Storytelling is the current ‘thing’ for business. Not that there is actually anything new about it. Just think of door to door salesmen and you’ll get the picture. I’m seeing a lot around about using it to talk about your business, to talk about your ‘why’, but not so much about using storytelling for sales.

So what made me think about storytelling for sales?

So I run two businesses, this one and a product based business. The product based business ticks along, but in the main I keep it going because it has a good Facebook & Pinterest following where I can test things for this business. So, I noticed that my product posts were falling a little flat. I was still using the same light, conversational tone – why wasn’t it working? Then a friend approached me with the same problem (and she has a much larger page). Now there IS a problem. She was getting great reach & engagement on her Facebook posts when she spoke about stuff OTHER than her products, but when it came to the sales posts – crickets.

So I took a look at what worked on our pages (and what didn’t) and realised that the difference was storytelling. We tell stories when we’re not selling. In fact, we’re both damn good at telling stories when we’re not selling. So I wondered, what about storytelling in sales – how could we make it work?

So why does storytelling work?

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while you would know that I like to know the deeper ‘why’ & if it can go back to something about human psychology even better. (Look you don’t study the stuff for 3 years and then spend another 5 where it’s the main focus of your day job without it being a part of your ‘why’) So it won’t come as a surprise to know that I found this article by Lou Carlozo outlining the psychology of storytelling for sales & the keys to making it work. So what are they?

  • Oxytocin – the love drug or one that bonds mother to baby is switched on when we read stories
  • Metaphors matter – the use of metaphors are important in telling stories, they’re the Vegemite to the buttery toast. (Just don’t mix your metaphors or it can get messy)
  • Relevance – there’s no point telling a great story if it’s not relevant to the product/service or your customer.

So, how can you use these facts on social media to help your storytelling for sales?

You can make it about you

While probably not widely recommended, and pretty much going against most of what I teach, you can try the following ways of incorporating storytelling for sales and talking about you…

  • The history behind the product/service – was it your first, come out of necessity, your favourite
  • Give a behind the scenes story on how the item is developed or improved
  • Tell us how it makes you feel when someone purchases your item

Make it about them

You could also do the much recommended – make it about your client…

  • Post a testimonial on why they love your product (just make sure you include their photo, read more here)
  • Tell them how the item will make them feel & make a difference (based on what they’ve told you of course)
  • Give them ideas on how else to use your item (I’ve received some great ones over the years – like a headband for a curtain tie-back)

You see, sales is no longer the straight forward “buy my shit because it’s awesome & I said so”, the vast majority of us research our purchase before they’re even made & with a whole internet full of information (and mis-information) – the last thing we need and want is hard old school ram it down your throat sales. It just isn’t working. Now I know how the mind is triggered by storytelling for sales, I know I’ll be spending a lot more time honing my stories (and making more sales).

If you would like to learn more about  connecting and using the power of the mind in your business then we can chat or you can learn it all in my course that will teach you what you need for all of your social media.

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