Key Pitch (Spontaneous Speech Structures)

Introduction

It presents several “structures” that help with thinking clearly and speaking persuasively when you don’t have a lot of prep time, you have got to pitch something quickly or speak spontaneously. The idea is that structure gives your words shape, which helps both you (to organise thoughts) and your audience (to follow and remember what you say).

Possible main structures:

1. What - So What - Now What

• What: State the idea, fact or situation.
• So What: Explain its relevance or importance, ie why it matters.
• Now What: Outline what action you propose, or what comes next.

This is very flexible and can used it in many situations (feedback, small talk, introductions, etc.).

2. Problem – Solution – Benefit

• Problem: Define a challenge, issue, gap or opportunity.
• Solution: Propose what you think solves it.
• Benefit: Show the positive outcomes if the solution is adopted.

This is persuasive and commonly used for pitches.

3. Four-Sentence Pitch: “What If You Could…/So That…/For Example…/That’s Not All…”

• This is a tight, compact strategy for short pitches or elevator pitches.
• Sentence starters:
  1. What if you could … (introduce the idea/opportunity)
  2. So that … (impact, the effect or benefit)
  3. For example … (a concrete example or analogy)
  4. That’s not all … (extra feature, broader potential, bonus)

These structures work because

• They tap into how people process information, with a beginning, middle and end; they avoid yanking the audience around.
• They force you to be concise and focus on relevance: “So That” keeps you from delivering facts without meaning.
• They help with spontaneous speaking: when you get called on unexpectedly, you can mentally drop into one of these structures to organise your answer.

Some Practical Tips

• Before you speak, take a short mental pause to pick the structure. Even 3-5 seconds helps.
• Adjust depending on the scenario: if you are giving feedback, perhaps use What-So That-Now What; if you are proposing something, maybe Problem-Solution-Benefit.
• Use vivid examples where possible (“For example …”) to make it concrete. Stories or analogies help.
• Keep each part tight; do not overdo the “problem” or dwell too long without moving toward what you want to happen.
• Practise with these structures in low-stakes moments (small conversations, emails, etc.) so they become easier when the stakes are higher.

(main source: Matt Abrahams, 2024)