It doesn’t matter if you are pitching a product a cause an idea, or anything else you want to add to the list, your sales pitch position will positively or negatively impact your success.
While walking home last week I observed two different men pitching the same exact thing on two different days in virtually the same exact spot, and one guy was clearly having more success than the other.
When you read the pitch examples below it’s likely that you’ll instantly understand why one was more successful than the other, but I hope you’ll also takeaway the fact that small changes can have a big impact. It’s also worth noting that a good sales pitch, even for something as simple as what you’re about to read, matters.
The Pitch
As I, and others, walked down the sidewalk we were approached by a guy holding a clipboard with blue paper on it. Here’s what he (Guy 1) said,
“Hello. Are you a registered Democrat?”
When that came out of his mouth you could see people immediately shutdown and avoid him – it was sort of like a New York City version of the parting of the Red Sea.
On a completely different day of the week there was another guy (Guy 2) in the exact same spot with the exact same clipboard and the exact same blue paper. I knew what he was pitching in advance, but was pleasantly surprised when I heard his pitch. Here’s what he said,
“Hello. Are you registered to vote in the state of New York?”
By leaving off “Democrat” and using a somewhat generic opener, his engagement rate was MUCH higher than Guy 1.
It’s highly likely that you aren’t going to be on the streets of New York City trying to register Democratic voters, but it is likely that you’ll be making some sort of a sales pitch at some point. No matter what “it” is, take a mental inventory of your success rate and don’t be scared to evolve the pitch. In fact, I encourage you to constantly test your pitch and to not be scared to try new things.
Good luck. And remember, position matters.
