The Power of a Story Told Well

At the EFFIE awards last week, which is all about business effectiveness (aka, selling stuff), the campaigns that won plaudits were invariably engaging and meaningful. As significant, the themes were easily understood.

What did the audience respond to? Great story telling with a ‘hero’ the audience could relate to and care about.

‘Truth well told’ sounds simple, but even if you have perfect understanding of your audience and your story, it’s surprisingly hard. We’re all in the story telling business and I believe most (all?) of us could all benefit from better ways to do that.

Nearby are a range of links which are both examples of effective narrative and methodologies that can enhance it.

What do you think? In your opinion, what one factor has been key for you in helping create a great story?

Sincerely,

Stuart

PS. Out June 28th ‘The Practical Pocket Guide to Account Planning’ by Christopher Kocek, provides a straightforward, no nonsense approach to understanding what Account Planners do on a daily basis and how they do it. Congratulations to Chris! Anyone else have announcements?

Articles and commentary that might be of interest…

• Where Does Your Brand Story Fall In The Storytelling Matrix?
• The Decline And Fall Of Product Placement
• Storytelling That Moves People
• How To Tell A Story With Data
• 5 Secrets To Use Storytelling For Brand Marketing Success
• Using Storytelling And Brand Values For Real Customer Engagement
• Brand Storytelling In 4 Steps
• Entrepreneurs Who Master Storytelling Win More
• Brand Storytelling And The Hero Of Your Brand
• Shared Values In Brand Storytelling
• The Drivers Of Brand Storytelling Strategy
• Coke, Nike Succeed With New Style Of Brand Story-Telling Online Add To …
• Case Study: The Art Of Storytelling Around An App