Episode 35: From Forgettable to Unstoppable: Nail Your Elevator Pitch with Leslie Fiorenzo

Ever fumbled through an introduction at a networking event? Struggled to make people really understand what you do? In this episode of Main Street Success Stories, I’m joined by business communication and speaking expert, Leslie Fiorenzo, who shares a simple yet powerful formula to craft an elevator pitch that sparks interest and generates referrals.

Leslie breaks down the key components of a great pitch—how to grab attention, highlight a problem, present a solution, and create curiosity in just 30-60 seconds. Whether you’re a business owner, a job seeker, or simply want to improve how you talk about what you do, this episode is packed with actionable takeaways you can apply right away.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
✅ The biggest mistakes people make when introducing themselves
✅ A simple, repeatable formula to craft a compelling elevator pitch
✅ How to make people want to learn more about your business
✅ The importance of specificity—why “I help everyone” isn’t helping you
✅ How to refine and practice your pitch so it sounds natural

💡 Challenge: We’d love to hear YOUR elevator pitch! DM us on social media and share it with us after listening!

About Leslie Fiorenzo:

After failing to win the top prize in a speech contest early in her career, Leslie began her journey toward excellence in public speaking. Over the next 30 years working in human resources and employee assistance Leslie mastered the art of captivating communication. In May of 2024 she retired from corporate life and founded Business Speaking Solutions, a coaching and training company focused on partnering with business professionals to build a confident, commanding presence using public speaking. Her unique approach is based on the skills she used throughout her career. She is the author of two books: “Twenty-One Lessons for Mastering the Difficult Conversation” and “Find Your Voice: Conquer Your Fear & Share Your Story with Confidence”, both available on Amazon.

The Fearless Speaker Blueprint https://lesliefiorenzo.com/5-free-tips
https://lesliefiorenzo.com/
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesliefiorenzo

About the Host: 

Jennifer Kok has been a business owner for over 25 years and now is a business coach.

She turned her first business into a franchise and successfully sold it 20 years later.  She was passionate about building a business and a family at the same time.

Today she works with creative business owners who are tired of not getting paid enough for their hard work.  She walks them through the 3-step process she developed to allow them to Create More…Earn More…Stress Less which leads them to double digit growth, increased profits and allows them to pay themselves more. 

What if I told you that growing your business doesn’t have to mean working more hours? What if—right now—you could be sitting on untapped profit without even realizing it?  In the free resource I’m going to walk you through the exact 3-step framework I used to help a client increase net profit by 193%—without adding more hours to her workweek. Read how you can do it too. 
https://nextwavebusinesscoaching.com/profit-boost

Connect with Jen:  

https://nextwavebusinesscoaching.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferowenskok/

🎙 Follow Main Street Success Stories for more insights on growing a thriving small business.
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Transcript

Jennifer Kok (00:01.26)

Welcome Leslie to the show. I'm excited to have you on today.

Leslie Fiorenzo (00:05.197)

Thanks Jennifer, I'm excited to be here.

Jennifer Kok (00:08.216)

So before we get started, you have a very specific skill set that I'm excited to dive into today. But before we get started, take us back to what you used to do and what you're currently doing with your business.

Leslie Fiorenzo (00:20.451)

So I spent most of my career in the employee assistance programming field where I was in business development and a lot of my job was to educate employees and supervisors on why they should use the program. So I spent a lot of my time speaking to groups and because of that, I like to think I invested in myself and developed my public speaking skills and worked with a lot of coworkers.

to help them improve theirs. So I kind of was the go-to person in the organization for that. And then I spent a couple, well, more than a couple, probably a 10-year period with an organization that helped me learn about networking. And again, did a lot of speaking, training and development for groups, for members of that organization. And I think maybe that's how you and I originally met, not sure, but I know that we are.

I'll do a lot of networking to talk about our business. And so when I retired from my corporate life last May, I didn't necessarily want to retire. I wanted to do something that I felt would make a difference, that would be impactful, and that I could enjoy doing. So I started Business Speaking Solutions to help people think about how they talk about themselves, what they say.

how to make an impact, make a difference, and really have people say, that's what you do? Tell me more.

Jennifer Kok (01:56.27)

Okay, first of all, there's many people out there were very jealous because you got to retire and then do a passion business, which how exciting to just do something that's so impactful. I just love that. So yes, you and I met at networking and the last episode of this podcast, I talked with Sarah, someone else that you know, and we talked about networking. So for those that haven't had a chance to listen, I encourage you to go back and listen to that one because networking is so powerful.

