How to Pitch Senior Executives: A Lesson I Learned at 23
A marketing head stopped me mid-pitch and told me I was still the customer. Here's how I pitch senior executives now, the order that actually works.
Early in my career, a marketing head with 20 years of experience stopped me mid-pitch. Then he gave me the best sales feedback I've ever had.
Names and companies changed for confidentiality. The quotes are real, lightly trimmed from the recording.
I was a BD lead, 23 years old, on a call with a senior marketing head from a very large brand. The goal was to get him to give a guest lecture. My teammate opened the call and the conversation kept drifting. The marketing head didn't understand the offer, and I could feel the meeting slipping.
So I stepped in. My first move was to talk about money, and that was wrong. The pushback was immediate. It took me a while to work out that the mistake wasn't the number. It was the order I'd said things in.
The moment
"You should know how to pitch a proposition to someone like me."
"Although you're paying, you're still the customer... your whole ball game has to be different. It has to start from the top."
"Pitch [the company] first. What it's all about, how prestigious it is or can become. Then come to the students. Then, like you did, a little bit of ego massaging. That really helps with industry experts."
Part 1: Who is the customer when you're the one paying?
He is. When you're asking a senior person to give you their time, you're the one being evaluated, no matter who is paying. He said it flatly, and it reframed every pitch I've done since.
Part 2: What order should you pitch senior executives in?
Start with why the brand is worth their name, then the audience, then the ask. I had money first. He wanted to know who he'd be associated with, and after that, who he'd be talking to. The number only makes sense once those two are answered.
Part 3: What do you do when a meeting is drifting?
Take the charge, whatever your title. I wasn't the head yet, and it wasn't my meeting to run. But it was going nowhere and someone had to reset it. I went back to the start and explained the offer from scratch, and the conversation steadied. I'm not blaming anyone for how the call began. He was new, learning, and I was learning too. The point is that you don't wait for a better moment.
Part 4: What actually changed in how I pitch?
Three things:
- I know what I'm offering before I walk in, and I can say it in a few clear lines.
- I open with why this is worth their time, not what's in it for me.
- I stay present enough to notice when the meeting is slipping, and I say something.
What changed in the numbers
| Before that meeting | After |
|---|---|
| Order of the pitch: format, fee, then audience | Order of the pitch: brand, audience, ask |
| Who I thought was the customer: the person who pays | Who I thought was the customer: the person whose time I'm asking for |
| When a meeting drifts: wait and hope | When a meeting drifts: step in and reset |
Although you're paying, you're still the customer.
Before you copy it
- Don't fake the prestige. Leading with the brand only works if there's something real to lead with. He said himself that the brand wasn't a household name yet, so we had to earn respect first.
- "Ego massaging" is not flattery. Keep it true. Say something specific you actually respect about them.
- Money isn't the opener, but don't hide it either. He wanted the details eventually. He just wanted them after the reasons.
- If you step in, do it without making your teammate small. The fix is the reset, not a public correction.
He agreed to speak for free and offered to bring in his network. But he was clear it was out of goodwill, not because the pitch sold him. So I wouldn't read this as proof the pitch worked. I'd read it as proof the advice was worth taking.