Storytelling : A Timeless Skill.
Tell more stories.
Throw a bunch of raw facts, information, and numbers at someone and people won’t remember shit. Take those same elements and bundle them up in the form of story and suddenly people remember a lot more.
People tell business related stories to connect with employees, customers, colleagues, suppliers, and the media. Business stories differ from regular stories, in that you tell them with an objective, goal, or desired outcome in mind, rather than for entertainment purposes.
Now, more than ever, companies try to stand out by telling stories. Look no further than commercials during the Super Bowl to show you that big brands spend MILLIONS trying to relate to us and get us to remember their message.
Which ones do you remember?
Apple.
Maybe you remember Apple’s wildly popular 1984 Super Bowl commercial?
The storyboard featured hundreds of men listening to Big Brother deliver a speech on the virtues of censorship. Mid-speech, a model runs into the room and destroys the screen with a baseball bat, freeing the men from Big Brother’s grasp. By shattering the screen, the women symbolizes what Apple planned on doing to the personal computer industry.
The 1984 ad is considered the greatest commercial in the history of the Super Bowl.
A good story sticks in our minds far longer than numbers, graphs, facts, or raw information ever will. A good story travels fast because it is simple, engaging, and easily remembered when someone wants to retell it. A good story pulls emotion from people and inspires people to act.
Toms.
Blake Mycoskie, Toms CEO, was traveling in Argentina in 2006 when he met a woman who was collecting shoes for the poor. Surprised that in the 21st century so many kids still needed shoes, he decided to start a shoe company that would give a pair away for every pair sold. This model would prove to be the basis for their company and many copycat others.
Mycoskie’s first shoe was a variation of the traditional Argentine shoe that he brought home from his trip, the rope-soled, canvas-topped alpargata. This shoe was a massive success and provided proof of concept for Toms.
Although I do not own a single pair of Toms, I do think they did an excellent job telling their story; one that most people are very familiar with. Rough estimates have their 2013 sales at a little over $250 million and Mycoskie’s ability to tell a compelling story was a major reason for massive success and hockey stick growth at Toms.
We have a problem though.
The art of storytelling is in trouble. In an age where tweets, likes, and updates reign supreme, it is becoming harder and harder to tell an impactful story. Stories can be powerful business tools, and successful leaders use them to engage their teams. If you want to motivate others effectively, you need to learn how to tell a good story. Every business, business owner, and employee needs to master the skill behind telling an authentic story if they want to be heard.
