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The Role of This Tool in the Fifth Phase of the Design Thinking Method
An Elevator Pitch in the Deliver phase helps you communicate your solution’s value in 30–60 seconds to busy stakeholders who may only have a brief moment of attention.
It is used to spark interest, open doors to deeper conversations, and ensure that anyone on the team can consistently and compellingly describe the solution. This makes it crucial during Deliver when you are seeking sponsors, internal champions, pilot sites, or cross‑functional support, as it turns the complex design story into a sharp, memorable hook.
An Elevator Pitch is most suitable for any product or service that needs quick sponsorship or interest from busy stakeholders, especially when you’re early in discussions: new internal tools, customer‑facing services, partnership ideas, or innovation pilots that might otherwise struggle to get attention. It’s particularly effective when you know the listener’s time is limited (executives, potential sponsors, external partners) and you need to spark curiosity and open the door to a longer conversation, rather than explain every detail in a single interaction.
Because the format is extremely short and spoken, an Elevator Pitch often cannot convey nuance, technical detail, or complex trade‑offs, which may cause sophisticated listeners to perceive the idea as oversimplified or naive. It relies heavily on the speaker’s delivery (confidence, clarity, tone), meaning the same content can land very differently depending on who presents it. It can be hard to customise deeply on the spot for different audiences without practice—leading to generic pitches that fail to resonate with specific concerns like risk, compliance, or operational impact.
The Procedure for Using This Design Thinking Tool
Step 1: Decide who you are talking to (e.g., executive, partner, colleague) and what you want from them (e.g., interest, meeting, pilot, introduction).
Step 2: Use a simple formula such as: Context/Problem → Who it’s for → What we do → Key benefit → Call‑to‑action.
Step 3: Draft 3–5 sentences that fit into ~30–60 seconds, avoiding jargon and focusing on one strong, concrete benefit.
Step 4: Say it aloud several times, trimming unnecessary words and adjusting phrasing to make it sound natural and confident.
Step 5: Prepare 1–2 alternative versions (e.g., cost‑focused, user‑impact‑focused) and adjust your emphasis depending on the listener’s interests.
Next Steps in Your Design Thinking Journey
Continue your innovation journey with the following 3 Options to deepen your Design Thinking practice and amplify your impact.
