6 Ways To Tell Better Storytelling in Your Content Marketing

In these days of increasing the amount of information available - both online and offline - most people's attention spans are about as long as a sleepy goldfish. With all the information that is helpful, it can be difficult to reach your people and keep them engaged. There's a silver lining for all this nonsense, because it's left people starving for something specific: a human connection.

One of the most effective method to establish a rapport with others is through storytelling. When we incorporate stories in our posts, our content is transformed from information that we provide into wisdom. It shows that we're doing our work for more than profit. we care about the solution to this issue, and also helping our audience. This also helps to establish a context for each piece of content we make as we weave them together in a greater picture.

"If you truly want to attract people then you must tell a genuine and interesting story. Stories can be a powerful way to share your thoughts to people, make them feel valued and create a the human connection." - Jeff Bullas

  Here are 6 ways to tell better stories when it comes to content marketing  

1. Create an audience that is the hero.

This is the very first and most important secret to telling a story for your company. You are not the hero, your customer is. If you are focused on your own interests and your interests the stories you tell are perceived as "hype" and have negative effects. It's instead of building a connection with your audience and attracting them, your stories will turn off them.

It doesn't mean you shouldn't tell tales about yourself. Sharing your stories is essential. Remember that your listeners experience your stories like they are living them. Therefore, ensure that your story and the message convey relevant to the audience.

  2. Find out where your customers are within "The Buyer's Journey"

You've got hundreds of stories to tell, which will you choose? The stories you tell should be ones that resonate with your audience and will be relevant to their needs in the present. The goal is to share a story that will help people feel encouraged to move forward together with your help.

The buyer's experience is an effective framework to help us understand the state of mind of our audience when they're considering whether or not to buy from us. The buyer's journey has three basic steps: Knowing the Trust, Like and Know. Let's take a look at each of them:

Be aware: At this stage your target audience only needs to know you exist in any way. It is possible that they are not aware that they have an issue that you are able to resolve. The stories you tell here should paint a picture of the opportunity or problem which will entice them and interest immediately. These stories should be short (your readers won't have that much of a time to pay attention to them but) and provide either an emotional, or a practical benefit.

  3. Avoid reinventing the wheel. make use of frameworks

Many of us find that storytelling isn't something that comes from the inside. Yes, we "tell stories" however there is a method to telling a story which really resonates to your viewers. Not using frameworks is like creating a brand new story every whenever you tell a tale. Frames allow us to take on new perspectives and new paths of thought which help our minds to break free from the common mental ruts we are stuck in.

There are numerous structures available, but my preferred for telling stories that truly resonate with the audience and spur action is the Crossroads Formula. The Crossroads Formula breaks up the phases of the Buyer's Journey into relevant questions. It then ties these questions with the various levels of the Hero's Journey.

  4. Use visual storytelling

Don't limit yourself to just one type of medium for your story telling. When you're telling or writing your tales, it's possible to include visuals to improve the emotional impact or concept you're trying to communicate.

Visuals are processed faster by the brain, and they are stored longer than simple text or spoken word. Vision is our strongest sense and messages from visuals cut through to our subconscious without us even realizing it. They are able to break up huge blocks of text to keep the reader engaging. They're able to communicate concepts and feelings in a way that others methods of communication aren't able to.

It doesn't require an Hollywood budget for film to be successful with visual storytelling. Consider Wait, What's the Matter? A blog by Tim Urban with millions of followers ... It would seem that there would be a chance to have some cash for incredible visuals, however the blog is brimming with pencil drawings of stick figures that look as if they were created by a 13-year-old using paint software in 1995...

Here are some easy ways to add visuals to your posts:

Screenshots with annotations: There is no need to spend a lot of money on designs here. A screenshot along with some quick notes could enhance the worth of your ideas to readers by displaying concrete examples to back up your writing.

Charts and graphsAll you need for telling a great story is an arrow. Diagrams and charts allow you to create visual representations of data and create visually a story through the shifting and falling of it. Take a look at how Kurt Vonnegut (my favorite author) transforms classic stories into graphs that are simple.

