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<title>How-to Create a Compelling, Branded Elevator Pitch for Your Job Search</title>
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<h1>How-to Create a Compelling, Branded Elevator Pitch for Your Job Search</h1>

The elevator pitch. You are probably familiar with the term. It
is most commonly used to describe the concise 60-second speech that
business owners and executives, as well as salespeople, use to
describe their business, product, or service to others. More
importantly, it is a speech that is delivered in a compelling way
that describes what is unique about the business (or offering),
describes the benefits to the target market, and excites interest
in the listener.
So, why should you--the job seeker and career professional--care
about the elevator pitch? If you are familiar with the concept of
personal branding, and the idea of leveraging your brand to advance
and promote yourself in your career, I'm sure you immediately
recognized similarities between the above description of an
elevator pitch and a personal brand statement.
Personal branding allows you to make a name for yourself. It
differentiates you from your peers and helps to position you as a
leader in your field - as a specialist and an authority who knows
how to do a job and fill a particular niche in the workplace better
than anyone else. A personal brand statement is a succinct
statement that clarifies and communicates what makes you and your
unique value proposition different and special.
Your personal brand statement will play a large role in your
60-second elevator pitch as a job seeker and career professional.
Your entire elevator pitch will be a mini presentation that you are
able to give on the fly in response to those all-too-common
questions "what do you do?" or "tell me about yourself?" With
precision-like focus, an effective elevator pitch will immediately
convey to the listener who you are as a professional, and will do
it in a way that addresses not only your unique value proposition,
but in a manner that addresses the concerns of your listener. Of
equal importance, while your pitch is planned and rehearsed, when
you actually speak it, it should sound completely natural and
spontaneous, yet it should leave the listener with a lasting,
positive, and memorable impression. You will use your elevator
pitch frequently, in networking situations and during
interviews.
But, once you recognize that crafting an elevator pitch is
essential, you might feel daunted at the prospect of creating and
perfecting one. Certainly, this is a task that your career coach or
the professional that you hired to create your r&#233;sum&#233; can
assist with. However, with some introspection and honest
self-assessment, developing your elevator pitch does not have to be
difficult. To get started, ask yourself these essential
questions:
1. What is the focus of your search? What is your job
target?
2. Who is the person/people most likely to make a hiring
decision about you?
3. What are the problems faced by your target audience?
4. What is it that you are offering that would solve these
problems?
5. What is it that differentiates you and makes you different
from your peers?
6. What are the benefits of your work as experienced by your
target audience?
To create your elevator pitch, you now must put these elements
all together in a brief presentation that you can deliver
quickly-in the time it would take you to get from one floor to the
other in an elevator.
As an example, here is my own "branded" elevator pitch that I
developed to concisely describe my work as the executive director
of Distinctive Career Services.
"You know how some career professionals miss out on really great
employment opportunities, or don't advance as quickly in their
careers as they would like, or don't get paid the compensation they
deserve, all because they don't really know how to differentiate
themselves in their careers or promote themselves effectively in
the job market?
Well, I am a career coach, personal branding strategist, and
career marketing professional-one of just a few people worldwide
with this unique blend of expertise. In my business, which is
internet-based and global, I provide a mix of innovative products,
programs, and services delivered to six-figure+ and aspiring
six-figure+ professionals, managers, and executives. All my
offerings are designed specifically to empower my clients to
promote and market themselves effectively, opening doors and
enabling potential to achieve their highest career ambitions and
goals.
The benefits are that my clients dramatically reduce the time
and money they spend job searching, rapidly advance their careers,
boost their incomes, enjoy greater professional recognition, and
overall, establish themselves in careers that are more
professionally, financially, and personally rewarding."
Once you have the answers to the six simple questions above, you
have everything you need to create a similar elevator pitch for
yourself. Do you see how I have taken my own answers to the
questions and interspersed them throughout my pitch? I've clearly
communicated who my target market is, have identified the problems
and challenges that they face, have conveyed how my offering is not
only unique but solves those problems, and I've described the key
benefits that my offerings produce.
You can use this same model to develop your own elevator pitch.
But remember; don't go into too much detail. Your goal is simply to
pique interest and make yourself memorable. Don't spend too much
time on the details of your qualifications. Just quickly highlight
them and tie them back to how they benefit your target audience
(current or future employer).
Once you have your pitch perfected, practice it, practice it,
and practice it some more. Your goal is to have it sound completely
natural. Rehearse in front of a mirror and be aware of your body
language and eye contact, as these aspects of communication often
speak even louder than words. Now, try your pitch out a few times
and observe the response to the listener. Be open to the prospect
of adapting and modifying as necessary to elicit the response you
want to generate. And, of course, be flexible. If your listener
interrupts with a question, be ready to pause and answer it.
Creating your elevator pitch may take some time and thought, but
it is a wise career professional who invests in it! You will hear
the "what do you do?" or "tell me about yourself?" questions over
and over, both during your job search and throughout your entire
career. Don't wing it! Preparation is the key to confidence and the
key to making a lasting, positive, and memorable first impression.
The benefits to your career will be phenomenal. It is well worth
the effort!

<div>Author Info 
Want to Use this Article in Your Ezine or Website? You are
welcome to as long as you use the following text with it:
Nationally certified resume writer, career marketing expert, and
personal branding strategist, Michelle Dumas is the founder and
executive director of Distinctive Career Services LLC. Through
Distinctive Documents 
<a target="_new" href="http://www.distinctiveweb.com">http://www.distinctiveweb.com</a>
and her Executive VIP Services delivered through 
<a target="_new" href="http://www.100kcareermarketing.com">http://www.100kcareermarketing.com</a>
Michelle has empowered thousands of executives, professionals, and
managers all across the U.S. and worldwide with all the tools and
resources necessary to conduct a fast, effective job search.
Michelle is also the author of the popular e-book 101
Before-and-After Resume Examples found at 
<a target="_new" href="http://www.before-and-after-resumes.com">http://www.before-and-after-resumes.com</a>
To learn more about her job search products, resume writing
services, and career marketing programs, and to sign up for many
other free resources, visit her websites.
Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
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