The old standbys — sound bites and elevator pitches — have become too long and ponderous for people whose attention spans are now measured in milliseconds. So some businesses are turning to the Twitpitch, named for the microblogging site that restricts posts to no longer than 140 characters.
The elevator pitch was supposed to force organizations to strip away all the unnecessary details and get to the essence of who they are in just 30 seconds, approximately the time you might share an elevator ride with your intended audience. But that’s still too much time for many listeners and readers, so some marketers are adopting a new shorthand inspired by the increasingly popular Twitter site.
The beauty of such an approach, they contend, is that it makes you focus on aspects of your institution or product that define its personality and help differentiate it from competitors.
“It forces you to tell your company’s story in 140 characters (about 20 words),” says blogger Mike Kraus. “A Twitpitch needs to be engaging, succinct and dynamic.”
An example of a Twitpitch for Philadelphia-based, state-related Temple University might read:
A proudly urban and richly diverse public research university bursting with the energy generated by 34,000 talented and motivated students.
Another example, for the University of Scranton, a Catholic liberal arts institution, might be:
Northeastern PA’s Jesuit university pairs rigorous scholarship and an impassioned community with an insatiable desire to better the world.
Compose your own Twitpitch based on the defining characteristics of the school where you work or your alma mater and submit it to emailminute@targetx.com. The best entry will win a TargetX prize package.
To read more about the Twitpitch, visit:
www.allbusiness.com/travel-hospitality-tourism/meetings-incentives-travel/10204386-1.html
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