Leslie Fiorenzo (02:07.395)

Thanks.

Jennifer Kok (02:24.514)

You know, it's a place where you build relationships, you meet people, and you you meet people that might know your ideal client or customer, and it just opens up doors. I mean, the statistics on networking are amazing. And one thing I've noticed that, and you and I probably could agree on this, is a lot of times when you go to these type events, there'll be, you know, a circle, and everyone stands up and gives what we call our elevator pitch. So first of all,

I don't know where the term elevator pitch came from. I don't know if you do or not, but tell us what is an elevator pitch.

Leslie Fiorenzo (02:57.799)

So it's the time it takes an elevator to go from the first floor, and I don't remember the number of floors, but it's how long you have inside an elevator with someone, which is 30 to 60 seconds, to tell them about what you do. And to me, the name Pitch is a little bit misleading because what I want to do is share my story in a way

that would make somebody say, Jen, tell me more or, Jen, I know somebody who could use what you do, let me introduce you or broker an introduction. That's a lot in a short period of time, but I believe it's possible. The mistake I see most people make, well, they don't come prepared, number one. They think, I can just wing this.

Jennifer Kok (03:50.082)

Right, which I'm guilty of that. Trust me, I've bumbled over plenty of elevator pitch in my time.

Leslie Fiorenzo (03:56.727)

Well, I do used to do that too. All of these things I'm sharing with people, I learned the hard way. I learned how to do them. And what I know now is that when I am prepared and I can talk about myself in a way that is interesting to people, then I make better connections. And you mentioned referrals and networking. It's about those connections. And it is not a one and done.

It is not I'm gonna come and share my card with everybody and take my eight and a half by 11 piece of glossy advertising that's a beautiful piece and litter the room with it. Because guess what? It's not going anywhere. I can't tell you how many people I've met that shove this thing in my hand. It's like, I don't even know if I need what you do. I don't even know what you do. Please don't.

Jennifer Kok (04:45.838)

Hmm.

Jennifer Kok (04:50.752)

Right. And then you're immediately in the defensive mode instead of wanting to lean in. And I think you nailed it with the word pitch, like elevator pitch. Yeah, I wish we could change that word because I think today's society that feels salesy, nobody wants salesy anymore. And you're right, we're trying to create a statement that gets someone to lean in and maybe ask for your business card or ask a follow-up question, create curiosity.

Leslie Fiorenzo (05:06.519)

Yeah. Yeah.

Jennifer Kok (05:19.776)

And I always call it the pass the face test. When you say what you do in your elevator pitch, your 30-second spiel, if somebody's face doesn't come to mind, then you're too broad. And I know I've sat in plenty of networking rooms or conferences, and you get a chance to stand up. You've got that 30 seconds. You've got that 60 seconds to say who you are. And honestly, I feel like most people, I'm

Leslie Fiorenzo (05:24.013)

Yes.

Jennifer Kok (05:49.782)

I'm left thinking, well, what do they do? I don't quite get who they do, and I don't quite get who I should refer them to. So you have perfected a formula.

Leslie Fiorenzo (05:56.237)

Exactly.

Leslie Fiorenzo (05:59.917)

Well, the one thing I want people to keep in mind, because when you talked about those networking rooms, the more specific I can be, and you're exactly right, you need to trigger in somebody's head a face. Because I work with everybody, doesn't cut it. When you say everybody, there's no one's face that comes, but if I say your sister-in-law, or your cousin, or your boss, or your...

coworker in the cube next door, whatever, that paints a picture. So help me help you. And then in order to be terrific, you need to be specific and people are afraid of specificity, but it helps you. So let me just make up a couple of stories because there's a lot of people who sell residential real estate. So when you meet somebody that says, Hey, I'm John Smith.

Jennifer Kok (06:51.574)

Right?

Leslie Fiorenzo (06:54.795)

I'm a real estate agent for XYZ Realty and I help people buy homes and sell homes in the local area. Does anybody come to mind? Yeah. but no, exactly. Yeah. And I'm sure there's a John Smith that came, that's out there. I apologize, but we could talk about anybody's name. Instead, if I said,

Jennifer Kok (07:04.046)

that one person, nothing against John Smith, but not one person came to mind.

Jennifer Kok (07:14.946)

Yeah.

Jennifer Kok (07:19.084)

Right.

