Elevator Pitch – For those of you who have been reading this post for the last few months, you will know that the Riley Guide is one of the best job search resources on the Web. This link to a list of links reminds us the the Elevator Speech is not only a proactive process (as in my intro), but a reactive response to “what do you do?”. The article has about 10 links to some excellent sites. There is even a link to a site that describes the different types of elevator speeches (yes, even elevator speeches have different uses).
- Video Interviewing for Employment – So what do video interviews have to do with Elevator Speeches? Well for one, they are a form of a verbal presentation so there is definitely some linkage. Video interviews also force you to know what you are going to say about what you do. I’ve included this article, by About.com, as an introduction to the concept (which is becoming more popular) as well as the similarities to the main topic.
- Job Fairs: How To Make Them Work For You – So, you may ask, why did I include this link? One of the places you will certainly need your elevator speech is at a job fair (not just in an elevator). Job fairs tend to be jam packed and there is very little time to express yourself. This article is from the University at Buffalo’s Career Site and provides a section on elevator speeches. There is also a brief example of an elevator speech. Of course the remainder of the article provides very good advice on job fairs as well and is certainly worth a read.
Good luck in your search.
