Some people are natural storytellers…
I’ve never met one.
I guarantee you I’m not not a natural!
Like EVERY ONE that I know who is a great storyteller, I had to learn that skill. And like me, they studied and practiced storytelling until it appeared effortless.
Sure, we can all talk what happened at last night’s at the football game, but that’s chit-chat.
For your business, you want to tell stories with a point to help your business.
Those stories persuade people to take actions you want them to take.
The good news is that it’s not that hard once you have a simple system to follow.
If you learn the basic skills, it becomes easier. Your creativity bubbles to the top. And you improve every time you tell a story.
With the simple system I’m going to show you, telling stories that persuade others is an easy process.
But before we get there…
If storytelling scares you a bit, you’re already having a reaction to what I’ve said so far.
You may be thinking:
- “I can’t tell stories.”
- “Nothing interesting ever happens to me.”
- “Nobody cares about my daily stories.”
- “Why would anyone want to hear my story?”
- “I don’t know what makes a good story!”
First…
Hogwash!
Second…
The primary issue here is that you think telling a story is about you.
Sorry to disappoint. Your story has nothing to do with you. It’s about your listener. How do THEY relate to the story you’re telling?
What if we show you a template that anyone can use called 7 Steps to Creating Stories with a Point!
These are:
The Hook
In today’s information overloaded world, you’ve only got about 3 seconds to grab your readers attention.
So, you must amaze, shock, anger, scare, or identify with your readers! This is your only chance to connect on an emotional level with the audience. They will click away to something MORE interesting if not hooked…
One of the best ways to engage is to ask a question and leave it unanswered, but promise an answer later.
This is no time to be shy.
The Setup
This is where most people mess up.
You don’t have to provide long-winded, descriptions, but use the rest of the tools to paint the scene so the reader or viewer sees exactly what you want them to see and feel in their mind’s eye.
Provide the context for your story. Make the problem crystal clear, painful and easy to identify with.
Tease the audience with the solution, but don’t reveal it. Stay engaged.
Tip: Context is like a snake – Hold on to it too long and you’re going to get bit.
The Parachute
Think of all the great action movies you love. You never start out slow and meandering into the story. You drop right into the middle of it with a bang.
Even if it’s a love story, the conflict jumps very fast. Make it visual. Make it fast and do it really quickly. You can show a lot really fast. The audience sees and feels what’s going on. If the audience can’t see the picture as you’re telling it, then the message is NOT being delivered effectively.
The Theme
What’s your point?
Support that point with every sentence. Use foreshadowing to make sure that next sentence leads to the point of the story in a subtle and logical sequence.
The theme is not a single element that happens in sequence, but more like the seasoning that’s added to a broth so that it colors the entire story. The audience should never doubt what you’re trying to say.
You’re leading them clearly from one place to another. The point should be subtly and repetitively added to every other element in the story.
Do NOT confuse the audience by straying from the point.
The Transition
Have you ever watched movie that introduced a new main character in the middle of the film and then started focusing on that person throughout?
Probably not because that’s story suicide. When the transition from one scene to another causes a bump in the psyche, confusion ensues. And when that happens, the audience checks out. Literally.
Remember, done well, your audience is hanging on the story because it’s been so engaging.
They need resolution.
Remind them the problem has a solution, and you’re going to reveal it shortly, but first get into more detail about the problem leading to the solution.
The Sell
Reveal the solution you’ve found.
Don’t GIVE the solution, but give enough information to make sure the audience sees the potential resolution.
And introduce the call to action, whether that’s to purchase, share the content, opt-in…whatever.
This solved your problem. And it can solve theirs too if they get this solution. Remind them how much pain you (they – remember, you’re identifying with them) were in because of the problem and how great it is now. The solution is the key.
The Tie Back
Bring it back home.
Remember, that unanswered question?
Now’s the time to bring it back up and provide the answer. Obviously, the unanswered question is solved by the solution you presented in The Sell.
You’ve come full circle.
You started a story with an example, quote or character. Now, come back to that very same element and demonstrate why it was so important to the story.
Want a couple of examples?
You have to hook your readers and create enough curiosity to encourage them to continue reading.
Everyone has a story to tell.
You can create exciting, interesting content from simple daily events in your life. You just have to open your mind enough to weave those stories into your message. Guess what? There are proven strategies and methods to weave these stories into your business.
My daughter just ran her first half marathon. I asked her about the process. What she learned. How she planned for it.
The first thing she said was,
“Believe it or not, I took a running class. I know it sounds stupid. But guess what? I was running all wrong. Once I learned how to do it correctly, then I began having these tiny little victories which made me want to get better. Then I began enjoying it and wanted more challenges. I wanted to go further and harder and longer.”
Then I asked her how she could use that lesson and apply it to our business. She said, “Well, I needed training so I asked for help from someone who was an expert. Then as I got better and more confident, I began telling more people about what I was doing and then people started asking for my advice. A few folks then asked me to be their running partner and all of the sudden people looked at me with authority. Now I want to help people who are stuck thinking they can’t do it. People who don’t have the confidence to even put their shoes on and I am trying to build a plan on how to do that.”
You see that’s what happens when we get the right training for specifically what we need from the right expert.
That’s what I do at MyNAMS. I teach our students how to create the business of their dreams.
Storytelling is huge part of portraying your vision to your customers. You have to identify and relate to your customers. They have to buy into your vision and the only way to do that is to build your message and connect emotionally with your audience.
I have developed 3 great templates to get you started to becoming a great storyteller!
The first is “7 Steps to Telling Stories with a Point”.
This template shows you how to tie your stories into your sales copy.
The second is an Ideas Starter Worksheet. This is an excel spreadsheet that helps you to create your theme and tie in throughout your message.
The third is a “Working Document”. This allows you to actually expand on the themes from the Idea Starter Worksheet to make sure you hit each of the 7 steps.
Enter your email address below and you’ll have immediate access to the templates and tips on getting started!
