In December 2014, I decided to take my online business into the offline world.

I attended my first local networking event.

Please don’t stop reading this just because you hate the word “networking.” I promise you — it’s not like that!

In the online world, I’ve gotten pretty good at telling people what I do. After all, it’s my job.

But in the offline world, I knew that I’d run into a few snafus. I knew that I’d have to find a creative way to explain my online business so that these offline people would get it. In the offline world, most people don’t know what a copywriter does (unless they’re fans of the show Mad Men).

So how has it been going?

Since December 2014, I’ve been attending networking events on a monthly basis. At each networking event, I tweak my “elevator pitch” just a bit to see what sticks and what doesn’t (and with whom!).

Sometimes I feel like I’m speaking Chinese when I talk about my business. But other times, I find the EXACT words to use with the people at the event. Their eyes light up and they say, “Oh, wow! That’s really cool!”

In short, I’ve learned a lot about how to talk about what I do in different situations.

Whether you’re working on your online one-liner or want to find a snazzy new way to tell your friends and family about your business, you’ll love this week’s video.

I’m dishing out my 4 best tips for talking about what you do in any situation.

 

Liked today’s tips? Tweet them out!

 

Elevator Pitch = What you do + Who you do it for + Why you do it. Shake vigorously. Add salt to taste. http://ow.ly/K71yn via @CourtRJ 

Need a better elevator pitch? Get out and talk to people about what you do! http://ow.ly/K71yn via @CourtRJ 

This week, I’m attending at least ONE networking event to practice talking to people about what I do! http://ow.ly/K71yn via @CourtRJ 

It’s not done until you take action! Here’s this week’s 5-minute action plan:

(1) Grab a piece of scrap paper and a pen. Divide the paper into 3 sections.

(2) Title the first section, “What,” the second section “Who,” and the third section, “Why.”

(3) In the first section, write down what you do (this is so simple it can just be a verb). For example, “I write” or “I help” or “I create.”

(4) In the second section, write down who you do it for. Can you sum up your target market in 2-3 words?

(5) In the third section, write down why you do it. Why do you empower business owners? Why do you cook Indian food for locals? Why do you help women bust through their money blocks? What’s the benefit of doing this work?

(6) Put sections 1-3 together and KAPOW! You’ve got a rough draft of your elevator pitch. Now get out there and practice it!