In one of those helpful articles that points out something that should be obvious, but is overlooked, Doug Stern warns us in his Marketing Profs article “The Myth of the Elevator Speech” that people asking about what we do for a living doesn’t mean that they want to know much.    It’s often a conversation filler; a polite question that should be treated as such.

The broader message implied in Stern’s article, one that should also be obvious, is that we each need several elevator speeches to use in different kinds of situations.  I can think of three that we all should have:

1>     The Stern Elevator Speech
2>     The Positioning Statement or Sales Meeting Elevator Speech
3>     The Classic Elevator Speech

I’ll describe the first one here, and write about the other two in upcoming blog posts this month.

The Stern Elevator Speech

Here Stern isn’t an adjective; it’s Doug’s last name, used in his honor to describe the elevator speech used in social, rather than business, situations.  Rather than stern, it should be light and conversational.  If it makes people smile, so much the better.  I like the ending that draws out the other person, because I’m shy and like it best when the other person talks.

I’m a mortgage banker, the person responsible for the current recession. And you?

I’m an accountant.  I count beans and, occasionally, money.

I’m an economist, and if that doesn’t depress you sufficiently, let me know and I’ll tell you more.  What about you?

In Stern conversations (not stern ones), don’t—don’t—bore the other person with a lengthy description of what you do.  For example, a litigation support consultant should not try for a clear statement of what she does.  If you say:
I conduct the forensic accounting analyses that determine financial facts and legal culpability under litigation and that provide valuations of damages.
the other person will either flee, change the subject or, with dread, feel obliged to ask you to explain yourself.  Instead, you might say:

I make up the facts that lawyers like Jim, here, twist in court.

Remember, keep your Stern Elevator Speeches lively and conversational.

(Note to Doug Stern: This posting would have been much easier to write if your last name had been something like Light or Jolly.)

(For more, see our category on elevator speeches.)

This entry was posted on Monday, June 9th, 2008 at 8:06 am and is filed under Elevator Speech. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.