Ice To Eskimos Is Not A Thing. Is Your Platform Helping Your UVP?

A compelling elevator pitch needs to be more than well-crafted — it needs to be accurate. Overpromising creates a problem that extends well past the person making the pitch, to every client and partner who trusted it. Delivering on what's promised requires a level of institutional support that creates real certainty, not just good intentions.

A recruiting firm once declined to take on a search, despite an otherwise strong business, with a blunt explanation: "You look like everyone else and don't have one major point of differentiation we can hang our hat on. We get results because we take the right jobs." It was a useful wake-up call — years in the market and good service alone weren't a real differentiator.

What a Platform Should Actually Provide

The next step in building a real UVP is auditing the platform behind it. Business strategist Seth Kahan frames platform value in three categories: creating new business, extracting more business, and facilitating better business. Checking a platform against all three reveals exactly what it contributes to a pitch — and what's missing.

New Business

Does the current platform open new markets or strategies? Being the top VA lender in a region, or the largest USDA lender with a turnkey marketing program, are both concrete examples of platform value that belong directly in a pitch.

More Business

Does the platform help extract more from existing relationships — saving time through dedicated support, or helping generate more income through structured marketing resources and builder relationships?

Better Business

Three areas matter most here: well-implemented technology, access to differentiated products, and speed. Technology only helps when it's used correctly — does the platform track a database well enough to flag real trigger events? Closing consistently in 30 days versus an industry average well over 45 is a measurable, marketable advantage, and it's worth tracking and reporting on directly.

Before finalizing a pitch, it's worth understanding exactly what stands behind it. A platform should be doing at least one of three things — creating new business, extracting more from existing relationships, or making the business measurably better. Knowing which ones apply is what keeps a UVP honest and specific.