<div style="margin: 12px 0px; font-family: arial; color: #333333; background: #ffffff; border: solid 4px #e5e5e5; width: 100%; clear: left;"><div class="CM_CTB_Content_Wrap" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;background-color: #ffffff;"><div style="border-bottom: solid 1px #dcdcdc; white-space: nowrap; margin-bottom: 8px; background-color: #eeeeee ;background-image: url(http://clipmarks.com/images/source-bg.gif); background-repeat: repeat-x; height: 24px; line-height: 24px; vertical-align: middle; padding-bottom: 4px; color: #666666; font-size: 10px;" ><a href="http://clipmarks.com/clip-to-blog/" title="see clips that are hot right now"><img src="http://content.clipmarks.com/blog_embed/1d2ecdfa-07e5-4066-961b-39f454dd8c74/FDEAE7A5-8E12-4696-BC47-034028773F1B/" alt="" width="19" height="19" border="0" style="vertical-align: middle; margin: 0px 4px; display: inline; border: none; float:none;" /></a>clipped from <a title="http://www.businessweek.com/careers/content/jun2007/ca20070618_134959.htm?chan=careers_careers+index+page_speaking+of+business+by+aileen+pincus" href="http://www.businessweek.com/careers/content/jun2007/ca20070618_134959.htm?chan=careers_careers+index+page_speaking+of+business+by+aileen+pincus" style="font-size: 11px;">www.businessweek.com</a></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.businessweek.com/careers/content/jun2007/ca20070618_134959.htm?chan=careers_careers+index+page_speaking+of+business+by+aileen+pincus"> <H1>The Perfect (Elevator) Pitch</H1><!--/HEADLINE--> <H2><!--DECK-->It's a skill every businessperson needs. How to create it, rehearse it, and tailor it for a specific audience <!--/DECK--></H2></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.businessweek.com/careers/content/jun2007/ca20070618_134959.htm?chan=careers_careers+index+page_speaking+of+business+by+aileen+pincus"> <P>One of the most important things a businessperson can do—especially an owner or someone who is involved in sales—is learn how to speak about their business to others. Being able to sum up unique aspects of your service or product in a way that excites others should be a fundamental skill. Yet many executives pay little attention to the continuing development of "the elevator pitch"—the quick, succinct summation of what your company makes or does. </p> <P>That's too bad, because the elevator pitch—so named because it should last no longer than the average elevator ride—is far too important to take casually.</P></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.businessweek.com/careers/content/jun2007/ca20070618_134959.htm?chan=careers_careers+index+page_speaking+of+business+by+aileen+pincus">even if your meeting is a planned, sit-down event, you should still be prepared to capture your audience's attention quickly.</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.businessweek.com/careers/content/jun2007/ca20070618_134959.htm?chan=careers_careers+index+page_speaking+of+business+by+aileen+pincus"> <H3>Keep It Fresh</H3> <P>Every business grows and changes, and your pitch needs to grow and change with it. </P></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.businessweek.com/careers/content/jun2007/ca20070618_134959.htm?chan=careers_careers+index+page_speaking+of+business+by+aileen+pincus">Always Be Prepared</blockquote></div><div style="margin: 0px 6px 6px 4px;"><table style="font-size: 11px;border-spacing: 0px;padding: 0px;" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tr><td style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">&nbsp;</td><td align="right" style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;width:107px" width="107"><a href="http://clipmarks.com/share/FDEAE7A5-8E12-4696-BC47-034028773F1B/blog/" title="blog or email this clip"><img src="http://content6.clipmarks.com/images/c2b-foot.png" border="0" alt="blog it" width="107" height="17" style="border-width:0px;padding:0px;margin:0px;" /></a></td></tr></table></div></div>

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