Connect with your customers through storytelling

People love stories. Stories can inspire us, fuel our imaginations and even evoke strong emotions. But what does that have to do with marketing your business?

Effective storytelling is a powerful tool for your business. Stories have an uncanny ability to create connections between you and your customers, and those connections build trust and faith in what you do. When you share an authentic story, customers are more likely to come back to you. Storytelling also helps you stand out from the crowd, especially your competition.

Key elements

Let’s review the key elements a good story needs to be effective.

Be relatable

The main “character” in your story needs to be someone your customers can relate to. If the story is about you, make sure your customers can connect with you. Get to know your audience well so you can tell your story in a way that resonates with them.

Identify a problem

What problem does your main character face? Is it a problem your audience can identify with? Describe your character’s journey through the problem as they search for a solution.

How was the problem solved?

How did your main character overcome the problem? How did they fully resolve it? Does the solution match what your potential customers are looking for?

Create an engaging story

Now that you know the key elements of a great story, let’s talk about how to keep your audience interested and engaged.

Honesty

As you develop ideas for your story, keep them real and honest. The last thing you want is to fool your audience with a fake backstory. That’s what you might expect from a less-than-sincere company that’s just trying to appeal to its market. We’ve all seen those. Storytelling should never be used as a slimy tactic.

Identity

Keep your customers engaged by helping them see themselves in your story. A relatable story goes a long way toward keeping your audience. Professional writers have a saying: “Make your reader the hero of the story.” That applies to the stories you tell your customers, too. Keep them involved and they’ll want to read more.

Emotion

Emotions can be tricky in business, but storytelling gives you a way to express them. Emotion in your story helps readers identify with you and understand your message. We’re all human, and emotion plays a part in nearly every decision we make, including business decisions. We can deny it all we want, but it’s true.

Connection

It’s no secret that we all crave connection with other people. Storytelling helps you show your own humanity. When a customer connects with your story, they’re connecting with you too, and those connections lead to trust.

Conversation

Storytelling helps you find common ground with your customers. When your stories resonate, readers are far more likely to reach out, because of the trust you’ve built. Best of all, they may have a story of their own to share with you.

Where to share your stories

Once you have a story, put it to work. Here are a few great places to share it:

• Your About page. It’s one of the most visited pages on most business websites, and one of the essential pages every business website needs.
• Case studies and portfolio items. Show the problem, how you solved it and the result.
• Testimonials and reviews. Your customers’ own words tell their stories for you. (Here’s how online reviews can turn visitors into customers.)
• Blog posts, social media and emails. Short stories make great posts and keep your audience coming back.

We all have stories to tell

Whether your stories come from your personal past or from running your business, you’re sure to have great material to work with. Here’s an easy way to get started:

1. Jot down some moments. Why you started your business, a customer you helped, a lesson you learned the hard way. Even a few keywords will get the gears turning.
2. Pick one that matches a customer’s problem. The best business stories mirror what your customers are going through.
3. Write it as problem, solution and result. Keep it short, honest and in your own voice.
4. Share it on your About page first, then look for other places to use it.