Is your "Elevator Speech" ready?

One of the key aspects of membership development is getting prospective new members interested. Often we stumble into an opportunity when someone asks us: "What is Rotary?" (Maybe they saw that pin that you always wear so proudly.) When the opportunity arises, it is very important to have a short, succinct, and accurate answer to this proverbial question. The answer must also include our personal "Why" of Rotary membership.

Often, caught unprepared, we may expound on the internationality of Rotary, the size and scope of our service, or that we meet every week and eat together. None of these are particularly good at catching someone's interest in 15 to 30 seconds. So, first ask yourself: why did you join and what keeps you coming back? If you are like many Rotarians, the two most cited reasons that people join are for the networking and friendship, and to make their LOCAL communities a better place for all. About 75% of Rotarians joined (and stay) for these reasons.

Rotarian Michael Angelo Caruso

Jim Henry, a Rotarian from Florida, says that your response must address your club's "target audience" of business, professional, and community leaders. If they are in one of these categories, your club would most likely benefit from their membership. So, what is Rotary?  Henry's approach would be to answer: "Rotary is a network of active and retired business, professional, and community leaders, committed to making our community a better place to live." If the person who is asking is an active or retired business, professional or community leader who cares about your community, they will probably ask for more information.

Rotarian Michael Angelo Caruso customizes his "elevator speech" for specific target audiences. He simply
says: "Rotary is the best decision I ever made!" That certainly will spark interest in almost anyone. Play the video below for more from Michael on his intriguing "elevator speech".

So, the key points are to prepare yourself, think of your "target audience", and be ready to respond in a way that will stimulate further interest and discussion when the right person asks you: "So what is Rotary, anyway?" There is nothing worse than to have someone ask and your response is: "ummmmm..."

That's All!

Woody