Abdallah Touqan from Dubizzle wins our Message in a Minute Challenge
In case you couldn’t work it out from Twitter, Lindsay and I were at the European Communication Summit in Brussels last week.
While there we ran the first Media Coach Message in a Minute competition in which we asked the professional PRs to describe their organisation in a colloquial and interesting way in 60 seconds and record it on our onsite camera.
Many people often forget the value of an efficient Message in a Minute or elevator pitch. They often (wrongly) assume that people know what they do (even after an hour of talking to them) when actually they only have a vague idea.
So doing it well can be a challenge but is worth getting right.
Even by the standards of professional communicators, we had some unusually strong entries and were really impressed by what people came up with virtually on their spot.
Although it was a tough call in the end we gave the prize to Abdallah Touqan for his description of Dubizzle, the company where he heads up communications.
What clinched his win was his arresting and imaginative use of numbers, examples (e.g. Egyptians having the equivalent of Swedish GDP in unused goods in their homes) and enthusiastic but measured delivery. He also managed to convey Dubizzle as a ‘movement’ in the ‘collaborative economy’ rather than just being a company, which was very effective.
He was just a great spokesperson in terms of content and style.
Well done to everyone who took part and we hope you enjoyed it.
See you next year.
All the more impressive considering the huge amount of distraction and noise around him !
Thank you Robert, yeah it is true! Its always good to try delivering your message in all sorts of environments. Distraction is always there, so being focused comes with practice I gotta say :)
Well done Abdallah!
Thank you :)
Smart and professional statement. Keep the good work abdallah touqan
Thank you very much :)