How to Sell Your Product or Service in 20 Seconds


sell your product

When you run a business, sometimes the little things you do can make a big impact on your success. One of those little things you can do is to perfect an elevator pitch.

An elevator pitch is a short explanation of what you do and what you can offer potential clients and customers. It sounds incredibly simple, but there is definitely a right and wrong way to make an elevator pitch, according to entrepreneur Bruce J. Bloom of Small Business Best Ideas.

You don’t necessarily need to be on an elevator to present this information. But a good pitch can help you sell your product or service in 20 seconds or less by leaving a clear impression in a potential clients mind. Bloom offers an example to illustrate the difference between a good and a bad elevator pitch in this video tip:

Suppose you are an accountant and walk into an elevator in your building where you find another business owner. When she asks you what you do, you respond, “I have an accounting practice.” She leaves the elevator and doesn’t give your business a second thought.

Or instead, Bloom adds, you could say, “I’m an accountant that specializes in designing bookkeeping systems for businesses with complex tax problems.”

This is a description that your fellow business owner may remember. She might ask for your business card Bloom explains, and the next day you could find yourself receiving a call from someone in her firm inquiring about your services:

“Your elevator pitch can be the best new business tool that you have. Make sure that you have one. Think it through. Write it down. Be prepared to give it at any moment. And don’t leave home without it.”

There’s no telling whether tomorrow you will find someone interested enough in your business to make striking up a conversation worthwhile.

The key, says Bloom, is to always be ready to “audition” in the event an opportunity presents itself. With the right elevator pitch, he says, you can sell your business or service in no time by leaving the right impression.

Related reading: How to Write an Elevator Pitch to Grab Attention

Pitch Photo via Shutterstock


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Annie Pilon Annie Pilon is a Senior Staff Writer for Small Business Trends, covering entrepreneur profiles, interviews, feature stories, community news and in-depth, expert-based guides. When she’s not writing she can be found exploring all that her home state of Michigan has to offer.

7 Reactions
  1. It’s not about selling. It’s about passion. It’s sharing what you do in the most passionate way that you can without convincing people to buy from you. That’s the key to a successful pitch.

    • Including passion is definitely important. If you connect with people even without intending to sell something it can often lead to sales anyway.

  2. Wonderful information. Crafting the elevator pitch can be challenging, but once it’s ready to go it should roll of the tongue almost automatically. Practice it every day.

    • Great tip! Practice definitely makes perfect, so you’re ready for that moment when it can be really important.

  3. It’s imperative to have an elevator pitch! One line responses like “I’m an account” make it sound like, you hate your job – or you’re not passionate. If you rattle off a 20 second description – it sounds like you’re passionate, care, and are all about your business.

    • Yes, people need more information if they’re ever going to connect with you, and especially if they’re going to use your services or refer a friend. And being passionate with your response is definitely important.