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Salespeople were able to convince even the busiest customers to grant a 30-minute meeting in just 30 seconds. That is called Elevator pitch, a half-minute maneuver. It is that if you got on an elevator with a juicy prospect, you have the length of that ride to score a sales call. Failing to nab a few minutes with a qualified prospect who can make a decision, might hang up your cleats. And various do fail. It has to be direct, easy to understand, based on hard facts and sprinkled with enough pizzazz to get someone to carve out those 30 minutes for you later on.

Context is compelling; use basic concepts and simple sentences as necessary as you can. And do not count on evergreen solutions. I was once advising an early-stage company that designs fuel cells, the great thing about this company is their design was that, unlike most fuel cells that run on hydrogen it ran on plain old unleaded gasoline which is a much cheaper option.

To be able to make the cells, it required a certain ceramic material. Only two companies in North America sold it but these companies are both huge chemical makers. I talked to the head about what he can contribute to help my client and how it can greatly affect his business-in a positive way. Then he gave me the 30 minutes of his time.

Also, Elevator pitches can be done via the phone lines or even on paper too. Further conversations with the first company didn’t go very far, but my client has a joint-development agreement with the second now. Not a full-blown partnership, but progress nevertheless.

Cracking open the door is the most daunting task in sales. The stuffs of an elevator pitch: clarity, concision and a dash of aggression. Do all these and you will see the key to selling success.