What is it you say you do here?

I am on a drug. It's called Sparkfun.

Here's the structure of an elevator pitch:
Define the Market
Define the Problem
How you solve it
Where the money is
Here's your elevator pitch Nate
"There is an increasingly popular movement for individuals and small businesses to create their own technology products and bypass the major industrial players, it's the long tail of the tech revolution.
The problem has been that access to information and materials has traditionally been difficult for those not already involved in the industry which has led to inefficient distribution of products through the channel and limited it to a few power players and niche hobbyists.
What we've done is provide a means of access to materials and information and built a community around our brand which encourages and develops this market of individuals and small groups, which only becomes richer and more successful as the market grows because they help each other.
Because of this approach our business can grow exponentionally as this market grows and new members of our community are added. It's not about the things we sell, which are great, it's about how and why we service our community that makes us great and an irreplaceable part of the market we serve.

I tell relatives at holiday get-togethers that if they wanted to build a robot in the garage, we could help 'em out. It's true, as far as it goes, and aside from the handful with engineering degrees and hobby electronics experience, it's the closest I can get without the eye-glaze setting in.
I tell my technical friends that I get to hack for an organization that actually believes in the stuff I used to rant at them about when I was a teenaged shoeless free software hippie.
I just tell most everyone else that I work on the Island of Misfit Toys.

Q: "So you sell iPods and stuff?"
A: "nope, we sell the stuff to turn your ipod into a robot which will kill all humans"

The Radio Shack of yesterday in the world of tomorrow

Well-well look. I already told you: I deal with the *** **** customers so the engineers don't have to. I have people skills; I am good at dealing with people. Can't you understand that? What the hell is wrong with you people?

From here, it's obvious.
Sparkfun subverts the dominant paradigm

If you were a Robot SparkFun would be your Porn site.
?Anyone else?
- If you were a Robot SparkFun would be your ?
- Me and my Robot hit SparkFun for the best ?
~sorry if some find comparing SparkFun to porn degrading but hay it's HOT stuff!

Sparkfun is to Radioshack
What Amazon is to bookstore?

Sparkfun sells "Electronic Pixie Dust", you still have to add the "Happy Thought"...

"Sparkfun is like learning how to play the piano in a day. Instead of staring out with theory, you just sit down and play."
This creates passion, that accelorates the learning experience.
Instant results, instant motivation, instant fun!

Sparkfun makes learning curves far shorter and/or parts of learning curves unnecessary. I've already been able to impress my boss at work(who has a masters in EE from Stanford) and get a subsequent raise by using some Sparkfun breakout boards and some simple coding to make a cool useful product. Perhaps I could have done this without Sparkfun support, but I doubt I would have had the motivation to push through all the detail work that was already provided through the boards and links to tutorials on the site. So that's my rather subjective two cents in regards to what Sparkfun does for me.

Sparkfun specializes in rapid prototyping. It sells parts, kits, and prototype equipment, along with sample code, allowing the hobbyist to easily join the high-tech world, or providing professionals with a simple way to prototype complicated ideas.

Sparkfun is a cooking show for electronics. We also sell everything we use on the show so you can do it at home.

"Sparkfun sell the parts and pieces for time machines, family starships, tele-porters, cold fusion reactors, replicators, personal robots, space elevators, warpdrive components, and other types of devices and tools that you imagined when you were a kid. We supply components that allow clever people of average ignorance to make amazingly useful and amusingly useless gadgets and gizmos for fun and profit. We turn Phineas and Ferb into reality television"

everyone is a lady gaga now, including the males

We manufacture a large variety of electronic boilerplates, only some of which are capable of boiling anything.
or
we piss off EE's with stripes by skirting their years of pain.

It's my daily dose of CHarlie Sheen!
Winning...DUH

Sparkfun Rulllsss!
Very good mantra - to make industrial electronics nearer to begginers

Just adding a witness. Christmas came with an Arduino and I wasn't sure I could make it do anything. Only few months later (and with a little help from Free Day), I've got a project on my breadboard with diodes, relays, transistors, leds, resistors, "oh my". If you'd told me I could do all that 3 months ago I would have laughed. Sparkfun has helped with product, tutorials, sample code, community, etc. Nate, I think you are hitting your mark. Way to go!

