An elevator pitch, or elevator speech, is a fantastic marketing tool used by business owners and sales professionals. Not only is an elevator pitch useful at networking events, or you know, in an elevator, but it can also help set a foundation for structuring your goals.
What is an elevator pitch?
An elevator pitch is a brief synopsis explaining who you are and what you offer. This summary should be no longer than an elevator ride, around 30 seconds. Your elevator pitch should feel genuine yet persuasive by concluding with an enticing call to action.
What makes a successful elevator pitch
A good elevator pitch is well-rehearsed, engaging, and informative. You want your real estate pitch to feel natural yet professional. As a result, the listener should walk away impressed and eager to follow up for more information.
Here are some critical elements of a good elevator pitch:
- Focus on format – brief with a beginning, middle, and end
- Highlight a pain point and describe your solution
- Show enthusiasm for what you do
- Notice the recipient’s body language
- Draft a few different opening lines (situation dependent)
- Elaborate on your skillset as a real estate agent
- Describe your goals or your unique selling proposition
- Practice alone, with a friend, and with a colleague
- End with a call to action
- Provide or ask for contact information
How an elevator pitch falls flat
If you’re a seasoned agent or just really charismatic and personable, a rehearsed elevator speech may not be essential to you; however, a poorly executed pitch can cause some damage for newer real estate professionals.
Here are a few ways an elevator pitch can fail:
- No rhyme or reason – poorly formatted
- Rambling on too long due to lack of practice
- Missing an opener, which makes the whole pitch feel a bit pushy
- No mention of real estate accomplishments or merit
- No call-to-action or invitation for a follow-up
Real estate elevator pitch ideas
An elevator pitch is an excellent tool for real estate professionals as they are primarily in the people business. After all, most real estate agents’ clients come from networking within the community or through referrals.
When giving an elevator pitch to a stranger, you want your opener to be natural and inviting. You can ask them about other local spots in the community to get a feel for if they are a resident or a visitor. You can also ask them what neighborhood or area they frequent. Then, you can share your knowledge about the area and dive into your experience as a real estate agent.
Here are some elevator pitch ideas for real estate professionals:
- The first-time homebuyer or home seller struggle. Pain point: the home selling or home buying process is intimidating
- The house that won’t sell. Paint point: sellers are frustrated with Realtors
- The FSBO. Paint point: sellers leave cash on the table at closing
- It’s a seller’s market. Pain point: buyers can’t get an offer accepted
Your opening line and what you find out in the process will help you determine which pitch to use.
Essential information to share in your elevator pitch
Your real estate pitch is often the first impression of your business. That carries some weight. While a pitch should flow and feel natural, you still need to include a few rehearsed points.
For instance, your value should radiate from your pitch with quantifiable data about your career. Include real estate statistics like how many listings you sold the previous year and your average days on the market.
You should also include your unique selling proposition. What sets you apart from other real estate agents in the area? How do you market and promote your listings? What is your communication style, and are you responsive? As a result, the answers to these questions provide your potential clients with insight into your work style.
Below is a list of the items we discussed above.
Key points to share in your real estate pitch:
- Quantifiable career statistics
- How many listings you’ve sold or closed
- Average days on market
- Your unique selling proposition
- How you market your listings
- How you promote your listings
- Your communication style
The real estate industry is a people business, and networking with community members is common for real estate professionals; therefore, a well-executed elevator pitch is necessary. Remember, a perfect elevator pitch is brief, enthusiastic, and formatted correctly while addressing pain points and ending with a call to action. Real estate agents who deliver a stellar elevator pitch can expect to generate more leads and grow their business.
