Just Story It

Storytelling Dice is a new role play game designed to teach your sales & marketing teams how to: 

• Make your value propositions stick like Velcro by telling relevant and memorable stories that inspire your customers to take action.
• Think on their feet since every sales situation is different.
• Have fun discussing how real people have used your offering to solve real problems.

This looks like a very cool tool! I just purchased it so I can try it out with a sales team I am working with.

In the meantime, read all about it, go through the SlideShare document, download the free teamplate, and see if it intrigues you.

My clients are just like yours: They want to Skype, email and text. But here's why you still need face time.

This article is indirectly about story sharing, yet it is a terrific reminder in this age of texting and Skypeing that meeting in person is invaluable and still the richest communication channel we have.

Want to make an impression? What to gain understanding about your prospect or customer on multiple levels? Want to reach a depth of relationship with them? Want to hear their stories and have an opportunity to share yours in more meaningful ways? (That's the tip I would add to make the list 6 in number.)

Then carve out time to meet in person. Take the 5 reasons listed here to heart and gain more business! 

Thanking the prospect puts you in a weak position for selling. Learn why thank you, is the wrong way to go for a win, and what you can do instead.

When I first read this title, I'm going, "Jeez, so now presentations are competitive!?" Then I read that this is about SALES and I go, "OK, let's see where this goes."

Here's the bottom line and how it connects with biz storytelling: the article helps us craft much better endings. Crafting compelling endings that inspire action are HARD. This article talks about what most of us do -- thanking our audience at the end of our presentations.  Even if we are not giving sales presentations, this is what we do and it is not effective. 

This article very clearly explains why. And I really like the questions posed in this article because they really help anyone crafting certain biz stories to focus the story on your customer. In founding stories, focusing on yourself is OK, and eventually you want to shift the story over to focusing on the customer. You can adapt these questions to hep you do that.

Then read the comments to the article -- there's gold there too!

Why storytelling is such an effective advertising technique and how to tell compelling stories in your smart marketing strategy.

Creating stories for advertising can sometimes be tricky -- you've got a short amount of time and need maximum impact in order to gain and keep those eyeballs --and make sales!

This article helps us understand th 7 characteristics of effective advertising storytelling, gives us a few lessons for developing your story ad strategy, and then includes a final tip/link about what not to do.

Nice -- solid ideas without being too long or difficult to grasp :)

MarketingProfs guest bloggers Robert Wu of CauseVox and Annie Escobar of ListenIn Pictures share tips for telling stories through videos that draw others into your cause.

I really like how the authors give us categories of stories that inspire listeners to take action. These categories are slighty different than what I typically find, which is why I brought this article into the collection here.

The kinds of stories/videos that work best, for example are:

1. Impact stories
2. Movement portraits
3. Vision videos
4. Campaign video

And plot structures to use?

1. Challenge plot
2. Creativity plot
3. Connection plot

I know you'll like these easy-to-digest tips so you can start making more impactful videos/stories for your business.

First gain trust, then gain commitment. Establishing a human connection is the key to successful selling.

Here's a great 6 minute video introducing the concept of story selling, with tips to get you started.

It's an engaging video and well worth the watch. I know as I work with more sales teams, I'll be sharing this one with them!

From the "I have a dream" speech to Steve Jobs’ iPhone launch, all great presentations have a common architecture. At TEDxEast, Nancy Duarte draws lessons on how to make a powerful call-to-action.

Go watch this video on story structure and getting your ideas across now.  It is not to be missed.

We all have great, amazing, fantastic ideas -- some that could change the world.

Not knowing how to communicate these ideas robs the world. 

I can't tell you how many opportunities have been lost because business owners and executives could not tell a compelling story to enroll people in their vision.

Nancy Duarte provides the structure for how to tell a compelling story to communicate your ideas. Watch the video and start using her advice now.

While discussing the challenge of building trust in a particular industry where clients are known to be especially skeptical and wary, one business owner’s story stood out clearly. It was a failure story, and it was extremely powerful. People paused, turned around in their chairs, and listened closely.

Yes, yes, yes -- your 'failure' or 'mistake' stories are just as powerful as your 'success' stories. And they are critically important to tell, especially if you want to build trust.

Unfortunately, it is a rare article that discusses this type of story and why it is needed.  Until now.

I get weary and leery of the exclusive focus on 'success' stories while forsaking others.  They are so one-dimensional. And as gratifying as success stories are, it's not only what happens in business.

That's why whenever I work with clients -- either individually or with their companies -- we also find those 'failure' or 'mistake' stories to convey authenticity. The real world is full of successes and mistakes -- and clients want to hear both because hearing  both builds trust.

Even when I work with job-seekers, we always include a story about a mistake they made and how they recovered.

The secret to making this kind of story work? Sharing how you overcame the failure, the lesson you learned, your take-away from the experience.

I like the reasoning in this post, and then the questions at the end to get you started. Enjoy adding this powerful story into the mix.

Imagine this scenario: As a real estate professional, you’re walking a potential buyer through yet another home. You’re not sure how many homes you’ve seen with them. It seems like ...

I think this is a great article not only for real estate agents, but also for any business.  And I really like the practical advice and examples specifically geared towards real estate professionals!

Here's how any business can use this advice: find out what your customer stories are, and then craft your biz stories to connect with their stories.  CAUTION: don't make up stories. Making up biz stories to hook customers is manipulation.

Instead, craft your authentic business stories. Part of your work is attracting customers who can connect with your stories.  But don't do this blind -- find out as much as you can about the kinds of customers you want to work with and their stories.  There should be natural connections between your stories and theirs. So find them!

Read the rest of this article for more insights and concrete examples.

Actually, these are best leveraged together---big data and powerful analytics have deep meaning when positioned in the context of powerful stories. Stories give people a context in which to position the analysis provided by the data.

This is a really nice article about how well data and stories work together.

The only piece I would add is this: share your stories first, and then support them with data.  Most often people go for the data first, and then maybe share a story.

So do the reverse and you won't put people to sleep or have them looking at you with a quizzicle eye wondering, "And what does this data mean?"

Story is the meaning-making part of the equation. Data is the sense-making part.

Enjoy!

Nick Morgan, CEO of Public Words, explains five key steps to engage any audience....

Wow -- what a great, simple, full of how-to tips 3 minute video on creating a great presentation.

Everyone has trouble with presentations. But if you follow Nick's steps, many of your challenges will be solved. I really like the 5 story categories he shares and his translation of those stories into business themes. Makes tons of sense.

Of course I like that he leads with 'Tell a story." I repeatedly find that when a speaker can tell a story, then issues of body language, expressions, tension, and fear of forgetting what he/she wants to say all lessen or disappear. 

So start there and follow the rest of the tips for a winning presentation.

If you want your audience to make a decision, you need to tell a good story. Here's how to avoid Death by PowerPoint.

There are really great points made in this article that will help anyone create an effective PowerPoint presentation. 

It's all about using stories and story structure. Read this and start 'wowing' your prospects and customers!

Customers make decisions at the gut level. Here's how to use the customer's emotions to your advantage.

All storytelling is about emotion.  And so is business storytelling.

But what emotions do you want to activate in your business stories? This article lists 6 that drive sales.

Now, in reading the 6 emotions and their definitions, I would rewrite them to this:

1. Reward
2. Fear
3. Altruism
4. Winning
5. Pride
6. Shame

Go read the ones in the article and tell me what you think.

I do like the author's other points -- success is all about undersanding your customer's beliefs and the emotional effect new or reframed information will have on them. 

It's an interesting read.