Things You Should Be Doing to Collect Better Stories (but probably aren’t)

What works, and what doesn’t, when asking others to share their stories

One of the storytelling questions I’m often asked is “why aren’t more people submitting stories through my website?”

It’s often the result of having an if you build it, they will come mindset — that simply creating the form (or social media campaign, or other intake mechanism) will instantly result in a flood of engaged storytellers, yearning to share their perfectly formatted and appropriate, on-message content with us. Alas, this isn’t the case.

There’s no shortage of competition out there, either. It seems like every single brand or organization* is soliciting customer or user stories today. (*Seriously, check out that link; it is simultaneously hilarious and cringeworthy.)

So how do you stand out in the sea of storytelling desperation? How do you ensure that your efforts to collect stories will yield both the quality and the quantity of content you need for your campaign? Here are a few of the things I’ve picked up along the way while researching and working with organizations of all shapes and sizes.

Don’t Ask for Stories

I learned this lesson the hard way.

A few years ago, I worked on a story collection project for a financial institution. I spent weeks on the phone interviewing bank employees and retirees, asking for “stories,” and couldn’t understand why what I was getting back weren’t stories. At best, they were testimonials, and at worst, they were platitudes or bland statements riddled with corporate-speak.

I chalked it up to them being boring bankers. But really, it was my fault for not asking for what I wanted in the right way.

It turns out “story” is an incredibly loaded and intimidating word, and the easiest way to get stories out of your subjects is to completely avoid it all together. Everyone has a different definition of “story,” and when asked to tell one, we all feel the pressure to spin a Disney fairy tale, complete with “once upon a time” and a lofty moral lesson.

Instead, I asked my interviewees for memories…perspectives…experiences — and what I got back were stories (or answers that I could frame into stories with a little follow-up and some elbow grease).

So the next time you’re crafting your hashtag call-to-action or building out a web form that asks for stories, try prompting your audiences with a different noun. Ask them to respond to something specific, like their memories of using a product, or an example of how an issue has impacted their life. Try to frame a series of simple questions that will give you the beginning, middle, and end that you’ll need to finish crafting the story for them.

Tailor the Ask to Your Audience

One of my favorite examples of not doing this (and learning from it) comes from the Social Security Administration. In 2010, the SSA was ahead of its time in designing a video storytelling contest that asked participants to submit stories of “how Social Security has made a difference in my life.” I give them tremendous credit for pushing the envelope, but they may have pushed it just a little too far for 2010.

Consider the fact that six years ago, while we had smartphones, taking and sending videos (especially “selfie” videos — remember, this was four years before the Ice Bucket Challenge) wasn’t nearly as ubiquitous a practice as it is today. And consider that the audience that likely had stories to share probably wasn’t fully comfortable sharing them, either because of the format, or because of the sensitive nature of the topic.

It’s no surprise that the SSA received fewer than 10 submissions. By comparison, when they solicited written narratives through their website around the same time, they reportedly received upwards of 600.

One of the first things to think about when designing a story intake mechanism — whether it’s a contest, or an online form, or a simple one-on-one conversation — is to make sure that you’re tailoring your “ask” to both a format and a topic that your ideal storytellers will be comfortable sharing. Know the platforms they’re already using comfortably, and ask for stories on those platforms. Know that if it’s a particularly sensitive topic, you may need to be specific in what part of the story you’re asking for, or in how you provide assurances that you’ll protect your storytellers’ public identities.

Demonstrate That You’re Listening

One of the biggest challenges in engaging would-be storytellers, according to experts, is that they don’t think that their stories matter. Why take the time to submit a story if it just disappears into the black hole of the internet or is never linked to any kind of change, policy or otherwise? Or, even worse, if the organization asking for it never even acknowledges receiving it?

The Department of Labor did a fantastic job of demonstrating that it was listening throughout its “Lead on Leave” storytelling campaign in 2015. The campaign invited participants to share their experiences with (or without) paid family leave. About a month into collecting stories, they posted this to Instagram:

It’s such a simple video — just Secretary Tom Perez calling several individuals who had submitted stories to thank them for sharing. But the message is a powerful one: your stories matter so much that the Secretary of Labor will call you to personally thank you.

DOL shared with us that after posting this video, they saw a sharp increase in submissions — proving that if you demonstrate that you’re listening (and that others are participating), others will want to share as well.

About eight months later, DOL also followed up with another piece of smart content that proved they were listening:

If the first video proved that DOL was listening and appreciating stories, then this second one proved that those stories were having a collective impact on a policy issue. (Not to mention also being a smart way to repurpose all the terrific user-generated content they collected throughout the campaign.)

Organizations can start small with this. Retweet or regram stories that are shared, or post real-time “thank you” updates that mention how many you’ve received or other fun statistics.

This method can also address another key barrier that our potential storytellers face: not knowing what kinds of stories they should share or how theirs stack up against their peers. Demonstrate that you’re listening by sharing story submissions in real time, and others who want to participate will have a solid template for what you’re looking for, as well as the social proof that they’re not the only ones participating.

And, finally: Consider it the Beginning — Not the End — of a Relationship

I used to think that when you’re asking for stories, particularly if it’s through an online form or social media contest, that you have to ask for everything you need up front — knowing that you’ll only have one chance to get that content.

But this isn’t true. The best storytelling organizations consider the “ask” for a story to be the beginning of a relationship with a storyteller, not the end. It’s not a transaction; it’s an opportunity to engage someone further in your organization’s work on an issue.

The good news is this that your story collection forms can be shorter and more basic, knowing that you’ll have the opportunity to go back and re-engage them to get more details. There is a tradeoff, of course — when your story forms are shorter you’ll likely get more submissions, but a certain percentage of those submissions will never respond to future outreach attempts. But the ones that do are likely to be committed storytellers and advocates for your organization, ones that you can call on repeatedly.

National Journal delivers research and insights to Washington’s leading advocacy communications and government affairs executives. This piece features key examples from “Storytelling Strategies for Purpose, Promotion, and Advocacy,” a seven-month study that included interviews with more than 50 advocacy organizations and storytelling experts as well as an audit of 150+ organizations’ online storytelling capabilities. Learn more at www.nationaljournal.com, and follow us on Twitter!