Last updated on January 8th, 2026 at 01:13 pm
An elevator pitch is a 30 seconds pitch that you give to a potential customer that has never heard about your business before.
It’s called that because you are supposed to convey the value that your business provides in an amount of time equal to one elevator ride.
This idea might seem outdated given that we live in a digital age. Who’s still pitching their products and services in elevators?
However, even if you run an online business with a completely automated sales funnel, you still need to have an elevator pitch ready.
After all, you never know when you might meet a potential client, business partner, or investor.
Today we are going to share five elevator pitch examples that you can use as inspiration for your own elevator pitch.
How to Craft a Highly Effective Elevator Pitch
Here are the three key components of a great elevator pitch:
- Introduction
- Value proposition
- Social proof
Let’s take a closer look at each of them:
Step #1: Introduction
This one is straightforward:
“Hello,
My name is [your name]. It’s nice to meet you!
I’m the founder of [your company]…”
Step #2: Value Proposition
There’s an old copywriter joke that goes like this:
“What’s everyone’s favorite radio station?
WII FM!”
WII FM is an acronym for “What’s In It For Me?”.
The truth is that no one cares about your product or service, what they are interested in is what you can do for them.
It’s important to adjust this part of your elevator pitch based on who you are talking to because different people have different incentives and therefore different goals.
Say, a startup founder, a marketing manager, and a blog editor all have different goals despite working at the same company:
- A startup founder primarily cares about either monthly recurring revenue (MRR) or user growth.
- A marketing manager primarily cares about their KPIs such as traffic, conversion rates, sales, etc.
- A blog editor cares about their KPIs such as publishing a specific number of blog posts per month.
You want to create several variations of your elevator pitch that cater to the decision-makers that you encounter most often (e.g. founders, marketing managers, editors).
Step #3: Social Proof
Social proof is a psychological principle that says that when we are unsure of what to do, we look at what others do to determine the correct course of action.
In the business context, this means that you can make your elevator pitch more persuasive by providing proof of your credibility.
The best way to do that is to mention a concrete result that someone has gotten by using your product or service.
What’s the most powerful piece of social proof that you have?
Use it in your elevator pitch!
Should You End Your Elevator Pitch With a Call to Action?
This depends on the situation.
Say, if you actually find yourself in an elevator with a potential client, then you should end your pitch with a call to action because they will leave once the elevator door opens.
In that case, you might want to have a business card ready, so that you could hand it to them and invite them to get in touch if they want to learn more.
This applies to any situation where you have limited time to present your product or service to a potential customer.
Meanwhile, if you start chatting to someone at a networking event or a cocktail party, ending your elevator pitch with a call to action would be super weird.
Instead, you should learn more about them, establish an emotional connection, and then give them your business card before you part ways.
Bonus Tip: Put a Link to Your Lead Magnet on Your Business Card
We recommend putting a link to your lead magnet on your business card.
This allows you to end the interaction by offering free value that they can check out in their own time.
It also removes the potential awkwardness that people might feel about reaching out to someone they talked to for a few minutes at some random party.
Elevator Pitch Examples
Here are five elevator pitch examples for various business models:
Service Business Elevator Pitch Example
“Hello,
It’s nice to meet you.
My name is [your name] and I’m the founder of [your company].
We help [target audience] to [the #1 benefit of your service].
For example, we helped one of our clients, [name of the client] to [get a specific result]. “
[expand on how you did it]”
Info Product Business Elevator Pitch Example
“Hello,
It’s nice to meet you.
My name is [your name] and I’m the founder of [your company].
I teach [target audience] how to [the #1 benefit of your info product].
For example, one of my students, [name of the student] [got a specific result].
[expand on how that student did it]”
Software Business Elevator Pitch Example
“Hello,
It’s nice to meet you.
My name is [your name] and I’m the founder of [your company].
We are an exclusive community for [target demographic] where we discuss our challenges and hold each other accountable.
For example, one of our members, [name of the member] [got a specific result], which he was able to achieve due to having such a strong support network.”
[expand on how being a member of your community helped them get that result]”
Membership Site Business Elevator Pitch Example
“Hello,
It’s nice to meet you.
My name is [your name] and I’m the founder of [your membership site].
We are an exclusive community for [target demographic] where we discuss our challenges and hold each other accountable.
For example, one of our members, [name of the member] [got a specific result], which he was able to achieve due to having such a strong support network.”
[expand on how being a member of your community helped them get that result]”
Event Business Elevator Pitch Example
“Hello,
It’s nice to meet you.
My name is [your name] and I host [your event] every [event frequency].
It’s an opportunity for like-minded people to meet, network, and learn from each other, as well as from industry experts.
For example, in our most recent event, one of the speakers was [your best-known speaker], who is known for [achievement].
[expand on what the speaker discussed in his talk]”
Elevator Pitch Mistakes That You Need to Avoid at All Costs!
As you can see, no matter what your business model is, your elevator pitch should follow the same introduction + value proposition + social proof template.
Here are some common mistakes that you should watch out for:
Leading With Features Instead of Benefits
You must understand the distinction between features and benefits if you want to be persuasive:
- A feature is a quality or a function of a product (e.g. “These shoes are waterproof!”).
- A benefit is the value that the customer will get from that product (e.g. “These shoes will keep your feet dry!”).
People buy based on benefits.
That’s why you should always lead with the #1 benefit of your product or service.
Ask yourself:
Are you talking about your product or service or are you talking about how it will make the potential customer’s life better?
Again, everyone’s favorite radio station is WII FM, so always keep the focus on what’s in it for them.
Lack of Social Awareness
When you are interacting with someone in real life, you need to pay attention to the social context. What is appropriate in that particular situation?
You also need to pay attention to the individual you are talking to. Are they interested in what you have to say? Read the social cues!
It’s important to develop social awareness if you want your elevator pitch to be effective.
Otherwise, you might end up alienating people without even realizing it.
Going for the Sale
The aim of an elevator pitch is to pique the potential customer’s curiosity so that they would take the next step in your sales funnel.
That next step might be:
- Downloading your lead magnet
- Scheduling a free discovery call
- Signing up for a free trial
…etc.
But you shouldn’t try to close the sale because you haven’t built enough trust yet.
It can also put the potential customer in an awkward situation if they aren’t interested in your product or service but are too polite to reject your offer outright.
Moreover, selling is also inappropriate in most social contexts, so err on the side of caution unless you are in an industry event (e.g. a conference).
Want Russell to Show You How to Build Your First Sales Funnel?
Okay, so now you know how to create a highly effective elevator pitch, but do you have a sales funnel ready?
Because you need a system for converting potential customers into leads, leads into paying customers, and paying customers into repeat customers.
Our co-founder Russell Brunson has developed such a system. It’s called the Value Ladder sales funnel. Want to learn how to build one for your business?
That’s what our 5 Day Challenge is all about.
You’ll learn how to:
- Generate unlimited leads
- Create your first lead magnet
- Build your first sales funnel
- Create a simple 6-email follow-up sequence
- And launch your funnel
…in just five days!
So don’t hesitate.