What I want to share with you today, I did not know even ten years after I started making money with my talents, skills and capabilities. I picked it bit by bit, here and there, losing money, steeze and composure. All of the things I lost are nothing compared to the battle in my head and the fight I fought with myself about how I come across to people. My experience was also complex because I was doing a lot of things. I ghost write, speak at events, strategize for brands on content. I designed, ran a farm, I did and still do many things. I mentioned this intentionally because people rarely do one thing, yet there’s a popular belief that doing multiple things is a crime, whose sentence is failure. This is a broad discussion with lots of pros and cons but we are here to discuss pitching with clarity so let’s start.
"Clarity is the most underrated sales skill. If someone cannot understand what you do in 8 seconds, they will not buy it."
Let’s start with this scenario. I will use Opeyemi because she’s the most engaging reader.
You are at a gathering, a wedding, a church service, an alumni event and someone asks the question every professional dreads: “So what do you do?”
You take a breath and begin: “Well, it depends on the client, because I do so many things…” I laugh in spanish because this used to be me.
Thirty seconds later, the person’s eyes have glazed over. They are nodding politely to avoid being rude but they are already looking for how to escape that environment.
Can I tell you something, you have just lost a potential client. Not because you are not good at what you do but because you could not explain it.
That is why we are here.
Why Most People Cannot Explain What They Do
The inability to clearly explain your work is almost never a language problem. It is a clarity problem.
When you try to explain what you do and find yourself rambling, it means one of three things is happening inside your mind:
You are trying to include everything. You have multiple services, multiple capabilities, multiple types of clients and you are trying to mention all of them at once. The result is verbal noise. Nobody remembers noise.
You are afraid of narrowing down. If you say exactly who you help, you are implicitly saying you do not help everyone else. This feels like rejection or lost revenue. In reality, it is the opposite specificity attracts the right clients with magnetic force.
You have not yet decided what your primary offer actually is. Without a clear primary offer, every explanation becomes a menu reading. And nobody wants to read a menu when they are not yet hungry.
The solution is not a cleverer answer. It is a cleaner offer.
The Pitch Formula
There is a simple framework that produces a powerful, clear, memorable pitch for virtually any business in any industry. I call it the Transformation Sentence.
Here is the structure:
I help [WHO] to [ACHIEVE SPECIFIC RESULT] through [WHAT YOU DO], so that [THE DEEPER BENEFIT].
Let me show you how this works across different industries and professions:
The Caterer: “I help Lagos families throw unforgettable celebrations with custom menus that reflect their culture and impress their guests so they can be fully present at their own events instead of managing food stress.”
The Software Developer: “I help small businesses automate their most time-consuming admin processes through simple custom software, so they can stop wasting twelve hours a week on tasks that a computer can do in twelve minutes.”
The Personal Trainer: “I help men over 40 regain their physical strength and energy through a structured twelve-week programme, so they can keep up with their children and feel powerful in their own body again.”
The Lawyer: “I help small business owners protect their companies from costly contract disputes through simple, airtight legal documentation — so they never lose money to a preventable legal problem.”
The Hair Stylist: “I help professional women in Lagos maintain healthy, styled natural hair between salon visits through a personalised at-home maintenance plan — so they always look their best without sacrificing their weekend.”
The Farmer: “I supply fresh, certified vegetables to restaurants and households in Abuja with guaranteed twice-weekly delivery so chefs and families always have quality produce without the market run.”
Notice the pattern in every single one: who, result, method, deeper benefit. Four components. One sentence. Total clarity.
The Clarity Test: How to Know If Your Pitch Works
After you write your pitch, test it with this simple protocol:
Read it to someone who does not know what you do, a family member, a friend from a completely different industry, a neighbour.
Ask them two questions: First: “Who do I help?” They should be able to answer this immediately and specifically. Second: “What do I do for them?” Again, immediate and specific.
If they hesitate, guess broadly, or give a vague answer your pitch needs work.
Common failures and what they signal:
“You help… businesses?” Too broad. Your target is not clear.
“You do… something with social media?” Your method is vague. What specifically do you do?
“I’m not sure exactly…” Your transformation is not concrete. What is the specific result you deliver?
Keep refining until a stranger can answer both questions immediately and correctly. That is your pitch. I must say that this is both a process and a journey because that is where most talents get stuck. You will get better each time until you don’t have to do much introduction. Your pitch will certainly change as you evolve, modify your business or services or even pivot. Yes, nobody is trying to measure your accuracy in the real world with a tape rule, they just want to be clear about what you do so they can adequately classify you.
Beyond the Pitch: Using Clarity in Every Context
Your Transformation Sentence is not only for introductions. Once you have it, it becomes the foundation of everything you communicate about your business:
Your social media bio. Replace “entrepreneur, content creator, lover of life” with your Transformation Sentence or a condensed version of it. I just edited mine a while ago.
Your WhatsApp status. The most overlooked marketing real estate in Nigeria. If your status said “I help new mothers recover their pre-pregnancy fitness in 90 days” every day — how many warm leads would you generate from your own contact list?
Your email signature. “Hi, I’m Gift Onyinyechi. I help engineering students pass their professional examinations with confidence through intensive structured revision programmes.”
Your landing page headline. The first thing someone sees when they visit your website or Selar page should be your Transformation Sentence, not your name or your logo.
Your referral ask. “If you know anyone who [specific problem], I would love an introduction. Here is exactly what I do for them…” Specific referral requests produce specific referrals.
Clarity is the only marketing strategy you need at the beginning. Everything else is amplification.
ACTION STEPS (Do these before tomorrow’s lesson)
Write your first draft Transformation Sentence using the formula: I help [WHO] to [RESULT] through [METHOD] so that [DEEPER BENEFIT].
Test it on two people who do not know your business. Note what they understood and what was unclear.
Write your final pitch. Update your Instagram or WhatsApp bio with a version of it today.
Write three different versions — a one-sentence version, a two-sentence version, and a full paragraph. Use each depending on context.
Coming Tomorrow →
Tomorrow we’d discuss how to get in front of the right people? We will build your visibility strategy for every industry, every budget, and every comfort level.
If you’ve read this far, it would be great to read from you. Please drop a comment for us.
Thank you for joining the M25 series today.
©Abiola Iyiola, 2026
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