Who Are You?
How to Clearly and Concisely Self-Identify in Sales Pitches and Social Bios
Welcome aboard! I’m Cheryl, your guide and instructor for the “Quick Sell Mastery” course. This is Step 1, but if you missed the introduction you can read that here, “A Sudden Sense of Enlightenment: The Art of the 30 Second Elevator Pitch.” I’m thrilled to have you join us and excited to help you transform your sales skills. You’re about to embark on a journey that will not only enhance how you introduce your business but will also arm you with the confidence to make every introduction count.
If you don’t want to miss a thing, you can subscribe to The Library at the Business Witch Academy here and to the Magically Thriving Business weekly recap newsletter here. If you’d like to get your hands on the 7 AI prompts, 2 Canva Whiteboards to organize your thoughts and 2 free bonus eBooks you can either purchase the full course from the Business Witch Emporium right now, or you can become a paid subscriber to my Substack where you’ll receive each lesson as they are published plus the bonuses. Don’t worry, you don’t have to decide right now, I’ll give you these links again at the bottom of this story. Right now, it’s time to join Ophelia in the classroom…
Quick Read Snapshot for Those in a Hurry
In this lesson, you’ll learn the importance of creating a clear and concise job title that immediately communicates what you do. By avoiding vague, overly creative, or jargon-heavy descriptions, you’ll make it easier for others to understand your value and connect with you. Use this exercise to refine your title into a straightforward, 1–4 word category that leaves no room for confusion.
How to Clearly and Concisely Self-Identify in Sales Pitches and Social Bios
Exercise 1: Get Clear About Your Category
Quick Sell Mastery Step 1: How to Clearly and Concisely Self-Identify in Sales Pitches and Social Bios
I rose from my desk and stood in front of the class at the Business Witch Academy. As the room settled down, I asked, “How many of you have seen or read Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’?” Most of the hands went up. “In one of my favorite scenes, the Caterpillar asks Alice ‘Who are you?’. Alice replied, rather shyly, ‘I — I hardly know, Sir, just at present — at least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.’ I feel like it really illustrates the challenge that some business owners often face when asked to quickly sum up what they do clearly.
“Sometimes it is easier to learn what ‘To Do’ by first learning what not to do. We’re going to travel to the land of LinkedIn and take a closer look at headlines. Headlines in LinkedIn are the short blurb that is displayed under a person’s name.
Please follow along on your own computer and log into LinkedIn. At the top the page, click on “My Network” > “Connections”
Start reading through the text blurbs under the names of your connections. I suspect, if your network is anything like mine, you’ll start to notice a few commonalities. These blurbs tend to fall into one of 4 categories:
LinkedIn Headline Categories
Basic and Opaque
Owner XYZ Company
Business Manager at XYZ Company
Corporate Development
Chief Innovation Officer
Thought Leader and Disruptor
Creative but Confusing
Marketer, connector and real estate enthusiast.
Billionaires in Boxers Ranked #1 Globally Unknown to unrivalled since 2011
Entrepreneur, connector, go-giver, I know a little about mortgages
Descriptive but Clear
Transforming how real estate payments are made with the goal of eliminating wire fraud.
Simplifying the processes and systems to create income and time for former teachers turned entrepreneurs.
I help businesses create record breaking sales.
Clear and Concise
Account Development Specialist
Agency Account Manager
YouTube Marketing Expert
When we introduce ourselves we need to communicate quickly and clearly what we do. A lot of people want to use creative titles that make them sound important and special, but is it accomplishing our goal of making meaningful connections that lead to business relationships? What is more important? That someone walks away thinking, “Gee, I just met an important person” or that someone walks away thinking, “I need to call them and set up a meeting. I think they can solve my problem”?
For this first step, we want to focus on finding a clear and concise category for your job. For some people, this will be easy and straightforward because some professions are widely understood, for example, Real Estate Attorney or Residential Plumber. Notice that I put a descriptive word or phrase in front that provided more clarity. I could have just as easily said Attorney or Plumber, but by adding that descriptor in front I brought the role into laser focus. That is what I want you to do. Bring your role into laser focus with as few words as possible.
When I meet people, I could say:
“Hi, I’m Cheryl Evans, CEO of Carnanco.”
What would that say to them about what I can do to help them? This sort of introduction is basic but opaque rather than descriptive, clear and concise.
I could also say, “Hi, I’m Cheryl Evans, I’m your secret weapon against mayhem.”
It sounds creative and intriguing but still doesn’t do much to communicate clearly what I do and how that helps them. It might be a good conversation starter, if there is time for conversation, or it might confuse them and they won’t know how to respond.
If I say, “Hi, I’m Cheryl Evans, I provide executive level strategy execution management and software implementation oversight,” I’ll sound important and technically, I’ve told the person what I do, but stringing together so many large buzzwords will make me sound arrogant and may leave my listener confused. If someone has to think hard to figure out what you mean, they generally won’t bother.
When I introduce myself as, “Hi, I’m Cheryl Evans, I’m a business consultant.” It clearly states what I do and who I do it for.
Now it’s your turn.
Don’t miss the next lesson!
Exercise 1: Get Clear About Your Category
Here’s your homework assignment:
Get a sheet of paper or (if you’re a paid, enrolled student at the Business Witch Academy, use the Canva Whiteboard below) to brainstorm your category. Keep in mind this is a category, not a sentence.
Here are the rules:
No idea is a bad idea while brainstorming. Write them all down. Later you’ll decide if they are any good.
No Creative Job Titles — the average person on the street needs to understand what you do without any additional explanation.
Pick a broad category that you job falls into. You are not talking about features, or what makes you special. We’ll do that later.
Keep it brief — 1–4 words
Be open to feedback.
Before you go, let me just remind you, don’t be afraid to get some help. Be open to feedback. What you wrote is probably good, but it might trigger someone else to tweak it just a little bit and that collaboration can create something amazing. You don’t have to do this alone. If you’re struggling, narrow it down to your top 3 and then get some opinions and help fine tuning it. If you’re a member of the Business Witch Academy community, you can post it there to ask for feedback. You could also create a poll on your LinkedIn page, or ask everyone in your office.
Finally, I have a special treat for you. Make sure you grab the Canva Whiteboard & AI Prompt on your way out the door (Just below) and you’ll be done this assignment in no time!
Not yet enrolled in the Business Witch Academy? You can grab the Canva Whiteboard and AI Prompt either by purchasing the course digital text book from the Business Witch Emporium right now, or you can become a paid subscriber to my Substack.
Thanks for joining me for Step 1 in the Quick Sell Mastery course. I’ll see you back here next week for Step 2! Class dismissed.
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