Leslie Fiorenzo (07:22.413)

Have you ever felt like finding your dream home is like searching for a needle in the haystack? Many home buyers get overwhelmed with endless listings, missed opportunities, and the stress of negotiations. I simplify the process using my insider knowledge and personalized approach to find you the perfect home, faster and with less stress. Unlike other agents, I focus on understanding your lifestyle and your future goals

not just your budget. Just last month, the Johnson family said, John found us our forever home in a neighborhood we never thought possible. So if you're ready to stop searching and start living, let's schedule a quick call and discuss your dream home.

Jennifer Kok (08:08.014)

Wow, that was a lot of information in 60 seconds.

Leslie Fiorenzo (08:10.275)

And we didn't time it, but I bet you it was less than 60 seconds.

Jennifer Kok (08:14.732)

Yeah, that is a lot of information. So let's break that down. you kind of like, do you have a kind of a process? Okay.

Leslie Fiorenzo (08:20.323)

Sure, yeah, so here's the formula. So first of all, give me a hook, and maybe you don't like that word either, it's kind of like pitch, right? But you've gotta share something that makes people perk up their ears. So the question, have you ever felt like your dream home is like searching for a needle in the haystack? Yeah, if you've been house hunting lately, maybe that's the case.

Jennifer Kok (08:47.136)

Right, so that's kind of the hook that gets me like, that's fun. That's a unique approach. Yeah. OK.

Leslie Fiorenzo (08:49.091)

And then the problem, many home buyers get overwhelmed with listings and missed opportunities and the stress of negotiations. The solution that John offers is he simplifies the process. What's unique about him? Well, unlike other agents, I focus on understanding. Like maybe you have a unique process in your business. Maybe you can slide in a testimonial.

You know, just last week a client said this, and then what do you want people to do? Most of the time you want them to have a conversation with you, let's book a call, let's get together, or maybe you're just interested in having people sign up for your newsletter, or you have a free giveaway. I know Jennifer, in your business you do a free consultation call, so let's schedule a time to meet and see if I can even help you because...

I don't know that I can. I think I can, but until we have a conversation, not going to know that.

Jennifer Kok (09:53.87)

Okay, so we're creating some kind of hook that's creating the curiosity. We're then sharing the problem, which makes sense. We're then giving them the solution, but we're sharing it in the unique way that we do it, not just I help you find a home. And then throwing that testimonial in there, that was interesting to me because I'm afraid like this feels like...

Leslie Fiorenzo (09:57.091)

Mm-hmm.

Yes.

Jennifer Kok (10:21.742)

Do you have to memorize all this? So is that probably your next tip is to really practice, practice, practice?

Leslie Fiorenzo (10:26.221)

Well, I would say practice, but practice so it feels right and feels comfortable. And maybe you don't just you decide, you know, I will maybe not have a testimonial or maybe I knew in my business, I meet some people that are just starting. They're like, I don't I haven't worked. I don't have that yet. OK, so I don't have that yet. Don't worry about it. But I believe you can talk about what makes you unique and the problem you solve and. Have.

maybe two or three different opening lines that you think about two or three different ways you introduce yourself, there's probably a startling statistic. I know Jennifer, your statistic that you talk about is the number of businesses that fail before they get to five years. And so that's something you're passionate about. You share that and it comes through. And as a business owner, I'm thinking, yeah, I don't want to fail. But you know, if I'm in business 10 years,

Jennifer Kok (11:12.878)

Right.

Leslie Fiorenzo (11:25.249)

Well, that's not a good fit for you. And you want to know that right at the beginning. If I'm not a good fit, but I probably know somebody, right? My neighbor next door just started or my daughter-in-law just started or my friend just started, whatever. And I can connect. Yeah, this is somebody you should meet. So having that bit of information about the industry, you, some fact or

Jennifer Kok (11:31.704)

Mm-hmm, okay.

Jennifer Kok (11:35.948)

Right.

Leslie Fiorenzo (11:55.107)

question. When you start with a question, it gets people thinking. So you could even say, you know how the real estate market has been absolutely up and down lately and people are kind of scared and frustrated. And then you could talk about what you do and you could talk about why you're different. You know, I've been in this market. I've been an agent for 20 years or I'm a new

Jennifer Kok (11:59.575)

Okay.

Leslie Fiorenzo (12:25.261)

to this industry, I'm a new agent, but here's what I can tell you because I'm new, and so tell me why, like, the evaluation that people are making in their head is do I want to work with this person? And do I want to get to know them? Maybe that's the first question. I don't even know if I want to work with you, but I want to get to know them because they seem like they're sincere, they seem like they have thought about this.

