Written by: Peggy MacSweeney, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Do you tell stories in your business? As business owners, your stories can transform the way you connect with your prospective clients. Stories can help you to sell! Humans are biologically hardwired to respond to stories. From a young age, we learned from stories and tales from storybooks and anecdotes passed down from our families.
Stories educate, but they also inspire and trigger our imaginations. When stories are being told, one cannot help but pay attention to them because they bring us back to that primal state that we are hardwired to. I’m sure you heard of the phrase “Art of Storytelling”. I’ll say it’s science as much as art. This is because when a story is told to us, it triggers all sorts of brain activities. These neuro activities produce hormones like cortisol, dopamine, oxytocin, etc., in our body which help us to remember, regulate our emotional responses, and create deeper connections. This is why stories have the power of impacting people's thoughts and behavior. It’s the exact same reason why as business owners, stories can help you to sell by connecting with your prospective clients at the deeper emotional level and creating that know, like, and trust factor. If you are not sure what stories to tell in your business, here are 3 types of stories that you should consider incorporating into your marketing strategy:
1. Your Personal Stories People buy from people. They buy stories behind the real person of the brand and business. Sharing stories about yourself, like how and why you started your business, who you are, things that get you excited or frustrated, what you believe in, etc allows your prospective clients to get to know you. People often have a misconception that a story is only worth sharing if it’s compelling, involves hardship, or extraordinary events. They overlooked the power of being real. Yes, extraordinary experience inspires people, but authentically ordinary day-to-day experiences are much more relatable to anyone. It makes you more real to your prospective clients. 2. Success and Transformational Stories
People buy results. When talking about your products or services, sharing success and transformational stories helps you to communicate your products or services in a captivating way.
These include your own success or transformational journey, as well as the stories of your clients. Talking about how you or your clients struggled with a specific problem and the process, and steps you used to transform the situation is more memorable than an ordinary testimonial.
3. Behind-the-Scenes Stories
We are generally curious beings. We love finding out what’s behind the scene or behind the main stage.
Sharing what goes behind your business helps satisfy your prospective clients’ curiosity and build the know, like and trust at the same time.
Things like what you do before you meet with your clients, the specific tools or processes you use in your business, behind the scene activities such as events you attended, PR engagements, collaborations, partnerships, and alliances you formed within your industry and beyond are examples of behind the scene stories that worth sharing.
Finally, when it comes to storytelling in your business, the possibilities are endless. Everyone and anyone have a story to tell. The most engaging stories are the most ordinary ones, ones that resonate with your audience, your prospective clients.
Peggy MacSweeney, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Peggy is a personal brand mentor and photographer. Passionate about the power of visual storytelling, she helps women entrepreneurs who want to differentiate themselves to get visible confidently and attract their ideal clients with their own uniqueness and with scroll-stopping brand images.
Coming from a corporate background as well as being an introvert, Peggy struggled to put herself as the face of the business at the start of her business. Having overcome her own visibility challenge, her bigger mission is to help introverted women launching their business to craft a standout personal brand and visibility strategy so that they can be seen and known as experts in their field.