Memes HTML0 Memes Memes are fantastic because they take familiar ideas as well as characters and then apply them to a new setting of our material. Based on the mere-exposure effect the majority of people choose concepts or pictures that they already know in preference to those they are not familiar with.

Quotes imagesThis is a simple and powerful way to add images to your posts. When you include a quote from an influencer in support of your idea create a quote image. It makes the person mentioned look like a rock star too (which means they are more likely to share your content)

  5. Set big goals

It's not enough to look back at your past to find stories, you can create your own stories by setting large goals for your business.

Story-driven goals, often known as goals based on stories, also known as BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) are the kind of impact you want to make in the world with your efforts. It's the future that is created day in and day out by the things you do.

There are several important advantages to having the BHAG

• It makes it easy to speak about your business -A large goal can be an effective tool that can spark discussion and interest in talking about your business.
• It creates something bigger than your own ego - with a major goal you show that you're doing your job in a way that is more than profit, you're serving a greater purpose. You can then engage the people who are interested in your mission and play a part in creating a better world through working together.
• The creates greater meaning for your employees and you. (team) A BHAG isn't just about your clients, but it also impacts the team you work with. Your team will get inspired by your mission that increases motivation and loyalty.

To create a BHAG, you need a measurable goal with a connection to your story. If you're able to measure it, show the progress you've made as well as make it tangible. This should force you outside your familiar zone. Thinking of your goal will cause a bit of worry and you'll be wondering "how will I accomplish this?" This pushes your limits and inspires action.

To learn more about how to create a BHAG, check out: Storytelling Secret Weapons - How To Create A BHAG

  6. Make your own "secret recipe"

Do you remember when you were a kid and your mother, grandma or some other significant person you knew would prepare this special meal that you loved. Let's call it "grandma's lasagna". You loved grandma's lasagna enough that it made impossible to eat anyone who else's lasagna. We'll be honest, your grandma didn't add anything too special to her lasagna due to the emotion-based connection you shared with her, the others' lasagnas were bland...

You can create that "grandma's lasagna" impression with your enterprise by establishing the concept of a "proprietary method". A proprietary process is a way to tell an account of the process that helped you can achieve certain results.

Imagine Brian Dean's Skyscraper Technique The Skyscraper Technique isn't anything unique about the individual elements of the strategy however the phrase "Skyscraper" is now a common use by SEO marketers.

Here are the most important elements of a proprietary process:

1. Make it 3-5 steps:3 steps is the most effective because it's simple to recall and understand.
2. Make it clear that you're not unique:It should point to the fact that you're human also and shared the frustrations and challenges of your viewers.
3. Make yourself stand out:Though you can relate with your client, you've also done the job or discovered a trick that makes you uniquely suited to address the issue.
4. Make it clear that you are interested by attempting toonnect your process with your own personal story or a metaphor that shows the reason you are interested in finding a solution for this specific problem.

Here's another example, I take my clients through the "The Scalable Storytelling Process":

• Discover - We look for the most interesting parts of your life.
• Get certain of how we wish for this story to be communicated.
• Delegate - We build a team of creatives that can get help in telling your story.

To find more examples and further information on proprietary processes check out: Storytelling Secret Weapons - - A Private Process.

  Engage your audience by telling better stories  

The art of storytelling can have an enormous impact on the quality and engagement of your content marketing plan. The stories can stimulate new ideas about what you can create, and generate new meaning in the purpose of your marketing that can inspire you to create even more. Be confident and open about being transparent and vulnerable, it helps create the emotional connections that your customers are looking for.

Beginning with the basics of your story and keep a careful watch on how your audience responds to what you share. Additionally, you should practice and test your story in normal conversations If it piques your audience's interest, then try it in your content.

     Do you have a way to use storytelling in your work? Tell me via the remarks!  

Kyle Gray helps entrepreneurs create compelling stories for their business that drive sales, growth and increase engagement. He has collaborated with numerous startups as well as small businesses to create effective and sustainable strategies for content marketing. His book The Story Engine outlines his methods for making marketing through content as well as brand storytelling simple and effective.