People do business with people, so your clients need to be able to get to know you. To like you. To trust you. And part of that is sharing your story – but so many times we overthink it or hold back. So in this episode, we’re talking about how to share your story in your business without being cheesy.
Here’s the scoop from Episode #77:
You’ve probably heard all the sayings about storytelling when it comes to marketing and your business. And you know you should do it – but let’s face it, knowing it and DOING it are two different things.
We want to break this down as storytelling is something that causes people a lot of stress in their business. Especially when we’re in a world where the story seems to be the main thing people use to market.
Your story is what it is, and it’s what makes you human. You need to find a way to connect with people. So, how do you actually do this?
- Know that you get to do this on your terms – you don’t have to share anything you don’t want to. You get to choose what you share.
- Story is not something that’s designed to manipulate. It doesn’t have to be a perfect fairytale story, but it should be true and verifiable. Don’t embellish – it needs to be BELIEVABLE. And if it’s not…acknowledge that.
- Learn your audience – what do they want to know, what do they need to understand to work with you, why should they trust you? What do they find aspirational? This will vary greatly – some situations demand more story than others. (Ahem, personality brands – they definitely require more story.)
- Forget the hero’s journey. No one wants to hear your epic tale. It’s tired. It’s overdone. Think instead of small stories that humanize you – that connect with your reader. It can be 2-3 lines like an Instagram story. Inject them into your blog, your conversations, etc. Brainstorm story starters you can use to add color and personality.
- Don’t forget to share customer stories, examples and things that position you as an expert. Those stories are important too and will really help you connect with both existing and potential customers because they might be able to see themselves in the story.
- Stand for something. People want to rally around people – so be clear on what your brand stands for. What do you do differently? What’s wrong with your industry? Having a stand is sticky. For example, we have a strong, yet sometimes controversial, stance on courses in that they are probably not the best thing for you. We also are pro-sustainability over scalability in your business. Oh yeah, we are also proud feminists and not afraid to talk about it. So yes, standing for things can be hard, but you will feel so much better about yourself when you are honest with people in a constructive way and stick to what you believe in.
Thanks for listening and tune in next week for more great discussion!
Links for this show:
- If you want to learn more about getting more productive, check out the Small Business Boss Society.
- If you missed any podcasts and want to get caught up, you can click here to find all of our previous episodes on the Podcast landing page.
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