In my applications your involvement goes beyond simply "selling shortcuts". Although certainly a part of what you do for my projects (and probably other enthusiasts), it is far from the whole picture. SparkFun approaches issues with a "starving student" and/or a user group like mentality. You provide reasonably priced prospective project components that are difficult, impossible or simply non-economical for an individual hobbyist to create. Keep creating.

I always tell people that "SparkFun is my favorite source for Electronic Widgets."
Often, that yields a quizzical look and the question "Like chips and stuff?"
To which I usually answer, "Yes, but with heavy emphasis on the and stuff."
This usually begets a round of "Ah, I see" nodding from folks who don't really understand (and don't really care to.) For those who do want to know more, the next stop is usually an '5 minute elevator'-like speech about how SparkFun is more than simply a parts supplier. There's the documentation, the custom Eagle parts, the breakout boards, the sample projects, the tie-ins with Ponoko and circuit board houses... Pretty much all the resources you need to turn parts into working projects.
Peter.

Mix and match as appropriate:
"SparkFun makes it easy to build custom electronics."
"We provide tools, materials, and instruction."
"We also sponsor fun events to build enthusiasm and innovation."
"We cater to novices and busy professionals in (NUMBER OF) countries."
"You should come visit us at (EVENT) next month. Bring the kids. It'll be fun! I'll hook you up with free tickets. Here's my card. Check out the videos on our website!"
"Check this out! (HOLD UP PHONE/TABLET) Here's a photo of our equipment being launched into space by a customer. Here's a video of a killer robot created by a high school student. Here's a photo of a custom built industrial whatchamacallit that does goodthing."
"Unlike massive industrial suppliers, we make it easy and personable."
"We sell starter kits and building blocks."
"Our community of customers provides product reviews on our website."
"We have an online forum where our staff and customers show off and help each other out."

OK, here's your elevator pitch:
We sell electronic parts to beginners.
80% of what they need they can buy from us.
The other 20% they can get from Mouser and Digikey :-)

what gives? no page update today?

Sparkfun is part of the Electronics Reformation: we make electronics accessible to everyone, not just to electrical engineers.
Stunning analogy:
If digikey sells sand, then Sparkfun sells bricks. Of all shapes and sizes. From them, our customers build houses, sculptures, doghouses, castles, outhouses. Anything!
hmmn...perhaps "brick" has an unfortunate connotation, so another analogy might be better. :)

Nate, not only do you create shortcuts, you also, break down walls, build dialogue, teach, promote, connect, enable, and develop strategies that put electronic prototyping into the hands of anyone with an interest. You make a technical trade that has seemed, out of reach of the average person, easier to enter into and be part of.

Make cool stuff. Make cool stuff cooler. Help people make cool stuff.

We at Sparkfun sells electronic and electromechanical produces that fulfills the desired need of consumer and allow our customers inner Turing machine to get operational. We are technology experts. Our motto "Sell everything that blinks"

I've struggled with this type of pitch for years since I write books on Embedded electronics (www.elproducts.com).People would ask what kind of books do you write. I tried the robotics comparison, ipod comparison...nothing worked. They weren't my target audience so I had to do it much simpler. I finally settled on this.
"I write and sell books that teach kids, adults, students or anybody interested, how to design their own electronic gadgets"
It seems to work well.
Sparkfun isn't much different.
"You create and sell the components and information that kids, adults, students and anybody interested need to build their own electronic gadgets."
Now you just need to add my books ;-)

How about "Here at Sparkfun, we package a little electronic love in every red box we send out!"

You know how you can build anything with Legos? Well, you can build electronic things in the same way. We sell the parts and pieces that make building an electronic thing as easy as building a Lego thing.
While our customers could build things that already exist - like a furnace thermostat, or a remote control toy, or a car starter, generally our customers build things they can't get elsewhere.
One of our customers tracks his base jumping - basically parachuting off cliffs - with electronics that tell him how fast he's going, how hard he landed, and his path as he floats through the canyons.
Another customer built a treasure box for his fiance that would only open when she got close to their vacation destination.
Some of our customers build lights and sensors into their clothing and costumes that react to how they move and the sounds around them.
We make electronics as easy to use as Legos, so our customers can build exceptional objects.

