How to Find the Story That Sells

How to Find the Story That Sells
Katy Katz

Movies and celebrities are
easy to sell.
#mnsearch @katykatztx

People are ...
TangibleRelatable HumanAttributable

Companies are ...

How can marketers
make brands more
human?

The number one tactic
that is improving my
website search
rankings right now is
BRAND!
Neil Patel, 7/27/18
(bit.ly/brandandSEO)

“ Brands are the solution, not
the problem. Brands are
how you sort out the
cesspool.
- Eric Schmidt, Ex-CEO of Google
When it comes to search signals ...

And the solution to
company branding is
[FRAMING]

“ People don’t buy the thing, they buy
what the thing will do for them.
KINDRA HALL, STORYTELLING EXPERT
They buy the benefit.
They are buying a better life.

You have to
paint the picture
for the customer.

We are hard-wired to listen to stories.

Let’s try some
practical application.

Think of the most memorable
commercial you’ve seen ...
What comes to
mind?

What is the
primary emotion
this commercial
evokes?

SHAME
EMPOWERMENT
Create an
emotional
journey.

“ Stories affirm who we are.
They allow us to cross the
barriers of time and space.
ANDREW STANTON, PIXAR DIRECTOR

Stories bring the
BENEFIT of your
product or service
TO LIFE.

STORYTELLING➔ Why storytelling works for brands
➔ What a good story looks like
➔ How to find your story
➔ How to adapt your story for a complete campaign

1.
The persuasive power of storytelling
Here’s why it’s the magic sauce for selling a product or service.

Storytelling activates the
limbic reward system Curiosity
Limbic Activation
Chemical Release
Mirroring
MEMORIESImage Source: NPR

Your brain on stories
Endorphins
- Pleasure
- Emotion
- Energy
Dopamine
- Focus
- Motivation
- Memory
Oxytocin
- Empathy
- Love
- Connection
*Watch this TEDTalk by David JP Phillips for more on this process: bit.ly/story-chemicals

100,500 wordsAre processed daily by the average internet user¹
People forget 90%Of the information that you share.³
5,000 ad-basedMarketing messages are seen per day²

Stories are 22xMore memorable than facts and data alone³
Because they force your brain to pay attention.

2.
The formula for a compelling story
Here are the things that every good story has in common.

A GOOD STORY
Follows a
Journey
Hook /
Conflict
Moral /
CTA
Craveable
Factor
Customer
Centric

A GOOD STORY
Follows a
Journey
Hook /
Conflict
Moral /
CTA
Craveable
Factor
Customer
Centric
Specific to
Stories for
Marketing

Content We Crave
Makes us laugh or cry
Has an unexpected twist
Reminds us dreams come true
Inspires action
Reminds us we matter
Reveals a secret
Surprises us
Encourages us never to give up
Reminds us we’re unique
Where David beats Goliath
- CONTENT MARKETING INSTITUTE, BIT.LY/CRAVE-INFO

Plot:
The Hero’s Journey
Take your customers on a journey
with your story.
▪ Build a scene
▪ Create a sense of uncertainty
▪ Mix in familiar concepts
▪ Be tactile & immersive
▪ Make a hero
- IMAGE VIA EIGENWORKS
Joseph Campbell’s:

“ Make the customer the hero
of your story and he or she
will picture himself or herself
as part of your brand.

Who Is Who?
The Customer
Your Company

Don’t Forget the Hook
“Give Them 2+2,
Not Just 4.”
- ANDREW STANTON, PIXAR DIRECTOR, BIT.LY/STANTON-TED

Make It Count
Moral = Key Point
▪ The morale is the
part you
remember
▪ Make it count for
something that’s
relevant to your
business
▪ IGNITE ACTION

The moral application is
the one step that
Always was missing.

People forget 90%
Of the information that you share.³

Make sure they
remember what
counts.

3.
The story that makes you special
Here’s how to find your story.

“ People don’t buy what you
do, they buy why you do it.
- SIMON SINEK, BIT.LY/SINEK-TED
And they want to BELIEVE
in your why.

Know Your Personas!
Get Personal

PERSONA NAME
AGE
GENDER
OCCUPATION
SALARY
LOCATION
EDUCATION
FAMILY
##
Male/Female
Job Title
$$
Urban/Rural
Degree
Married/Children
BIO
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consectetur metus. Vivamus congue ipsum a placerat iaculis. Morbi
facilisis pellentesque lobortis. Donec rutrum ac nunc id finibus. Nullam
laoreet orci vitae ipsum lacinia, eget venenatis enim scelerisque. Quisque
tellus leo, dignissim venenatis dapibus sed, sollicitudin sed arcu.
GOALS
● List List List List List List
CHALLENGES
IDENTIFIERS

Pick one of the 7 Types of Stories
1. Overcoming the monster (Independence Day)
2. Rebirth (It’s A Wonderful Life)
3. An epic quest (The Lord of the Rings)
4. A journey and return (The Wizard of Oz)
5. Rags to riches (Cinderella)
6. Tragedy (Julius Caesar) *mostly PSAs
7. Comedy (you know the drill) - Tim Nudd, AdWeek
Like a Girl
Campaign

Know your
differentiation points.
Align your story.

Email Me For A
Questionnaire
katy@marketingrefresh.com
Find Your Story

4.
Make it a campaign
Here’s how to distribute your story and adapt it to each platform.

Good stories can
be any length and
any format.

“ For sale: Baby’s shoes.
Never worn.
- ATTRIBUTED TO HEMINGWAY

Adapt your story for:
● Phase
● Purpose
● Platform

Meet Your Customers Where They Are

We’ve Heard Content is King
But You Need Distribution

The Content Cornucopia …
REPURPOSE
- SOCIAL MEDIA
TODAY,
BIT.LY/CONTENT-
CORN

Try different formats for
Blog Posts
Journalistic
Style - lots
of photos
Comic Book (if on brand)
Video
Short stories
as an opener
or a closer

Stories are stronger
Together
● Single landing page
● Speaks to a persona
● Showcases success
● CTA: Work with us and
you will recover

Social Media Is Visual (and VIDEO is best)
Tools for All Budgets
Flixel.com slide.ly/promo
- Canva
- Visage
- Visme
- Pixlr
- Moovly
- Imgflip
- or Go Live!

Social distribution does
NOT require a link!

Creative applications of
Paid Social
Video is
great but try
something
new, too.
- Screenshot via
aggregateblog.com
Carousel ads
are engaging
for storytelling
What if there was a
hook here that
demanded your click?

Adapt the Content for the
Platform
● Blog: Combine visual and text (try video!)
● Email: Keep it short and sweet - link back to the story
● Social Media: Video rocks but keep it less than 60 seconds
● YouTube: Better for longer videos (don’t forget SEO!)
● Case Studies: Showcase a story with data
● Paid: Get in front of a new audience

Bottom Line
Distribute,
Distribute,
Distribute!

Let’s try one more
corporate application.

This is working pretty
well - people are
sharing their stories
through the
campaign. But how
could they go a step
further?

In contrast...

Follow a process
For storytelling success
follow a
storytelling
formula
make it
personal
use the
buyer’s
journey
map a
distribution
campaign

A GOOD STORY
Follows a
Journey
Hook /
Conflict
Moral / CTACraveable
Factor
Customer
Centric

A GOOD STORY
Follows a
Journey
Hook /
Conflict
Moral / CTACraveable
Factor
Customer
Centric
Has a
Distribution
Campaign

Thanks!!
Any questions?
You can find me at @katykatztx &
katy@marketingrefresh.com
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How to Find the Story That Sells

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