Let Customers Finish Your Story

"A brand can be more than a snapshot, more than just a list of adjectives. If it is going to achieve depth, or that is to say realism (and all stories need a degree of that), then a brand needs to have come from somewhere and be going somewhere. It must have lived, and be living, in real time, like the rest of us. They need wrinkles and bumps and stretch marks." [Rob Lewis, Staff Writer, MyCustomer.com]

Take a look at the list of best seller books, say the New York Times Best Seller list, and what do you see in non fiction? Both hardcover and paperback lists are filled with books that tell a story -- memoirs, behind the scenes recounts, biographies. The advice book list? All stories about you -- staying young, the law of attraction, living with joy and peace. We respond to these books because we crave stories. Stories work even for brands, as Karen Hegmann outlines in the interview.

They work especially if you tell only part of the story and let your customers co-author the rest. When you can tell a story about customers that they can embrace and complete, when you share with them something they can celebrate, you have share of mind. And that today is extremely valuable. I told you about my experience at the Apple store, didn't I? In the commercial world you don't sell stories but solutions to problems. Of course you know this already. Stories are just a means to get you to solutions.

The Dove campaign cited in the article was created to be truly interactive -- on the web and on video. And the brand has stuck to what I believe is its core essence: authentic results authentically delivered. If the vehicle of stories reveal consistent themes, values, successes, obstacles, then there is probably something there to examine further. Some of the best ideas come from a single mention of a concept that catches fire. That's how new ideas happen.

If ideas happen in the course of narration, then why are we all sitting at headquarters meeting with each other? Why aren't we out in the stores or in the places where customers are to see our brands playing out? What we do to learn about our brand is we often listen to recordings of actual comments by customers so we can hear perceptions directly from them. Seeing and hearing is more persuasive than telling or selling.

One of the greatest story writers I know of, Bob McKee, wrote that (paraphrased) "good story" means something worth telling that the world wants to hear. That story also needs to be well told -- it needs to create a conspiracy between the writer and its audience, one that draws involvement, holds it, and rewards it with a meaningful experience. Leave room for the actors. Let your customers identify with your products, so they can find their story in yours and finish it for themselves.

[There's a great line in Disney Pixar Toy Story I, when Buzz Light leaps "to infinity and beyond" and by the grace of things finds his way around the room and back. As he lands back on his feet, Buzz Light says to the incredulous cowboy: "can"!]

Comments

[Joe Raasch]

Hi Valeria,

"Facts tell, stories sell." Great advice, from a used car salesman in 1988.

E.G.

Q - where is the best Italian food in the Twin Cities?
A - there is a place in St. Paul, a few blocks from the hockey arena. Cossetta. Been there a long time. I like it.

OR

Q - where is the best Italian food in the Twin Cities?
A - I know just the place! Cossetta. Been there on the levy in St. Paul since 1911. They still hand-toss the pizza crusts, and the mostaccioli will change your life. There is even a small market attached to the restaurant that has some of the best imported meats, cheeses, pastas, and fresh bread. They even make their own mozzarella. Let's eat there tonight!

I want to go to the second Cossetta. Part of the story is the passion of the storyteller. Not necessarily exuberance or excitement - just passion.

Ciao, Joe

[Valeria Maltoni]

You're making me hungry! I've got to go to Cossetta soon and have that wonderful pizza crust (my favorite part)... and the cheeses! Passion is so important. What would happen if our marketing materials were written that way?

[David Reich]

Joe gives a great example. It's so much easier to remember a story than a set of facts. Generally, a story can move you to action better than a mere recitation of information.

Pizza at Cossetta sounds good, by the way.

[Karen Hegmann]

Valeria

Great post on the importance of stories and narrative and the role they play in defining engaging customer experiences. Thanks very much.

Robert McKee's comments about stories, structure and meaning do play out in the consumer world as they do in the entertainment world. If people feel that they are part of the story of the product (and/or what it represents), then they will identify with it emotionally and take ownership in it. Once this happens, a company is able to nurture and maintain a kind of customer loyalty that is very difficult to break.

Over the weekend I watched the movie "Ratatouille" (co-incidentallly a Disney/Pixar production). The story was well orchestrated, and in one scene the notorious food critic (Monsieur Ego) is seen sampling the stereotypical "peasant" dish. All of a sudden, his face turns from utter disdain and contempt to one of pure glory. The reason for the change? He identifed the food experience and the product with a dish he relished as a child. The next shot was of him as a child, standing in front of the door at his home (and sniffing the scent of the food) about to come in for dinner. Somehow the experience of eating the "Ratatouille" acted as a trigger to recreate a very positive experience as a child.

If a company can recreate this type of experience with a product or service, then they will win the hearts and minds of customers. In the movie, Monsieur Ego found a place for himself as a character in the Ratatouille story.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@David -- good hearing from you! That is why NYC is such a great place. Times Square tells a story, Grand Central another, and so do the museums and streets... I could never sleep if I lived there ;-)

@Karen -- I saw Ratatouille last weekend, what a coincidence. The animated story is filled with details and subplots and emotional triggers. Monsieur Ego was a terrific character to introduce. I loved his last article/review; it was written with such poetry and transport. It plays to the heart and minds of viewers beautifully -- we now all wanted him to be part of things. For us to write with such transport, we need to be in love with our services first... are we?

[Carr Hagerman]

Valerie,

I love your ideas that stories are our way of making meaning together, a way for us to share in common themes. The problem, it seems to me, is that too many people/companies, want use this idea as a way of simulating connection, of manipulating the outcomes. Ideas like "Facts Tell-Stories Sell'" which certainly has some truth to it, leads many to use storytelling as a path to get something they want, which is kind of an inauthentic approach to connection and storytelling.

I think we tell our stories to tell our stories, and if we attempt to use storytelling to force an outcome, we rob ourselves of a critical component of great storytelling, the natural energy of human connection. Storytelling as marketing is usually monochromatic and covert.

If we are to create great customer service connection, it seems better to cultivate environments where people feel safe, where they have a sense of freedom and responsibility, and they have a voice in the thing they are creating or serving. When that happens, the human process of storytelling occurs naturally, without manipulation and without monitor. It is the natural outcome of human beings serving human beings, in a humane fashion.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Carr:

There is always the chance that anyone would use any tool for manipulation -- even conversation ;-) Storytelling is part of being human, and something companies got away from in the days of the industrial model and the command and control ways. Which resulted in today's stilted language and artificial speak.

Story is embedded with human commerce from ages. Think about the very first markets where people would go to see wares, inhale aromas, be part of the community and exchange news. In fact, I suspect that most of the time when we tell a story it is to persuade, too. The approach can be authentic *and* persuasive. Creating the right environment is where good leadership and stewardship come into play... being realistic for a moment here -- there will be contrarians and people with agendas even there. It's part of the human story.

[Ricardo Bueno]

I think this is a concept that's easy to take for granted. Instead individuals focus more on advertising and spreading their name and "logo" to as many people as they can in an attempt to generate interest...create a pipeline...

The reality of it is, if you're in the service business, customers are your best walking billboards! Create a unique experience in your interactions with they'll spread the word without effortlessly. Kind of like when you watch a great movie...you tell people about it.

The branding...the name recognition...the logos and all of that stuff, effortlessly tell a story because one customer had a unique experience. That one customer told everyone about it and the next thing you know...your famous!

[Valeria Maltoni]

The story definitely needs to be consistent with the experience. A great experience with a product and service is what keep people coming back for more and makes them want to tell others.