Everything you do... starting a business, raising funds, getting a girlfriend – is all based on your ability to tell a story.
What's your story?
Petronas' spent RM26,450,603 on media in 2021 to share their narrative. People happily pay to watch films (and cry their eyes out), for a good story.
Apple's story is about creating a dent in the universe. People who uses Apple products are different. Apparantly people who owns an Apple Tote bag is also different.
Stories inspire us. Stories teaches us.
As a kid, stories teach us lessons to navigate the world. My parents used to tell me the story of Little Red Riding Hood to teach me not to trust strangers. Over time, this has built "invincible scripts" in my mind. But that's a topic for another article.
What's your story? Why should people care?
Marketing is storytelling
Marketing is about making change happen.
When you run a direct-response ad on Facebook, you want someone to click on the ad, and fill in their information on a form.
When you run an ad on TV, you want to change people's mind about a product. "A diamond is forever", changed the minds of many women and men.
In our recent interview with Mimi Thian, an ex-Mindvalley viral video content producer, she revealed that the key to making a viral video is storytelling. That's why almost every Mindvalley video starts with a story.
Mimi also mentioned "hooks", which I want to add a bit more on.
Quick guide to writing great story "hooks"
Most hooks are pretty boring.
There are two techniques we use to qualify hooks.
1/ Hooks must be specific
Being specific helps the reader feel like it's achievable.
- Not specific: Lose weight really fast.
- Specific: Lose up to 5KG in 3 months.
- Super specific: Lose 5.2KG in 89 days
I made the fact up. But you can see exactly why we have to be specific with our hooks.
2/ Hooks must not reveal too much
By making things mysterious, you create suspense for the reader. That's when they want to read more to find out the answer.
- Too much information: New marketing strategy uses an SLO (Self-liquidating offer) to help you 2X your customer acquisition.
- Mysterious: This unheard marketing strategy changes everything.
More than that, relate.
The people in the world we live in right now is desperate for relevance.
The stories you tell shouldn't be just for yourself. Your story should serve the others. That's why fake stories don't work. Real stories does.
You probably have a close friend with a story that resonates with you. That relatability created that bond between you two.
Marketers are storytellers. We can build relationships with our audience by telling real stories that they can relate with.
Get off your screen!
And go meet people face-to-face.
Nothing bad has ever come out from attending an event with other like-minded marketers. In fact, everything you want right now, is in the hands of someone you've not met yet. Truth.
Meet 300 marketers and business owners at Underdog Content Con.