Jennifer Kok (12:46.968)

Mm-hmm.

Leslie Fiorenzo (12:54.529)

And the other thing that mistake I see people make, you said that's a lot of information. Yes, it is. But I feel like it's a right amount of information because the other thing I've seen people do is everybody has a minute at the table. Somebody invariably takes five every time.

Jennifer Kok (13:14.348)

Always, always. And always feel bad for the poor timekeeper, because there's usually a timekeeper and they've set it on their phone and the phone's pinging away and that person just keeps going and going and going.

Leslie Fiorenzo (13:27.981)

I know. So to me that you haven't thought about what you're going to say before you've gotten there. And yes, open your phone, record yourself, listen to yourself, time it, and say it again and say it again. So yeah, you have to practice a few times. I believe it will be time well spent on your behalf because what you want from a networking event

my opinion, is you want to leave with one or two connections or booked meetings. Because if somebody says to you, my gosh Jen, I know that's so true and I've been in business six months and I'm scared to death. I'm not gonna make it to eight months, eight let alone five years. We should talk, right? Those kinds of, that's what you want. Like yeah, I need to learn more about what you do.

Jennifer Kok (14:17.518)

Right, Yeah.

Jennifer Kok (14:26.254)

And I think you're right about take the time now to prepare because what a missed opportunity. If you walk into a room of 30 people and your elevator pitch is leaving everybody scratching their head and a face doesn't come to mind, you've just missed a big opportunity and you're wasting your time. And a big piece of this is being clear about what you do. So I love how you say, you know, take the time to do this. Do you have any other examples for us?

Leslie Fiorenzo (14:45.123)

Yes.

Leslie Fiorenzo (14:55.747)

I have several I made up, I'm not sure what your listening audience is made up of. So I just kind of put some, so let's say IT services. I'm maybe an IT company that does manage services, is there a lot of folks, IT is such a big part of our lives, but it can also be this mysterious kind of thing. I mean, all of us use computers, right? We all use smartphones, but I don't even know for sure.

Jennifer Kok (15:09.518)

Okay.

Jennifer Kok (15:18.21)

very.

Leslie Fiorenzo (15:25.119)

all of the inner workings and it's like going into Oz and behind the curtain sometimes. Anyway, so instead of saying, hey, I'm ABC IT Solutions and we provide managed care to small businesses. Is your business constantly battling IT issues, downtime, security threats, outdated technology can cripple a small business leading to lost

Jennifer Kok (15:31.266)

Right.

Leslie Fiorenzo (15:53.901)

productivity and revenue. We provide proactive managed IT services to ensure your systems are secure, efficient and running smoothly so you can focus on growing your business. We become your virtual IT department offering 24-7 support and strategic technology planning tailored to your specific industry.

A recently said, since partnering with ABC IT, our downtime has been virtually eliminated and our team is more productive than ever. So let's discuss how we can eliminate your IT headaches. Schedule a free network assessment today.

Jennifer Kok (16:35.444)

Awesome. So yeah, you've included all the things, all your formula in that, and it is so much more clear on who, what this company does and how they help. Do you also kind of recommend, let's say somebody works specifically, let's use the real estate example like we did earlier, with first time home buyers. Or, you know, I work with entrepreneurs who I call creative entrepreneurs in their first five years. Do you recommend that being part of it too when you're very specific about who you serve?

Leslie Fiorenzo (16:52.195)

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Leslie Fiorenzo (17:03.639)

Yes, because that again eliminates, you don't want the people that aren't the right fit for you. So if you work with first time home buyers, you don't want necessarily to work with an investment property person. Or maybe you specialize in people who are downsizing, empty nesters who are moving to their next phase of life home, whatever you want to call that. Or you're looking to work with

the adult children of people who need to go into long-term care or nursing care or those, you know, that's a specialty market I've seen coming up lately because that's, and that's a different family dynamic. Or maybe you're the real estate agent that specializes in the dealing with a family of deceased household members. Cause what do you do with that piece of property? And then that's a whole new dynamic. That's a very specialized market. But,

I'm not going to be a first, you're not going to want to work necessarily with a first time home buyer or somebody who maybe you're the second you specialize in the people who've outgrown their first home and they're looking for their forever home or however you want to word that. But think the more you can be specific to a niche and the challenge we have is we think, well, I'm eliminating, I don't want to limit. The more you narrow in, think of the difference.

