During this episode, Jennifer Agee, LCPC (she/her) discusses how therapists can craft a simple and effective elevator pitch to grow their practice, network or share what they do when others outside the field ask. Jennifer shares 3 questions to use as your guide.
TOPICS IN THIS EPISODE:
- Creating an effective elevator pitch
OFFERS & HELPFUL LINKS:
Jennifer Agee:
Hello. Hello. And welcome to Sh*t You Wish You Learned in Grad School. I'm your host, Jennifer Agee, licensed clinical professional counselor. And today is a mini coaching session, and this coaching session is on Elevator Pitches. Nobody tells us in grad school how to exactly identify and define what we do in a really short, succinct period of time When we had the opportunity to share with somebody what it is we do and potentially capture an audience or capture new clients. So, here are the things that I want you to think of. Grab a pen and paper.
But if you're driving, just remember that you heard this so you can save it for later and listen. The first thing that I want you to think of is who you are, second, what you do, and third, what do you want? Keep It Simple. People don't wanna hear a long drawn-out speech about why you got into the field and what you're doing. If they want more information, they're gonna ask for it. Who you are, what do you do, and what do you want?
So for example, "My name is Jennifer Agee. I'm a licensed clinical professional counselor in the Greater Kansas City area. I'm the group practice owner of Counseling Community KC, and I am looking for other mental health or medical professionals, other people in the community, to partner with to provide cross referrals. Is that something that you would be interested in?" Simple. Keep it simple. If somebody has additional questions, they can ask more. But don't just download them with all the information about your practice because they might not be looking for it. Again, keep it simple.
If I were doing this for my counselingcommunity.com, I would say, "Hi. My name is Jennifer Agee. I'm the founder of counselingcommunity.com, the home of online and destination continuing education. I am looking for people who are looking for very interesting continuing education experiences. And if that sounds like you, hop on over to the website, and I would be glad to connect you with some good experiences."
Again, keeping it simple. If people want to know more, they're going to ask more. But this also gives them an out if maybe they're not interested, which is perfectly okay. And if they are, you just started a conversation. You can end your statement. If they don't have a follow-up, then just ask them, “Tell me a little bit about what you do and what your business is.” Again, this is an appropriate question if you are at a networking event.
I know a lot of us kind of freeze when we have these experiences. You're at a cocktail party or you are with a partner and you go to one of their work events and we're just not exactly sure how to say what we do in a succinct way without it then inviting a whole bunch of questions. So, if that were the case, I may say, "Oh, my name is Jennifer Agee. My husband is, Daryl, and I'm the founder of Counseling Community KC in Kansas City.
It's a mental health practice here in Kansas City..." And I might give a brief snippet of who we serve. Keep it simple. Nobody really wants to know more than that unless they ask. I hope this is helpful. Craft your own. A quick, little, 30-second elevator speech is great to have in your pocket. It comes in handy so, so much. You'll be glad that you have it.
I hope you have a great day. Get out there. Live your best dang life. If you'd like to connect more with me or with an upcoming continuing education, counselingcommunity.com. We're on all the socials too. Have a great day, ya'll.