Question on LinkedIn: Is your “Elevator Pitch” really THAT important?? In most interviews, you have to be prepared for a 30-minute to an hour-long conversation with a hiring manager. What if you have less than 5 minutes to convince a hiring employer that you are the most qualified candidate?

Others’ Response:

– I think a good elevator speech is an excellent tool, not only for an interview , but in a networking event telling a perspective employer or other people what you do in a short sharp way ca be very effective. And much harder than people think. But you never know who you may be speaking too or where. Effective on Social media too when you want to give a clear message succinctly stating, who you are and what you do. I know I find it difficult to keep it short and edgy from the ground to level 12!

– It’s vitally useful for the candidate – or anyone who’s serious about their career, employed or not – to be clear *with themselves first* about the value they bring. What positive impact have they had, and still have? How do they help the company/organization save or make money, solve problems? And does this intersect with what the individual loves to do, so that their fire for their work shows on their face, in their voice? Once they have that clarity, their “commercial” helps them by communicating confidence and credibility to others. So yes, it’s important. BTW, I find it’s easiest for the client to create this statement after their rebuilt resume is ready to use. They use some of the phrases in their resume’s Professional Summary, and a very brief success story, to come up with the commercial, and we aim for them to be able to say it in two breaths. The goal: to be able to have the listener think/say, “I know exactly what you do and why you’re good at it”.

– I don’t believe there is anything more critical to job searching success than an effective elevator pitch (I don’t like the word “speech” in this context…but that’s just me). Anyone looking for a new career will hear again and again some variation of the ancient but always modern question “…tell me about yourself.” It’s highly unlikely the response will, by itself, produce a job offer. That said, a response that fails to energetically describe personal expertise, a response that is badly fumbled, may well eliminate the possibility of employment with that particular company. I’m not sure that it’s wise for candidates to memorize any response. It seems to me that runs counter to the ability to “think on one’s feet.”

– Having clarity and a sense of purpose of who you are and what you have to offer and how this can benefit others, put across in your natural style is an absolute essential, as Larry says. Co-incidentally, I called this a ‘storyline’ with a client yesterday, as ‘elevator pitch’ often frightens people. Same thing but different ‘take’!

– YES ~ IF based on BRANDING and what impact you have through the work you do! We are a ‘sound bite’ culture and clarity with communication is highly effective!

– Recruitment… no, GETTING RECRUITED is a marketing issue… and, as such, requires a central ‘storyline’ or positioning of a job seeker (branding) by which they can be visible and FOUND. A job seeker’s verbal collateral materials, then, are key to efficiency and success. THEY (potential employers) have to be able to identify YOU (the job seeker) in order to judge your value proposition relative to their needs. Sending and receiving (read COMMUNICATION) is an interactive process…NETWORKING is a contact sport!

– Career Coach to Seniors and Iraq, Afghan Veterans.Easter Seals (NYC).
I firmly believe the “tell me something about yourself” opening to an interview is the entry (done properly) or exit (done poorly) to consideration for any position available. A candidate who cannot properly and quickly respond indicating his/her prowess and identification with the position and the company is poorly prepared. Two private 45 minute sessions are usually sufficient to prepare most clients to reach the next steps of the interview process.

– I read some interesting statistics recently, that from memory about 85 % of people at any sort of event start a conversation with “So what do you do for a job” or similar.

My Take:

Of course! What the heck is 2 hours of your time to sit down, evaluate yourself and write up a quick 30 second blurb on who you are, what you do and what you’re trying to do. Unless you’re a gabber or improvisational guru, you might want to memorize something purely for the sake of not tripping up. Who knows who you meet that can impact your livelihood.  Don’t sound robotic, but don’t look like blockhead either. You cannot remain shortsighted. And if you’re solely talking about an INTERVIEW SCENARIO? That’s a no-brainer to me. Do EVERYTHING you can in your control. This question never sits well with me.