Nate, you GHTs are definitely in the shortcut business. Just don't go too far so that it veckors TOO easy to cobble together a cool gadget or robot or whatever. The balance between "challenging " and "possible" is perfect right now, I think.
Here's where the short-cutting falls short, though: ENCLOSURES! I'm tired of stuffing my creations in Altoid tins, cigar boxes or in the red SparkFun packaging material. The offerings from enclosure companies typically look rather 1985, so I wish there was a way to create exactly the box I need with any dimensions, any-shape openings and holes and what not. EAGLE for boxes, I guess.
Anyway - good work, SparkFun! Back to roaming the real-world stores for a suitable box...

In short you guys "Spark My Creativity" You guys put a twist on electronics I might not have thought of trying. Perfect example would be your stenciling video. I never thought of doing a kapton stencil I've always been ordering metal ones.
P.S. I have the same problem. I'm a Reverse Engineer in an R&D lab in my day job. Try explaining that to people.

less spark, more fun

SparkFun you rule me.
You hack and drive our passion.
Blossom every mind.

Sparkfun, engineering for the masses.

There are so many good thoughts and ideas posted already, I think I'll just add what Sparkfun means to me--how I describe it: "Sparkfun is the company that gives EVERYBODY the chance to solve their electronic problems, be creative with electronics in ways they didn't think they could be, and gives everybody with the passion and desire the tools they need to create and have fun. And they have fun doing so. And they make it fun for me to do so, too. Sparkfun is the best friend in electronics eveybody wishes they had". I think if I had to pick one single line that best describes Sparkfun, that last line would be it. :)

If you wanted to become a great painter, you would need supplies like canvas, paint, brushes; maybe some lessons to teach you the basics, and something or somewhere to inspire you.
If you were a car guy, you would probably have a car that you can tinker with, a junk yard and a parts store to go to, and would seek out other car people to hang out with, share tips, info and show your completed projects to (usually in a parking lot at night).
If data sheets and computer chips excite you though, Sparkfun is where electronics geeks go to learn, get parts, share ideas, get help and be part of a community.

Sparkfun - Where you can learn to be an electrical engineer.

I just reciently found this treasure chest of awesomenes.
Being a electronics technecian, I lose sight of the fun of building a small device that turns on a led when the temp gets above 50 deg. Sparkfun just makes that seem fun agian.
My version of you speach.
Sparkfun teaches people that building your own electronics is easy, rewarding, and most importantly fun by giving people all the basic components, information, and help that they need to start they're own projects.

Sparkfun made sparks fun!

Deleted. Someone beat me to the office space quotes.

Sparkfun is the modern equivalent of Heathkit. Or it is the company Heathkit should have evolved into if it wasn't stuck on selling vacuum tubes. Note: This explanation is only useful for old codgers like me that are half a century old. Plus or minus. :-)
Seriously, Sparkfun makes high tech design projects easier, simpler and faster to get done. "Shortcuts" summarizes it nicely.

you say you will never try to out digikey, digikey.
then could you provide links an all your product pages for what parts there are and where to get them? or at least come up whith a list for where to get a "green smd led" or a 2.2nf smd cap, used on the itg 3200 breakout.
thanks, keep up the good work!

"Sparkfun makes basic electronics accessible to beginners and complex electronics achievable for experienced hobbyists alike by innovating and truly value adding in a rapidly changing world"
or
"For electronics makers we make the tough things simple for beginners, the complex things easy for everyone and share the fun in the discoveries our customers make"
Either one of those needs some (a few) product words to follow maybe...
S

"Unfortunately, no one can be told what Sparkfun is. You have to see it for yourself. This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue box, the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red box, you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes."
:)

It would appear that this sentence:
We will never to try to out-DigiKey DigiKey
has one too many to's!

SparkFun is a parts supplier for amateur electronics projects. That's what I tell folks.

Phase 1: Collect Parts
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit

I could tell you, but then I would have to kill you.
I came for an Arduino Mega and stayed because of the little Red boxes. I order parts just for the boxes. I hope to complete my collection soon.

