When it comes to getting your message across and connecting with your audience, storytelling is one of the most powerful tools available.
So much so that all we need to hear is “Let me tell you a story” and our ears perk up, our guard goes down, and we become more receptive and engaged.
Savvy marketers and business owners know this.
But many still don’t understand or appreciate just how powerful story telling is.
Or even worse, they feel like they don’t have a story to tell.
And everyone has a story to tell.
Now I WAS going to tell you a long drawn out story just to prove my point, but you’re busy, so let’s lets cut to the chase and get right to it.
(Pssstttt…. If you want to learn about story telling in marketing you can sign up for the Modern Marketing Newsletter below or in the right hand column right here on this page. I use a combination of open loops, soap-opera-sequences, and other story telling tools that you can copy and deploy in your own business)
Stories sell.
Plain and simple.
They build trust, allow you to inject your company values, missions, and services, and
capture attention like nothing else.
So you want to use them everywhere you can.
In his book “Sell With A Story” author Paul Smith wisely suggests that you use stories to introduce yourself and your business, counter and address any objections, add value to your customers, bring otherwise boring data or numbers to life, and so much more.
But if you’re brand new to storytelling this can seem like an overwhelming place to start.
Which is why I like to suggest 2 simple stories that anyone can tell, and will immediately help improve your marketing capital.
- The Founder Story
- The Client Success Story (aka the “Not Boring Case study”)
The Founder Story
There’s something strangely enticing about a story about a person.
Not a company.
But an actual human being.
Why?
Because it’s a whole lot easier to relate to the:
- Challenges
- Victories
- Failures
- Fears
- Tragedies
- Etc
Of another person than to a faceless (dare I say soulless?) corporation.
And no matter what business you’re in, the way it started and what it stands for today is likely a very interesting story.
Even if it’s simple.
Simple is relatable.
And simple can sell.
And I’ve seen time and time again that with a little digging and effort you’ll be more than able to pull out a few inspirational nuggets, polish them up, and turn them into gold.
If you’re brand new to storytelling, than the Founders Story is a great place to start.
More than likely your customers are interested in how it all “came to be”, and by sharing the story you set yourself apart from the masses as a more likeable brand and business.
The Client Success Story (aka the “Not Boring Case Study”)
Once you’ve got your Founders Story down it’s time to move on to the next one.
The Client Success Story (aka the “Not Boring Case Study”)
A client success story is really nothing more than a story around one of your clients or customers using your product or service and getting good results with it.
That’s it.
Here’s a simple “Client Success Story” framework to help get you started.
- Start with where your customer was before they found you (ie introduce their problem and pain)
- Introduce your product/service/solution and what you did for them.
- Show how much happier/better off/less stressed/more profitable they are now thanks to their work with you.
Again, that’s it!
If you need some additional inspiration, ask to talk with any of your customers and jot down some notes or record the conversation.
The words they use to describe their pain or frustrations and how your business solved it is pure storytelling gold!
And don’t be afraid to user their words verbatim as the odds are good that other customers feel the exact same way.
Storytelling Framework
If you’re still at a loss for how to start incorporating more stories into your marketing let me suggest the following.
Everything that happens is a story.
True story 😉
More often than not people think of something that happened and say “that’s not a story, it’s just something that happened.”
Well, the odds are good, if something happened, it’s a story, and if it happened in your business, then it’s a potential marketing story.
Jenn Tardif shares David Crabb’s 5 part storytelling framework in her article “The 5 Beats Of Successful Storytelling” and they are:
- Introduction – Where you set the scene.
- Incident – The challenge or question is presented.
- Stakes – What’s at stake? Why is this important?
- Event – The peak, climax, or when all is revealed. The question is answered.
- Resolution – Reflect on the story, and what was learned.
What’s Your Story?
So what’s your story?
How did you end up where you are? Doing what you do? And why do you do it?
If you’re up for the challenge, in the comments section below tell me your story in 300 words or less and let me know:
- What you do
- Why you do it
- And how you ended up doing what you do
Done! Your very first story!
