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The elevator pitch

In this article, Heather Jacksic explains what an elevator pitch is and what it should include.

Two people standing in an elevator, having a discussion

The elevator pitch is a short enough pitch to fit within the timeframe of a standard elevator ride, anywhere from half a minute up to about two minutes.

This makes it a very concise sales pitch which you will use to market:

Yourself
Your skills
Your ideas
Your experience
What you can offer

What are some situations where an elevator pitch can be used?

During networking or mingling events
On LinkedIn (The About section can be considered a written elevator pitch)
When presenting your skills to companies
When you meet someone new, spontaneously
During a job interview

There are of course even more examples, but the general idea is that the elevator pitch is short and effective enough that you can use it to help you in a wide variety of situations. Of course, you will need to adjust it depending on the situation. In this course and for the next step we will specifically focus on the job interview and how to use the elevator pitch strategy in order to respond to the common interview question, “Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?”

What should your elevator pitch include?

Your educational background
Your work experience (previous and current), including relevant job responsibilities
How your skills/personal attributes suit the position
Why you are interested in working at the company