It’s the most dreaded question at business networking events: So…what do you do? (insert a tonality of feigned enthusiasm and slight exhale).
It seems like a simple enough question, but most people find it incredibly hard to answer.
This difficulty is magnified by the amounts of do’s and dont’s of the “elevator speech” – a.k.a. the surefire way to explain what you do, generate excitement and place any prospect in the mood to buy in about 15 seconds.
I was recently at a referral group meeting, and a person was asked to explain what she does. Immediately, there was this slight thoughtful pause (perhaps a prayer) – a sprinter in the blocks. Then, she launched into a myriad of business keywords that meant nothing, a group of “pain” words followed by some call to action that seemed to include me solving the Middle East crisis by using her print shop. I believe that there was even the old feel-felt-found thrown in there for good measure.
Most of her words fell on deaf ears since, in looking at the expressions of others around the table, they were concerned with their elevator speech. I know I was worried about mine…which was probably just as ineffective and equally as obnoxious.
The answer to much of this dilemma lies not in the words, tactics, colorful stories or mastery of human communications – it’s in the attitude or approach to why you network.
Do you go to spew a brochure on everyone’s shoes, or do you try to help people to find solutions? Are you there to get business, or are you there to give business? Are you desperately looking for the next sale, or are you making it easier for others to make sales happen?
In short, here is the solution:
Don’t talk about yourself. It makes you uncomfortable anyway.
Get them to talk…to tell their story. Find out why they do what they do. Ask them for their passion. Give them some good contacts. Seek to understand them as another human being. The results will amaze you. It works.
Why? Because:
- Nobody cares what you do.
- You look stupid and self-serving talking about yourself all the time.
- Everyone can tell when you are playing the emotional- or buzz-word-bingo as though you have been coached to drop in keywords. People are not google searches. They are people. Talk to them as another of the same species.
- You are not being authentic when you talk in a stilted and trained manner about your company.
If, for some reason, someone really wants to hear about you, then here are some questions to ask yourself so you can get started in talking about what you do:
- What do your customers say that you do? This way you will get them. Example: Our customers tell us that we take the hassle out of prospecting.
- How is your company part of something larger? Do you stand for something outside of your business? Example: We are the evangelists for doing business better in Baton Rouge.
- What is it that your company accomplishes that you really are passionate about? This takes away any need to pretend to be excited. Just allow your natural belief to spill into your speech.
- Open it up to criticism and review. Get your fans or friends to tell you your own story. It gives you a more accurate picture.
It may be a good idea to write these things down. Make them a part of what you believe and how you communicate.
HOMEWORK
Figure out 3 people in your circle that you can easily help without much effort on your part. In the next week, try to help them in the most selfless way that you can muster. This will accomplish many things. Among them:
- You will form a closer relationship with these people.
- They may think you are nuts.
- You will begin to think of others first.
- You will be mistaken for a do-gooder and will have to explain yourself.
- You may actually end up with something to say that is actually interesting…for about 30 seconds. Hell, you may just be living you elevator speech.
Read my friend Gill’s blog and read the Go-Giver – it is a little book that brings to light certain axioms about our relationships with other people.
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Jeremy Nulik, Creative Energy Officer, St. Louis Small Business Monthly
The best one sentence response I’ve ever heard in response to “What do you do?”:
“I tell companies and managers what they’re doing wrong.”
Brilliant!
He was a management consultant, and I immediately liked him after his response to that question.
Brilliant. I thought I was the only one that hated elevator speeches.
Or, you can just be Chandler (sorry for the Friends reference…I still like that show) and no one knows what you do. That seems to happen to me a lot!
Breanne – That’s a good one-liner. It should force people to ask questions.
Wench – Kindred spirits, my friends. First time that anyone has called anything that I have written “brilliant.” I won’t tell you how long I’ve been writing.
Ryan – I think it is alright to be mysterious…for a while. Perhaps it makes you more intriguing. Also, happy to hear that you are back safely from Africa.
To everyone…I forgot to reference the About You idea. This is an approach that my friend Adam (http://swissmoneyblog.com/) told me about. The “about you” can be more than just a page on your website…it is an attitude that places others first.
I really like the book the Go Giver. I have been teaching business people how to network for 6 years now and in LeTip we teach people how to train their salesforce. The chapter members need to know how to give needed information to prospective referrals. This goes way beyond the Elevator speech. The weekly meetings inspire loyalty and a good sense of what everybody does so members actually CAN give warm leads to one another on a consistant basis.
You’re right, Rick. The issue goes way beyond the elevator speech. That is but a symptom of a larger problem that it appears your group addresses. Great website.
The weekly meetings are important to establish the kind of rapport so the giving would occur naturally. Most people want to be helpful, so I think that this sort of forum would be useful to them.
The issue I saw here was the attitude and approach to why you go to meet new people. The elevator speech can be a breeding ground for self-serving monologues if people have a me-first approach. Everyone wants to get new business, but, by giving, we can create so much more.