Finding Your Real Story

Have you ever seen a company portraying a totally different personality, different from what is on their website, from their brochures, or from their commercials?

The reality is, that many companies have got marketing materials that have been created over time, often by many different people and these materials have not been updated to keep up with the current identity. Some companies seem to go from strategy to strategy, never investing enough time to allow any single approach to take root and pay off. And customers become confused because the company doesn’t seem to know its own identity. Even worse, this seems to portray the company as insincere and even untrustworthy.

The internet complicates this more because it’s easier now for the prospects to hop from site to site, and if your company’s image seems to change between your website, blog, online articles, and social media sites, your prospects will start to wonder who the “real” you is.

One of the easiest ways to fix this is to discover the Real Story of your company that is uniquely yours. This works well especially in social media because people are more engaged in social now that reading from hard copy printed materials.

What Is Your Real Story

Your Real Story should say about how you have solved a very similar problem/fear/pain for someone, someone to whom the reader can relate. The story format is a powerful way of sharing information because human beings, even in this internet age, are still more inclined to listen to stories. Stories do sell. Social media is a perfect vehicle for telling stories as it offers you a global audience. Not only that, with social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, you can tell your stories with pictures, videos, audio as well as text. But first, you have to find Your Real Story

Here are 5 ways to uncover Your Real Story. if your company finds it difficult to find a story to tell.

The Owner’s Story

Stories about hardworking newcomers who have made it, stories about second chances, and reinvention can reach deep into the readers’ consciousness and reflect deeply on the owner of the company.

Here are easy ways to propel your business to new heights.

The Product’s Story

You need to find out what need does your product meet? In my place, the owner of a coin-operated laundry I knew realized that he doesn’t just give people clean clothes, he helps them show their love for their family by having a neat and clean environment for them. In my neighborhood, which is mostly middle class and who is climbing the ladder of success, family and self-respect are very deeply held values. So, you need to find out whether your product or service offers people security, good health, or a chance to succeed. Find out what is the need that prompts your customer to choose your product or service?

The Story Of Your Business

People usually cheer for a business if they know that, the business has overcome adversities. We all cheer for the businesses that found a way to come back after the 2008 financial crisis or after the recent covid-19 crisis. You need to find out whether your company has weathered bad times, lopsided competition, or financial crises and come back even stronger. People just love comeback stories (like Rocky Balboa and Rambo).

Your Customers’ Story

For this, you need to go beyond testimonials. A case study would be better. The story should have a problem, and how your company solved it, but it’s really a story about a “hero”, a “dragon” and a “damsel” in distress.

The dragon is a business problem, like a project badly behind schedule and budget constraints. Your company is the hero and the client is the damsel in distress. The story should have a few plots and twists to keep up the readers’ interest and finally the slaying of the dragon. Details like this make your story compelling and then, there’s the happy ending, how your company solved the problem and what it meant to the customer. The end result can be dollar savings, productivity enhancement, or the ability to compete in new markets.

The Story Of Your Mission

Do your company's products or services make the world a better place? For example, maybe you learned martial art because you were robbed and ended up opening a studio to teach others to be safe. Your mission goes beyond your personal story, a broader impact and this can make a difference in the world around you.

Even mundane businesses can have a mission. For example a car repair shop, the commitment is to keep people from being endangered by breakdowns or from losing their jobs because of frequently being late for work due to breakdowns.

Telling the Real Story of your business makes a powerful connection with potential customers. It can be a springboard to compelling media coverage and it can differentiate you from your competitors in ways that they can’t copy. Once you discover your Real Story, you will find that it affects the way you communicate about your business and the way you think about yourself, your products, and your customers.

Here are easy ways to propel your business to new heights.

That’s all for now, friends, see you all in my next article.

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