Mastering Marketing
Get Started Marketing-Craft Your Marketing Statement (Also Known as an Elevator Speech)
How, when, and where should you start your marketing efforts? The process can be overwhelming- should I market my brands, what about social media posts, and who will buy my products? To help you organize your marketing steps, it is vital you have a marketing statement. You may have heard this statement called, “Your Elevator Speech”. Crafting your unique “elevator speech” will help you quickly describe your marketing position. It should include what you produce, who’s problem you can help resolve, and how your product accomplished those resolutions.
Suppose you are attending your child’s sporting event and talking with the other parents there. Does someone ask what you do? You open your mouth and then pause. You’re a farm that direct markets its products through a variety of marketing channels. Where do you start? These parents are the perfect target customers for your products.
This is an example of a situation where it helps to have an “elevator speech”. This is a short, prepared speech that clearly and succinctly explains your business. It should include:
- Who are you and what do you provide? What is your product (s)
- What differentiates you from the competition? This is your Unique Selling Position (UPS). This should be a positive statement about your product and not a negative statement about your competitors.
- What problem do you solve for the customer? Convenience, quality, shared values?
- How can it be purchased? Consider this a “Call to Action”. Purchase at a location, online, or at a specific market outlet.
Your pitch is a short, persuasive speech used to spark interest in your products. A good “elevator speech” should be no longer than 20-30 seconds long, hence the name.
Here is an example of an “elevator speech” that a farm selling fresh eggs might use.
“The Early Bird Egg Farm produces fresh, nutrient-dense eggs that are the perfect breakfast food for busy adults and growing youngsters. Fried, poached, baked, or mixed in your favorite recipes, our eggs are a great food value for your shopping dollars. You can purchase them in our farm store or at our booth at the farmers market on Saturdays year-round.”
Once you’ve developed your “elevator speech” aka Marketing Statement, practice it till it rolls off your tongue with ease. The more you practice, the more natural your pitch will become. You want it to sound like a smooth conversation, not an aggressive sales pitch.
Mastering Marketing is produced by Ginger S. Myers and is published periodically containing important seasonal marketing information.