Tell me a truth and I’ll believe.
But tell me a story and it will live in my heart forever.
Indian Proverb
Now I realize that this was a start-up and after all,
they are looking for some professional help with marketing, but they are not
alone. I’m often surprised at the great stories I hear from companies like this
that aren’t being told in their marketing or sales materials. Even in this age
of the 60-second sound-bite and the polished and practiced “elevator pitch” we marketers
still seem to struggle with telling a clear, concise and compelling story about
ourselves, our products and our companies.
Sometimes it’s as if we are afraid that storytelling will
come across as unprofessional, too self-serving or that stories are only
appropriate to tell in a face-to-face meeting. Nothing could be further from
the truth.
If you believe that then you are missing the sheer power
of storytelling in marketing. Not only are stories a powerful way of
illustrating the value of your product, in many cases they are the way that
your prospects and customers will explain what you do and how you do it to
others.
This point is brought out quite well in Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, a book by brothers Chip and Dan Heath published in
2007. The book builds on the idea of "stickiness" popularized by Malcolm
Gladwell in The Tipping Point, and sets out to define what makes an idea
or concept memorable or interesting.
In the book they talk about what they call the Six Principles of Sticky Ideas with the book's outline following the acronym "SUCCES" [with
the last “s” omitted]. Each letter refers to a characteristic that can
help make an idea "sticky":
-
Simple — find the
core of any idea
- Unexpected — grab people's attention by surprising them
- Concrete — make sure an idea can be grasped and remembered later
- Credible — give an idea believability
- Emotional — help people see the importance of an idea
- Stories — empower people to use an idea through narrative
Of these Six Principles, “Stories”, the last, is by far the
most important when it comes to marketing. Built upon the five others - Simplicity,
Unexpectedness, Concreteness, Credibility and Emotions – it is the Story, the
narrative of the product, brand or company that has the power to create action
and motivate.
But, what makes for a good marketing story?
Well,
to start with, good stories should paint a picture, a vivid picture. They need
to enable our customers to visualize things that are incredibly difficult to
grasp or concepts otherwise overtly complex. And if done right, stories can
make people want to learn more.
A well-crafted story creates a type of journey. At the end of that
journey, we’re going to be impressed and we’re going to be interested. In fact,
we’re probably going to want to take the next incremental step in the sales
process and learn more.
These are special kinds of stories – they’re strategic. They build
on themselves and give a “human face” to an otherwise non-human entity – your product,
service or company. They humanize and create a simple bond when done right.
It is these stories that can drive our critical interactions with
our customers and stakeholders. Placing this in the context of the standard buying
process formula, these stories are what propel Awareness, Consideration, Trial
and Buying, the virtuous cycle that produces growth and profitability.
This is what makes storytelling in marketing so important. Far
from being window dressing, these stories are key business drivers. The more
coherent and compelling your story is, the more it will power the success of
your enterprise.
So, what’s your story?
