Tell a Better Story

We may own the copyright, patent, trademark and the things we promote and sell, but we don’t own the story. What we do have, though, is an opportunity like never before to give our audience a better story to tell.

Boring doesn’t cut it any more. Boring is unremarkable and unremarkable stories die before they’re told. The fact is we all have a story to tell; either about our personal experiences, our brand, our company, or the products and services we sell.

If you want a positive word-of-mouth epidemic, here are 3 simple suggestions that move the needle and produce outstanding results:

1. Engage genuinely with your mavens any way you can. Mavens are the ones who want to know more about what you have to say.
2. Make your story something they want to talk about.
3. Give them an easy way to share your story.

Take the Pike Place Fish Market, for example (pictured above). They know how to tell a better story. Just visit their website or fish market in Seattle, Washington and you’ll understand exactly what I’m talking about. I’m one of their mavens. I keep going back for more. I love throwing fish with those crazy dudes. And I’ve shared my inspirational experience at the Pike Place Fish Market (PPFM) with hundreds of people across the country. Salespeople and corporate executives have heard my keynote, From Salmon to Scion: A Study in Outrageous Customer Engagement. I’ve delivered presentations about the PPFM at Kiwanis and Rotary clubs, and I continue to tell their story through social media channels like this one.

The PPFM story is compelling and it resonates. I’m always eager to share their story because it’s worth telling. And the positive word-of-mouth epidemic continues to spread.

“What if you created a reputation as the person or organization that can honestly say, ‘you can’t get this from anyone but me?’” ~ Seth Godin