Humans Communicate with Story with Melissa Madian, Ep #314
Anyone can learn to incorporate storytelling into their day-to-day activities. Some people are more comfortable telling stories than others\u2014but we\u2019re all human. As humans, we tend to communicate via story, whether we actively recognize it or not. Even if you feel like you aren\u2019t a natural storyteller, you likely are, you just aren\u2019t aware that you can tell an effective story. Melissa Madian shares how to communicate with story in this episode of Sales Reinvented.\xa0
Outline of This Episode- [1:13] What storytelling is an important skill to possess
- [1:58] Why Melissa believes storytelling can be learned
- [3:11] The ingredients of a story that sells
- [5:42] The attributes and characteristics of a great storyteller
- [7:16] Resources to improve storytelling abilities
- [8:18] Melissa\u2019s top 3 storytelling dos and don\u2019ts
- [10:27] How humans communicate with story
Melissa\u2019s husband is a screenwriter. His whole job is to tell great stories. According to him, a great story consists of a few main elements:
- A protagonist: Who does the story center around?
- Conflict: how does the protagonist go through a transformation?\xa0
- A beginning, middle, and end: The protagonist starts in one spot, goes through a transformation, and ends in a happily ever after state.\xa0
There\u2019s usually a mentor that guides the protagonist on their journey. But what makes that story sell?
Melissa emphasizes that when you communicate with story, you have to think about your audience. The best salespeople convey relevant stories that are about your customer or buyer. That\u2019s when it becomes a more effective story. Who doesn\u2019t love to hear a story about themselves?
The attributes and characteristics of a great storytellerGreat salespeople listen\xa0first. Salespeople need to understand the world of the buyer that they\u2019re speaking to. When you can get in the head of the buyer, you\u2019re better at telling a story that connects. It helps you frame the story in their world. It\u2019s about them and how they\u2019ll be better with your product or solution. Good salespeople set the stage up for the buyer.\xa0
Melissa\u2019s top 3 storytelling dos and don\u2019tsMelissa\u2019s storytelling tips are spot-on. Can you spot a theme?\xa0
- Don\u2019t make it about you. No one cares about you. It\u2019s like going on a date and only talking about yourself.\xa0
- Don\u2019t pitch your product or solution as the hero of the storyline that you\u2019re telling. Nobody cares about you.
- Don\u2019t set up your story with, \u201cI\u2019m going to tell you a story!\u201d\xa0
- Make your story about the audience and make them the protagonist.\xa0
- Tell the story in their world. What does their day-to-day life look like? What does their world feel like? Set the scene where they\u2019ll understand it.\xa0
- Inject your own personality and sense of humor into the story.\xa0
Even if your prospect is a busy executive or the most technical person you\u2019ve ever met, they\u2019re still human, right? And the most effective way to tell a story to another human being is through metaphors and analogies. Everyone can do this. We all use stories and analogies to explain complicated topics.\xa0
One of Melissa\u2019s clients tried to explain their product to her. They started by saying, \u201cWell, it\u2019s a complicated system of data-cleansing that indexes and modifies files and allows you to transfer information.\u201d To Melissa, it came across as \u201cBlah, blah, blah.\u201d So she asked him to explain it as if she were a child. So the client asked her if she\u2019s ever moved. Of course, she said yes.\xa0
So he went on, \u201cWhen you move from house A to house B, do you toss everything you own into boxes and move those boxes and when you arrive, question where they\u2019re supposed to go? Or do you purge things you don\u2019t need, put things in clearly labeled boxes, and every box goes to a specific room in house B? That\u2019s what our software does. It takes your data, purges what you don\u2019t need and indexes what you do, and then moves it to your new data warehouse. It puts what you need where you need it.\u201d
That\u2019s the story he should have told\xa0in the first place. Simple stories take something abstract and complicated and make it understandable to your audience.\xa0
Resources & People Mentioned- Melissa\u2019s book:\xa0Enabler? I Hardly Know Her!
- Save the Cat!\xa0By Blake Snyder
Audio Production and Show notes by
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