When you call a customer on the telephone to makes a sales pitch, you are essentially cold calling, and the customer is not likely to know what your call is about until you explain why you are calling. It is important to explain and ask for the customer’s permission to continue with your pitch, but also to present the information in such a way that the customer agrees to hear you out. In this podcast lesson, we will look at a few ways to present your sales pitch in a manner that will help you to keep the customer’s attention and get a positive response.

You’re now going to listen to a dialogue between Michael, a customer service executive at an electronics store, and Sarah, a customer who has purchased a computer from the store. Michael is calling Sarah to pitch a new offer for an extended warranty on her purchase.

Imagine you have just entered an elevator. As the doors start to close, a man enters and smiles briefly. A moment later, he starts to chat and asks what you do. The response you give is called an “elevator speech.” As the name suggests, the speech must be short enough to provide essential details before the door opens again and the man gets off on his floor.

There are certain things all elevator speeches have. You must tell your name. You must also give the name of your company. And then, you must tell why your company is different from or better than other companies out there. You could tell, for example, a unique approach you take. Or, you could explain the types of problems you solve. You could even tell a story that shows a successful result you had with a given client.