The Elevator Pitch

Everyone has a formula for the ingredients that make for a successful elevator pitch. Based on what I've learned from others, this is the formula that I'm using these days:

• The problem. The problem needs to identify the person who will be paying for the solution, and it needs to sound really painful for that person.
• The size of the problem. This is the addressable market size. How many people have this problem? How much are they currently paying to address this problem?
• The solution. An elegant solution, differentiated from current solutions, preferably with a better profit margin than those current solutions.
• Validation. Some data on customers, revenue or anything else that shows or suggests traction.