Jennifer Kok (18:25.741)

All

Leslie Fiorenzo (18:29.941)

in the power between a fluorescent light bulb and a laser beam. They both run on electricity, but a laser beam can cut steel if it's focused enough. And you want to focus enough.

Jennifer Kok (18:41.114)

Mm, I like it. Right. Very good. So then this is kind of your formula for creating the 60 second, a little bit longer. And then sometimes, I've been to some networking where they said, you've got 30 seconds, you've got 10 seconds. I've even been to one where you had to one word, which that's really challenging. But this, to me, I feel like start here. This is the hard work, in my opinion.

Leslie Fiorenzo (18:58.229)

yeah.

Leslie Fiorenzo (19:03.565)

Yes.

Jennifer Kok (19:03.982)

Practice this, get this kind of where it comes off your tongue real natural, and then you can condense it into shorter blurbs that you need for whatever audience or whatever event you're attending.

Leslie Fiorenzo (19:16.791)

The other thing you can do with this expand it. Maybe I've got an investor pitch or a customer pitch or a presentation I should say instead of but you can expand it to 10 minutes, 60 minutes, a half day workshop, whatever it is you need in your business. Once I have that base down, I can expand or contract. So putting in the work now can make a big difference.

Jennifer Kok (19:34.606)

Mmm.

Jennifer Kok (19:43.81)

You know, it's funny because sometimes the less words is harder. You know, most of us don't have a hard time spending 10 minutes describing what we do, but.

Leslie Fiorenzo (19:49.154)

Is this?

Jennifer Kok (19:53.792)

when you have to try to condense it to 60 seconds makes it a lot harder. So, and the other thing I was just thinking is this also can be used in your bios. You could put this in your about section in your LinkedIn, your bios on all your social media platforms, even your email signature. So it really has a lot of repurposing. You just have to get it down first. So Leslie, if somebody wants to dive into this, do you hold workshops or what's the best way to really start perfecting our elevator pitch?

Leslie Fiorenzo (20:22.423)

Yes, have a workshop coming up on March 20th. I don't know when your program is going to air. I also do this as a one-to-one session. So we start with what they're currently saying, and then we usually end up with at least one option, sometimes two. So I give them some choices. We work together for an hour, allow you to practice, and really dive into what it is you want to say and communicate with people.

Jennifer Kok (20:31.799)

Okay.

Jennifer Kok (20:51.98)

Okay. And then in addition to this, you are also helping people with their speaking presentations. So that is your passion. That's okay.

Leslie Fiorenzo (20:56.737)

Yes. Yeah. I, again, I have, I have a course that I recently launched, Five Steps to Speaking Success, and I work with people short or long-term for their specific needs. A lot of times it's filler words that people want to get over. It's talking succinctly and clearly. They know they have to.

eliminate the jargon. Every industry has jargon. So we want to be careful of that. communicating their message in a way that is clear, but in a way that makes a difference. I know you've heard this before. You never get a second chance to make a first impression. So that's what I want to help people with is making that powerful first impression. And then more than that,

building those relationships. Because when we think about networking, and if you go to, I'll just pick on Chamber of Commerce, if you go to Chamber events regularly, you are going to see a handful of people that are always the same. They always show up for every event. And so you get to know those people and build relation, at least at the very least, it's, yeah, hey, I remember you from last time, right? And I can remember what you do more than I can remember your name.

Jennifer Kok (22:23.054)

you

Leslie Fiorenzo (22:23.115)

I can remember people's professions. I sometimes struggle with a name. But that's what you want to be able to do is connect those dots and also say, hey, I talked to somebody the other day that you should be talking to.

Jennifer Kok (22:36.238)

Well, and I think in this world that we live in right now, it's going so fast and it's tough to be remembered. And using this type of a tool is a good step. And I'm a big fan of networking. That's one of the...

best business practices I teach my clients. And so I can't think of a better way than to get out there and network and practice your elevator pitch. And please, I'm gonna throw a call out there that everyone please send us your elevator pitch, DM it to us in one of our socials. I'd love to see what they come up with after listening.

Leslie Fiorenzo (23:05.377)

Yes, yes, I'd love to see that too. That'd be great, Jennifer.

Jennifer Kok (23:09.784)

Well, I will put links to all of your information so they can share their elevator pitch with you. And thank you so much for sharing this formula that you've perfected. I know that I need to work on mine and I'm going to take what you shared today and get at it.

Leslie Fiorenzo (23:25.675)

Awesome, thanks.