I’m flying back from the Independent Garden Center Show, skimming through the company descriptions in the show guide, and I’m astonished. In a shocking percentage of the writeups, I have to read all the way to the end to figure out what the company does – and in some cases, I still don’t know! Here’s just one typical example:
“Every year, Company X introduces a variety of items that are trendy, classical and responsive to the demands of the market. Company X’s increasing and diversified selection allows their valued clientele to supply their stores with a variety of products simply from one vendor. This, on top of its guaranteed low prices, high quality craftsmanship and efficient customer service.”
Yes, but what are you selling??
Businesspeople know the importance of having a personal “elevator speech” (your 30-second answer to the person in the elevator who asks, “So, what do you do for a living?“) It’s equally important to craft a company elevator speech.
Fabienne Frederickson, creator of the Client Attraction System, outlines an especially strong formula for an elevator speech. Here it is:
We work with [insert customer description here] that want to [insert problem-in-search-of-a-solution here]. What makes us different from our competition is [isnert three distinguishing features here]. As a result, our customers [insert benefit here].
Here’s an example, using Evergreen Marketing:
We work with companies in the gardening industry that want to make more money and don’t have the in-house resources to give marketing the attention it deserves. What distinguishes us from other companies is that 1) we specialize in the garden industry; 2) we love to work with small entrepreneurial companies where we can have a big impact; and 3) we’re sticklers for spending our clients’ money as if it were our own. As a result, our clients make more money while saving time and effort.
What’s your company elevator speech? I’d love to hear!
