How 5 elements of story telling can promote you and your business

Have you looked into storytelling as a part of your business and personal branding strategy? What is the most difficult aspect of storytelling for your business? Nearly everyone could improve their answers to the question, “What do you do?” So here’s to great storytelling!

Five particular elements are critical to executing successful storytelling and from The Business Minder they are here for you

1. Who we are

Many entrepreneurs tend to share more of what they do than who they are. People buy from other people, and an entrepreneur’s ability to connect with another human being through his or her authentic story will have a more profound influence on someone than all the information in the world about his or her product or service.

2. What we do

When sharing what you do, you must be succinct, clear and thought-provoking, but most importantly, your summary needs to spell out a benefit to the person you’re speaking with. After someone learns what you do, they should clearly understand how it would benefit them and want to know more.

3. Why we do it

Most entrepreneurs realise that we live in more of a purpose-driven world than ever before. People aren’t only buying what you do -- they’re buying why you do it. They “why” in your story can be one of the biggest differentiators between your business and a competitor’s.

4. How we do it

Despite the importance of this element, very few entrepreneurs truly understand it. People aren’t only interested in what you do and why you do it -- they also want to know how you do it. Your ability to powerfully articulate the method in which you do what you do will make you look both confident and experienced -- even if you aren’t. Though entrepreneurs often get excited about simply sharing what they do, sharing how they do it can establish trust and credibility between themselves and a potential customer.

5. Proof

Potential customers want proof of a time you have successfully achieved a result for someone, and they want to hear what you did, why you did it, and how you did it. Nothing will drive someone more to write you a check or support you than a customer success story. Tip: When telling such a story, start by sharing the pain and difficulty the customer was facing when they came to you; then explain what you did for them and why. Finally, divulge the benefits the customer holds now that he or she has worked with you. This method allows the listener to relate to the customer in your story, and will hopefully give them the confidence necessary to go to you for a product or service.

It can be incredibly difficult to outline what you do, why you do it, how you do it, and do it successfully while staying concise, unique and engaging. Using story telling helps you by creating a framework to easily do all of the above. It gives you an ability to powerfully influence others and chart a course for success. The Business Minder is a business consultant and management service operating in SE Asia with clients in Bali Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.