4 ms·

The Escalator Pitch

6 points by paulsb 18y ago

sanj 18y ago
There's a dangerous trap here, which is use internet-meme vernacular to shorten your pitch. I think the example fails due to this: "lefora.com is forums made easy—it's like blogger for forums" I need to know what Forums are, what Blogger is, and what they mean. Compare this to Google: "access to the world's information in one click" I'm playing around with mine: "Get more out of your calendar than you put in."
- DenisM 18y ago
  When comparing "access to the world's information in one click" to "lefora.com is forums made easy—it's like blogger for forums" you're confusing the mission statement with the value prop. Value prop answers "what's the practical use right now? What problem does it solve for me?". Mission statement is "where do you take it next? what's the pattern to your actions?". Your users wouldn't care for your mission statement nearly as much you yourself or your investors should. The press, well those might be either way - depending on who is their target readership. One important exception to the rule is if your mission is touchy-feely, like "our new GM seeds are solving world hunger, one seed at a time" (for a GM research lab). That would make good press for any newspaper.
fourlittlebees 18y ago
Sanj, the point is that you are pitching media or VCs or someone whose attention you need to grab quickly. If you are talking to someone in the media who doesn't know what forums or Blogger are about a tech start-up asking for coverage, you are probably talking to the wrong person.
DenisM 18y ago
Here's the one I have coined recently, trying to explain to my friends why I bought Dyson vacuum: Dyson is the iPod of vacuum cleaners. How's that? :)
- asnyder 18y ago
  I didn't know that Dyson Vacuum cleaners need to be replaced yearly. I guess I'll cross that off my wish list.
  - DenisM 18y ago
    Analogies are not 100% accurate and you may have to sacrifice precision to deliver colorful message in short time frame. Which is the whole point of escalator pitch.

6 points by paulsb 18y ago

sanj 18y ago

There's a dangerous trap here, which is use internet-meme vernacular to shorten your pitch. I think the example fails due to this: "lefora.com is forums made easy—it's like blogger for forums" I need to know what Forums are, what Blogger is, and what they mean. Compare this to Google: "access to the world's information in one click" I'm playing around with mine: "Get more out of your calendar than you put in."

DenisM 18y ago
When comparing "access to the world's information in one click" to "lefora.com is forums made easy—it's like blogger for forums" you're confusing the mission statement with the value prop. Value prop answers "what's the practical use right now? What problem does it solve for me?". Mission statement is "where do you take it next? what's the pattern to your actions?". Your users wouldn't care for your mission statement nearly as much you yourself or your investors should. The press, well those might be either way - depending on who is their target readership. One important exception to the rule is if your mission is touchy-feely, like "our new GM seeds are solving world hunger, one seed at a time" (for a GM research lab). That would make good press for any newspaper.

fourlittlebees 18y ago

Sanj, the point is that you are pitching media or VCs or someone whose attention you need to grab quickly. If you are talking to someone in the media who doesn't know what forums or Blogger are about a tech start-up asking for coverage, you are probably talking to the wrong person.

DenisM 18y ago

Here's the one I have coined recently, trying to explain to my friends why I bought Dyson vacuum: Dyson is the iPod of vacuum cleaners. How's that? :)

asnyder 18y ago
I didn't know that Dyson Vacuum cleaners need to be replaced yearly. I guess I'll cross that off my wish list.
- DenisM 18y ago
  Analogies are not 100% accurate and you may have to sacrifice precision to deliver colorful message in short time frame. Which is the whole point of escalator pitch.