Stories by the Slice: Give Customers What They Crave

We live in an era where people are starved for meaningful stories. Bombarded daily by empty-headed Reality television and relentless advertising, both online and off, we scroll and click in an endless search for content that actually matters to us, content that makes our brains stop and say “Wow! THIS is interesting – THIS is exciting – THIS is fresh!”

We are starved for authenticity in a sea of sameness. Our digital ocean is awash with meaningless pop-up ads and banner ads pushing their Buy Now message so hard and so often that our eyeballs have become conditioned to the inconvenience and the disconnect which these tiresome interruptions create. We scan beyond them, click past them, unsubscribe to them because we do not believe in the next big useless product that promises to make us smarter, wealthier, or thinner.

We want something more than manufactured Reality. We want Real Life. Peter Gruber, chairman and CEO of Mandalay Entertainment, talks here about the importance of being authentic, because if you do it right, you allow your audience to take your story and inhabit it – to make it part of theirs. This creates a way for people to identify with you and become what he calls “viral advocates”.

As small business owners you can break through the digital advertising clutter that people have to surf through simply by telling your real life stories instead of selling more meaningless ads – because storytelling isn’t selling – it’s sharing. It is content that matters. That is why it’s uniquely suited to social media.

Your life stories about why you do what you do, how you do what you do, and where you do what you do are the stories with real context and meaning that people are hungry to discover and connect with, to learn from and be motivated by – whether that is a motivation to shop with you or to share your stories forward with their tribe.

So when you think of storytelling as marketing, think bigger picture: all of your content is your story. Your content is your connection. It is your authenticity. It is your day-to-day stuff as well as your “special announcement” stuff. It is never an advertisement. But it is a call to action for your audience to stop, pay attention and engage with you.

It is real life, not scripted reality.

PBS recently aired a show telling the stories about everyday people who make and sell homemade pies for a living. Yes. Pie. It was exquisite. It was passionate. It was delicious. It was, quite literally, food for thought. 

These are the types of stories people are seeking from small business owners and entrepreneurs – the simple, fruitful tales about Why you do what you do and how it both grounds you to the world and lets you loose to create a life that both you and your customers take delight in. These are the everyday stories that are rich with flavor – stories with an element of the familiar that people can relate to – your passion about your purpose in life.

Your story is inspiring – because you took a scary step that others often dream about, and you built a life out of that dream: even one as seemingly mundane, yet so creative, comforting and connecting as making pies by hand. These are true success stories to the rest of us – because you made a life that you love. We don’t care if you’re a millionaire – we care that you are doing something purposeful that brings joy to both you and to us, your customers.

And the magic comes when you find that customers not only love to share your story – but they will share with you the ways that your story has impacted their lives. They will tell you how the product or service you create has helped them solve a problem or brought something heartfelt or humorous into their day-to-day lives.

Storytelling, by its very nature, invites reciprocal sharing, This is what Peter Gruber means when he talks about letting your audience take ownership of your authentic stories. Your customers take your stories and weave their own into them and then share them back with you.

You will be delighted to discover how these layered stories you and your customers create act like an intoxicating combination of ingredients, infusing and informing your future business decisions. If you let the magic happen, you will find yourself building an entirely new recipe for success.

Think of it like pie. Offer your stories by the slice, give customers what they crave: food for thought.

Storytelling is marketing that works because it is honest and wonderful and quirky and filled with laughter and heartbreak and happiness; it is human and relatable in an era when Reality is scripted and plastic and disposable.

Tell stories that open a window, that let us see into that kitchen where you mix your passion and purpose – give us a whiff and a taste – of why you do what you do so that we can learn from you, be inspired by you and keep coming back for more of what you are dishing up.

Give us something real to respond to. Give our starving brains food for thought. Put your proverbial hot, fresh pie on your windowsill and watch how quickly we ask for more.

And stock up – you’re going to need bigger pie pans.