In this interview, Jo asks a networking and pitching coach (Speaker B) how to deliver an effective 20‑30 second pitch. Speaker B emphasizes that brevity is key – the shorter the pitch, the more memorable it is. He outlines a four‑part structure for a concise pitch: (1) identify your "pigeonhole" (the specific industry or niche you belong to), (2) state your ideal client or target market, (3) highlight what makes you different, and (4) give your name and business name. He explains why over‑loading the audience with too many details (e.g., listing many services) leads to poor recall. Speaker B also mentions the two programs he runs – “How to Design and Deliver a Winning Pitch” and “Networking for People Who Hate Networking” – which teach these principles to professionals attending networking events. The overall takeaway is that a clear, ultra‑short pitch focused on niche, audience, differentiator, and identity is far more effective than a longer, unfocused spiel.
When you run a business, you've got to network. And I know many people find it really awkward. Me, even me from time to time when I'm doing something new. But when you go along and you've got to, you know, pitch yourself in 20, 30 seconds, how do you do that? And what's important?
Well, I'm going to say something that might surprise you, Jo. Okay. But that is, within reason, the shorter the pitch, the better.
Okay.
Not the longer the pitch.
Yeah.
So I run 2 programs. The first is How to Design and Deliver a Winning Pitch. And the other one is Networking for People Who Hate Networking. I run those in organizations for people who go to networking events. So with the pitching, the first thing that people need to do is make crystal clear for their audience what I call their pigeonhole, what pigeonhole they're in.
Okay, yeah.
So if they're a plumber, it's the plumbing pigeonhole. If they're a printer, it's the printing pigeonhole. Whatever it is, for you it would be the LinkedIn pigeonhole, or maybe social media pigeonhole, it could be a slightly bigger one. Yeah. LinkedIn. For me, it's the speaking pigeonhole. So there has to be a pigeonhole because that's what people think about. And that's what people ask others. Do you know someone who's a printer? So they go into their, you know, their internal hard drive and find their printer.
So it wouldn't be good to go, I do X, Y, Z, and ABC?
No, that's because the audience, particularly if they're meeting you for the first time, they walk away with absolutely no memory of what you do. They might remember you personally, but they won't remember what you do because you said too much. So the first thing is the pigeonhole. The second is who the ideal clients are. Are you aiming for SMEs? Are you aiming for state government, local government? Are you aiming for CEOs? They need to know who you're aiming for.
Yeah.
The third thing is what makes you different? Why are you different? If you're a plumber, what makes you different? It might be that you turn up within 15 minutes or you give a discount. It might be that you clean up after yourself.
Yeah.
It could be anything that makes you different. And then finally, your name and your business name. So it's the pigeonhole, ideal clients, what makes you different, and your name and your business name.
Sounds easy.
And the pitch is. And I coach people to do pitches that end up about 20 seconds, 30 seconds long, and they are much more memorable than the people who are still going after 2 minutes.