It wouldn't work for an elevator speech, but generally, when one of my friends who likes to build stuff tells me they want to make something (like a yogurt maker that they can control over the internet...no, really) we find a computer, I say, "Dude, check this #$@$ out!" and we go to the website. If they are the type of person that needs anything more than to be left alone to surf, then I show them how to find your tutorials.

I think it was a Google talk where Nate said something along the lines of how Sparkfun is like Home Depot.
You don't really go to Home Depot to buy a bathroom, but they do have everything you need and the experts to help you if you want to make your own bathroom.
So I usually follow that up with something like you would go to Radio Shack to buy and iPod but you would go to Sparkfun to buy all of the parts to make your own and learn how it works in the process.

Sparkfun is the only electronics store where I can see more than one (or at least one!) picture of what I'm buying, dimensions and with a good description of the item. Also, you can add what we can call "social electronic shopping", and that include other people feedback (I really like the comment section), open designs, to share proyects, etc. Actually, Sparkfun can inprove in that direction :D And a 4 positions DIP switch please :D (Only 8 positions is avalaible :( ) jeje

I tell people that I "tinker", and that's what you guys help me do, "Tinker" with things.

Sparkfun: we sell electronic parts.
how hard is it to say what you do?

Now I know why no one ever wants any of my cookies....... ;p

It's not what you sell, it's how it's sold. There are lots of folks selling electronic components, breakout boards, kits, tools, supplies, etc. Sure Sparkfun does that, but to me the Sparkfun difference is the "Sharing Ingenuity" attitude. Most of the people that buy from Sparkfun would love to work there, or at least hang around with the kind of people that work there; that can't be said for Digi-Key or Mouser. The products you sell are just incidental to what Sparkfun is really doing, which is having some fun and sharing it with their customers.

Sparkfun removes some of the technical barriers of electrical and software engineering so that inspiration can take hold in a wider community of hobbyists and creators.

The bit about "get it usable" with the breakout and adapter boards and such hits the nail on the head. The same goes for filtering components for folks who just need an LED or trimpot and don't know which of the (literally) many thousands of choices would work. Similarly, parts that are hard to obtain in
hobbyist quantities, because the vendor only speaks Chinese, or minimum order quantity is 100k, or whatever. Basically, you
guys to a lot of the legwork and donkeywork, so we can get what we need to build something that works without duplicating the same frustrating steps hundreds of others would have to as well. You act as a force multiplier, allowing our efforts to do more, and as a "frustration buffer", which is invaluable.

Sparkfun: offering components, service and insight to help hobbyists complete the circuit.
In this case, "complete the circuit" is a metaphor for finishing a project with minimal headaches and for achieving great things at little cost.

Its not simple, but i've done it a few times.
For the most part my speech is somewhat like this, "
For newbies and young engineers, especially students it will be hard to know all you need and navigate your way around datasheets and complexed engineering designs.
For some parts, jacking on the wires and turning up the voltage wont work, even though these values are correct.
To get the information you need, the skills you need (tutorials), the tools you need, go to SparkFun.
They'll Get you started.
And when you have designed your first prototype, go to BatchPCB.
They'll get you started.
* The best thing since sliced bread (For us beginners, seriously, you are!)"

"We do the actual electrical engineering part so you don't have to" :)

Although I've recommended SparkFun to dozens and dozens of people, I don't think I've ever summarized it up in less than 10 minutes. For those that understand electronics, that's not too long. For those people that don't, I usually reduce it to: An awesome company that actually interacts with their customers and sells the equivalent to Legos for electronic projects. By the time I say electronics, their eyes have already glazed over and it doesn't really matter what I say. Forget about mentioning open hardware!

Just tell people you're an astronaut, job done.
Or maybe, 'We dont sell servers' ;)

"we bridge the gap for you, in all your small electronics needs"
that last bit is replaceable...
at least "we bridge the gap for you___________"

how about: "Sparkfun is as Sparkfun Does!" lol

The answer is t-1 3/4, but a 1206 is big enough to work with too.
"Sparkfun sells common eletronic componets and development kits to help hobbiest and entrepreneurs create thier own electronic projects, from making a LED blink or to making full blown robots.