Good day, class…

And welcome to Storytelling 101.

Last time we discussed why Storytelling is a wildly effective way to get and keep your ideal client’s attention…

To connect with them, make them feel and ultimately, motivate them to take action. (aka buy your service)

I see you in the front row, with your notebook out, eagerly taking notes.

Put your pen away for a second and listen closely.

A good story is much like a puzzle.

It always consists of several elements that fit together and make up the big picture.

If you’re just starting out, don’t expect your stories to be compelling right off the bat.

This takes practice and you’ll get better over time, just like a finely aged whiskey.

Here are my top 5 tips to help you get started with telling stories in your marketing:

Get inside your audience’s head

As you already know, understanding your audience and avatar is the foundation for successful marketing.

Before you develop a plot for your story, look at your dream buyer persona.

What are their dreams, hopes, pains and fears?

What are their personality traits? What is their demographic?

The answers to these questions are what’s going to help you construct relatable narratives based on your dream buyer.

Define your story arc and develop a plot

A story arc makes up the plot from beginning to end.

You need to think about what your conflict, setting, characters and climax is going to be.

The standard plot tells the hero’s journey…

From struggles and challenges to victory…

A rags-to-riches kinda story.

You introduce the hero (your dream buyer), set them on fire (your dream buyer’s problem)...

Let them survive in the most heroic way (your dream buyer’s solution aka your service)…

And finally, have them transform into a completely different person…

The person your dream buyer wants to be.

You can use several elements to increase the suspense in your story…

But to keep things simple, I’ll only cover one here:

The “STAR” moment. (Something They’ll Always Remember)

Keep your audience on their toes by giving them a dramatic twist they didn’t see coming.

This keeps them engaged and reduces drop-off.

Create your characters

There’s no story without characters.

Your protagonist has to be relatable. Your dream buyer needs to be able to identify with them.

This means that you’re creating your characters based on your dream buyer’s persona...

Let them embody their traits, goals and challenges.

Create tension and suspense

A story without tension and conflict is boring.

If Harry Potter didn’t have to defeat Voldemort, no one would have been sucked into his story.

There would be nothing to anticipate.

A hero without a challenge is no hero.

You gotta demonstrate the struggle your dream buyer is having…

And present them with the solution. (your service)

This is going to evoke a strong emotional reaction…

And increase the chances of motivating your dream buyer to go ahead and buy.

Build tension around explaining your dream buyer’s problem in great, agonizing detail.

Allow them to fully immerse themselves in your story.

Personal touch

Tell a story based on true events.

Use one of your past clients as the hero and tell their story…

From what they did before they came to you, to using your solution and the results they were able to achieve with the help of your service.

All of this should give you a good jumpstart in Storytelling.

And that brings us to the end of today's lecture.

Thanks for your attention, everyone!