elevator pitch

American  

[el-uh-vey-ter pich] / ˈɛl əˌveɪ tər ˌpɪtʃ /

Also elevator speech

noun

1. a brief talk or pitch intended to sell or win approval for something, as a product or business proposal.

   a two-minute elevator pitch to a prospective investor.

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Etymology

Origin of elevator pitch

First recorded in 1995–2000; from the idea of persuading someone while on an elevator moving between floors

Example Sentences

Ferguson closely oversees his agency’s litigation, editing legal briefs and demanding an “elevator pitch” that succinctly explains a case.

From The Wall Street Journal

Even before I first saw the film during last year’s Sundance Film Festival, this one-line elevator pitch was taking up all the space in my prefrontal cortex.

From Salon

That Pritzker doesn’t have a natural feel for such material is a bit surprising given his history in venture capital, a cultural space that celebrates the visionary elevator pitch.

From Slate

Asked to describe the sport in which he is a double world champion, Tomas Woods has it down to an elevator pitch: "It's basically BMX in a wheelchair."

From BBC

For 15 minutes, nearly every line of dialogue could be an elevator pitch for a Roland Emmerich movie: earthquakes in California, volcanoes in Germany, a nuclear meltdown in Japan.

From Los Angeles Times