Webinar: Telling Great Stories 2019

The SocialChorus Guide to
Telling Great Stories
Copyright ©2019 SocialChorus
Storytelling in the
Age of Distraction
INTRODUCTION
1

Rachel Williams
Strategic Advisor,
SocialChorus
Edmundo Ortega
Partner, Sequitur
2

SocialChorus Telling Great Stories
3
➔ The webinar audio is being streamed
through your computer – there is no dial
in number
➔ Submit questions through the Q&A
widget on your screen

This is a hot topic
these days.
4

Nobody is paying
attention. Not even
your employees.
5

Authority doesn’t
automatically earn their
attention.
6

We are addicted.
7

The Age of
Distraction
8

To break
through, you need to grab
them and move them.
9

It’s the
oldest trick in the book:
storytelling.
10

Look at TED
11

Ad makers
get it.
12

Where to Start
The Basics.
13

14
THE GROUND RULE.

Figure out the context and intention of your story.
Who are you
talking to?
What are
you talking
about?
What do you
want them
to do?
YOUR AUDIENCE YOUR TOPIC YOUR ASK
15

This is where most
people stop.
16

A REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
Petty cash for bank branches.
No strings attached.
17

An example story we’ll use for this webinar.
Branch
managers
Petty cash
initiative
Spend on
care
YOUR AUDIENCE YOUR TOPIC YOUR ASK
18

The
Topic
More
Information
The
Ask
Typical Business “Story”
More
Information
More
Information
19

20
Move them to move them.

ONE
TWO
THREE
The
Moment of
Crisis
The
Blocker
The
Payoff
The Ask
The
Path
STEAL THIS SLIDE
A Good Story
21

Rachel wonders...
When are the right
times to tell stories?
22

Hook them immediately
The Moment of Crisis.
23

WHAT’S AT STAKE?
For this audience, what really matters about
this topic? If they do what you ask, what
reward will they get? If they don’t do it, what
will be lost?
24

WHO’S THE HERO
What real-life person exemplifies the stakes
of the story? The more specific you can be,
the more impact you will have.
25

THE MOMENT OF CRISIS
Bring the stakes to life. What is the exact
make-or-break, life-or-death moment where
the hero comes face-to-face with what’s at
stake?
26

OUR EXAMPLE STORY MOMENT OF CRISIS
27
Three months ago a teller named Jennifer at
the Westminster branch came to work in
tears. She went straight to the manager’s
office and announced she was quitting.

It’s okay to manipulate the
emotions of your audience.
In fact, they prefer it.
28
STORY WISDOM

Rachel wonders...
What if my topic is
something boring?
29

Identify what’s getting in the way
The Blocker.
30

THE BLOCKER
What’s getting in the way and creating the
tension? Your story is ultimately about
overcoming this obstacle.
31

OUR EXAMPLE STORY BLOCKER
Despite our high opinion of ourselves,
headquarters doesn’t always know what’s
best for each of our many branches.
32

Blockers can be big.
But many times,
they’re small.
33
STORY WISDOM

Rachel wonders...
Do I have to have a
blocker?
34

Show the way
The Path.
35

THE PATH
Leaders show the way. You build trust and
confidence by showing them that you have a
path to overcome the blockers and resolve
the tension in the moment of crisis.
36

GUIDELINES
Insights
over info.
Kill the
jargon.
Three things,
maximum.
37

OUR EXAMPLE STORY PATH
We believe our
employees are our
greatest strength and
we are committed to
their well-being.
38
And we know that
each branch is
different and we can’t
use a one-size-fits-all
approach.
So we are giving
£1000 per month in
petty cash to each
branch to spend on
people as they see fit.
1 2 3

Rachel wonders...
Isn’t reducing things to
three steps overly
simplistic?
39

Tie it up in a bow
The Payoff.
40

THE PAYOFF
This is what we get when we follow the path.
It can be big or small, but it has to be
something meaningful to the audience. It’s
the resolution of the tension, and the
emotional high point of the story.
41

A GOOD PAYOFF.
Instills
feelings of
warmth or
triumph.
Offers concrete
or emotional
rewards.
Describes a
relevant better
future state.
42

OUR EXAMPLE STORY PAYOFF
The manager at the Westminster branch decided to
make tea-time check-ins a regular occurrence. He
bought a kettle and maintains a nice stock of tea
and biscuits. This innovation and others like it will
no longer need to be self-funded.
43

Rachel wonders...
I’m not Steven
Spielberg. Can I really
pull this off?
44

Call them to action
The Ask.
45

THE ASK
Now that you’ve got them wrapped around
your finger, call them to action. That’s the
whole point of storytelling!
46

A GOOD ASK.
Concrete and
doable.
Can be done
immediately.
A single call to
action.
47

OUR EXAMPLE STORY ASK
You will find £1000 in a new account accessible by
you starting today. Think about something that
shows you care for and appreciate your people, and
make it happen with money in that account.
48

Exercise 6
Putting it all together.
49

ONE
TWO
THREE
The
Moment of
Crisis
The
Blocker
The
Payoff
The Ask
The
Path
STEAL THIS SLIDE
50

Rachel wonders...
How do I do this in a
tweet or on Instagram?
51

Last Thoughts
YOU ARE ALMOST GRADUATED
52

53

Avoid the three big mistakes.
Lack of Prep Missing
Intention
Irrelevant
Story
😰
54

ONE
TWO
THREE
The
Moment of
Crisis
The
Blocker
The
Payoff
The Ask
The
Path
55
THE CURVE WORKS!

So go tell your stories.
And teach others!
56

Your turn
Questions or
comments?
57

Manage
all content
from a single
publisher and
dashboard
58

Reach every
worker with
their own personalized
daily read.
59

The Good Work Guide to
Upcoming Webinars & Events
September 26-27: Ragan Leadership and Executive Communications Conference
October 1: comms.london—Charlotte Harvey: How Comms Can and Should Take Over
October 30: 5 Benefits to an Omni-Channel Communications Strategy Webinar With
Whirlpool
November 5-6: Ragan Future of Communications Conference
November 25-27: Strategic Internal Communication Conference
Please visit socialchorus.com/events to register for any of our webinars or events.

61
Thank You!
Stay in touch with us on social media @SocialChorus, and if you have
any questions about this webinar or anything else, please email:
info@socialchorus.com

Webinar: Telling Great Stories 2019

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