141 Why You Lose Your Audience Because They Can't Relate To Your Story
Strategic Storytelling
Have you ever told a story -- a brilliant story! -- and your audience just looked at you blankly? They just didn't get it. Or they couldn't relate: they couldn't put themselves into the story. Stories succeed when people put themselves in the picture. They're in the airplane seat. They're in the room you're describing. They can feel the problem: their chest gets tight, their stomach hurts...it's real. But here's the catch. It doesn't have to be a personal story. In fact, you can tell a personal story that leaves everyone cold. In this video, I talk about 4 kinds of stories: personal and...
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140 Using Stories to Choose Your Niche
Strategic Storytelling
“What niche am I supposed to target?” That’s always a popular question when I meet a group of fellow business owners. Even if they’re experienced veterans, they wonder, “Did I let some people get away? Am I being too narrow in my focus?” It’s a familiar struggle…and we keep going back to it. Even though we think we’ve got a niche we want to revisit. Men? Women? Married? Single? Age bracket? Sound familiar? In this episode of the Strategic Storytelling podcast, I have the answer: the clients backstory. What do they say when they come? What don’t they say? ...
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139 How to Use Stories to Teach Without Being Preachy
Strategic Storytelling
So you've got something to teach people. You're the only one...or one of the few. But your audience isn't stupid. They know a lot already. Who likes being treated like a child...especially a stupid child? Who likes being treated like a newbie when you're not? In this episode of Strategic Storytelling, I'll show you three ways to use stories to get past the barrier. Instead of saying "you should do this," you can tell a story There's at least 3 ways to use stories to make your point: as examples, as a step-by-step story, and as a novelistic story you made up. They're all...
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138 Get profitable testimonials with storytelling
Strategic Storytelling
“I have many happy clients. How can I get them to share testimonials?" That’s what my reader asked me when I was looking for new applications for. telling stories. It's a complaint I hear from other service business owners too. Let's face it: if you're a small, service-based business, you need credibility. Nobody wants to be your first client! In this episode of the Strategic Storytelling podcast, I share the reasons people don't leave good testimonials. It'll help you navigate the challenge more easily. Let's face it: writing a good testimonial is almost as hard...
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137 Are you telling stories to yourself?
Strategic Storytelling
There’s something appealing about telling stories. We all want to talk about what happened to us..especially the bad parts. But when you're writing for business, it's important to tell your story only when you have a purpose for that particular story. Too many people write stories for validation. They say, "My cat died. Here's how I feel." Or they say the business hit a wall. Here's what happened" There's a place to write about your business. Psychologists talk about it all the time. It's as effective (at least for some) as a therapy session. That's not what I'm...
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136 The Celebrity Archetype: Are you a fan?
Strategic Storytelling
Of the five archetypes I've identified, the Celebrity holds greatest awe and power. ***If you're new to my community, you can download a free report featuring the five archtypes Think of Taylor Swift and think of those folks in People magazine. We don't want to BE a Celebrity, but we can learn from Celebrities. It's no accident that real celebrities tend to be spokespeople for all kinds of brands. So now let's look at business. Chances are you'll meet a celebrity somewhere along your business journey. You'll be tempted to use them as examples along the way. But the truth is,...
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135 Why you can be passionate in what you do...but you're not a passionate advocate
Strategic Storytelling
As you know, I've got five story archetypes for basic branding for small, service-based businesses. You can learn more about them I talk a lot about the most common archetypes - the Role Model and Educator, and sometimes the Innovator. But I rarely talk about Celebrities or Passionate Advocates...with good reason. You feel, "I'm already passionate about my work!" But that doesn't mean you're a true Passionate Advocate. Advocates set limits on what they do. They have to be hard-nosed about it or they'll run out of time. Worse, their clients expect perfection, which they can never deliver....
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134 Pull-the-plug stories: What happens if you quit?
Strategic Storytelling
We have lots of stories of celebration, where people talk about their wins. What we need are more stories of pulling the plug. For example, in this episode I talk about someone who decided not to get a drivers license. In a typical story, she'd try and try to pass the test. She'd spend hours studying. But in this story the woman decides she won't bother. She'll move to a city where she can take a car or just ride public transit or even walk. A variation of this story is a "you can go home again" story. You can quit and then go back. The original idea for this story comes from...
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133 Use storytelling to build a client-attracting About Page: 3 Tips
Strategic Storytelling
If you’re a service based solopreneur, entrepreneur or independent professional, your brand is YOU. Your About Page will be critical to your online success. And yet, if you’re like most business owners, you’ll tell me the About Page is the most difficult page to write for your website. That’s because most people hate to talk about themselves. And business owners are people! It’s easy to feel like you’re boasting. It’s common to wonder, “Will I come across as an obnoxious jerk?” The truth is, your About Page isn’t about you. Your About Page answers the client’s...
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132 Business Storytelling: 3 Business Stories You Don't Share With Your Clients
Strategic Storytelling
When we think of business storytelling, most business owners think of stories as a way to relate to clients - and certainly I encourage that direction. You can use stories to engage clients, explain a complex offer, communicate your value, and much, much more. In this episode, we’re going to talk about another way to use storytelling. We look at 3 ways to use stories to help plan your next steps and develop your strategy. These stories help grow your business, but you rarely share them with your clients. RESOURCES: Enter the conversation in your clients'...
info_outlineDonna Kozik is a book consultant, famous for her "Write Your Book In A Weekend" program. She's worked with hundreds of
authors, teaching them how ordinary people can become successful. She was one of the first to say, "Your best business
card is a book."
Donna begins by sharing the story of what motivated her to build a successful business. It all happened in the cat food
aisle of the supermarket.
Some highlights:
5:30 - why Donna encourages her authors to include stories in their book
6:25 - creative idea for a way to get stories you need for a book - a really good idea to "put it out there"
9:17 - biggest mistake people make in telling a story - especially a memoir - and what they need to share
13:30 - what she encourages authors to write -- and not to write -- in the front of each book
...and what is a recipe for disaster when you write this
14:30 - how to write your life story for a book - this is a really good tip!
16:10 - what are some different spins you can put on a story and how the spin alters the meaning of a story
18:20 -- Surprising answer to the question, "Have you ever had to talk someone out of putting a story in the book?"
21:35 - the number one inhibition that holds people back from writing a book -
and how to deal with it (Donna feels strongly about this)
27:35 - how your story can be your legacy
29:05 - final thought: the importance of being brave