LogoLogo
StoryTelling
storytelling techniques
1
As
Access
1
As
Access

Some of the best narratives come from an unfiltered look behind the curtain.

More
2
In
Incongruent
2
In
Incongruent

To see or read something that appears out of place grabs attention. The mind strives to reconcile, “what the hell?”

More
3
Fa
Failure
3
Fa
Failure

No failure, no drama. Virtually all movies and novels depict something going awry.

More
4
Cv
Conversational
4
Cv
Conversational

Talk and write like a real human being. You can do it!

More
5
AC
Atomized Content
5
AC
Atomized Content

Packaging bite-­size chunks of a story often resonate with journalists.

More
6
Ow
Outward
6
Ow
Outward

The opposite of “Me, me, me … and here’s a little more on me.”

More
7
Sm
Sausage Making
7
Sm
Sausage Making

Sometimes, a backstory on how something happens is more interesting than the core narrative.

More
8
Qa
Quantification
8
Qa
Quantification

Everyone likes to keep score. Numbers can bring shape to the intangible.

More
9
Op
Opinion
9
Op
Opinion

Nothing bores like the middle of the road, often viewed by execs as a safe harbor. Have a take.

More
10
Wo
Words
10
Wo
Words

Words matter. A single word amidst a vanilla page can jar the senses.

More
12
Cx
Context
13
Co
Contrast
13
Co
Contrast

Comparisons – like the difference between “what was” and “what is” – can help the audience ascertain significance.

More
14
Vi
Visual
14
Vi
Visual

Even if a picture isn’t worth 1,000 words, visuals accentuate storytelling.

More
15
Hu
Humanity
15
Hu
Humanity

Faces dominate the covers of business magazines for a reason. Cultivate human touch points in your storytelling.

More
16
An
anecdote
16
An
Anecdote

Underutilized in business communications, the anecdote brings realness and entertainment value to the story.

More
17
Le
Levity
17
Le
Levity

Considered the killer app in business storytelling, the mere cracking of a smile is a win.

More
18
Dr
Drama
18
Dr
Drama

Business storytelling with an entertainment dimension stands out. Enter drama, stage left.

More
19
Pr
Protagonist
19
Pr
Protagonist

Transform an executive into a hero, and you’ve got the makings of a happy ending (and a brand-­building moment).

More
20
Ba
Barrier
20
Ba
Barrier

Here’s one surefire way to cultivate drama: Communicate a barrier and tease out the journey of overcoming that barrier.

More
21
Vo
Voice
21
Vo
Voice

A distinctive voice can elevate a business story, whether that comes from the company or an individual.

More

One + Magazine on Storytelling for a Business Audience

One + Magazine on Storytelling for a Business Audience

The title says it all, “Storytelling and Your Quest for Business Success.”

It’s rare for a magazine to examine the power of storytelling in business. This particular article comes compliments of the trade book One +, which caters to more than 30,000 meeting planners.

Before you scoff, consider the plight of meeting planners in matchmaking an organization with a venue. No doubt, if you’ve seen one convention center, you’ve seen them all (only the dimensions change).

Enter storytelling as a means to grab the audience by the scruff of the neck.

Writer Jason Hensel bravely kicks off the piece with a cliche that works as a stage setter:

One upon a time. Need I go further? You know you’ve entered a story. Perhaps you prefer something a little more straightforward: “Call me Ishmael,” “I am an invisible man” or “Mother died today.” The simple act of telling a story demands attention whether it starts with the fantastical or the concrete. It’s the difference between academic and business-speak and barroom banter.

He had me at “Ishmael.”

Hensel spoke with Pat Lencioni, author of several popular business books including “Death by Meeting.” Hard to argue with the writer behind “a cure for the most painful yet underestimated problem of modern business: bad meetings,” who shares:

I think that people today are more distracted than ever. People are looking for something that captures their attention and provides an enjoyable experience.

Thank you.

Splattering a screen with a mind-numbing array of charts and graphs is not an enjoyable experience.

I was also pleased that my perspective on the importance of context in storytelling found its way into the narrative:

“Take the movie Rudy. If you jump to the end of the movie and see Rudy finally going into the game to play for Notre Dame, this has zero meaning. Instead, one needs to understand he originally got rejected, parlayed a [junior college] stint into admissions, walked on to the team as an undersized player, etc.

This is a big part of storytelling and especially relevant in markets of complexity like technology. Too often companies want to jump right to the innovation instead of providing context of how this was accomplished before. It’s the delta between what was and what is that delivers the drama.

And I like how Hensel puts a bow on the piece in closing:

The stories may all begin and end differently, but they all have the same core—we are one. The human story is the only story there is, and when you understand that, you’ll be able to move freely in any world, from barroom to boardroom.

Here’s What Your High School English Teacher Meant by “Show, Don’t Tell” in Storytelling

Business communicators can take lessons away from all forms of storytelling.

One of my favorite go-to exercises for our storytelling workshop leans on the movie, “500 Days of Summer.” A voice with James Earl Jones-like command delivers a narration that sets the stage for the movie and what proved to be Zooey Deschanel’s coming out party.

Let’s examine the words, which I’ve broken down into four passages:

“This is a story of boy meets girl.”

Opening with a cliché isn’t exactly from the Creative Writing 101 handbook. It works here because the cliché is about to be turned inside out.

“The boy, Tom Hansen of Margate, New Jersey, grew up believing that he’d never truly be happy until the day he met the one. This belief stemmed from early exposure to sad British pop music and a total misreading of the movie ‘The Graduate.’”

The line doesn’t TELL us that Tom Hansen has the mind of a romantic. Instead, viewers hear a few vignettes about Tom and reach the conclusion on their own that this boy is an incurable romantic (probably parts his hair like Dustin Hoffman in “The Graduate”).

“The girl, Summer Finn of Shinnecock, Michigan, did not share this belief. Since the disintegration of her parents’ marriage she’d only love two things. The first was her long dark hair. The second was how easily she could cut it off and feel nothing.”

The narration quickly establishes conflict. In contrast to Tom, Ms. Finn of Shinnecock, Michigan, isn’t the happily-ever-after type. In fact, it turns out that she purposely generates unhappy endings just to prove that they don’t  make her to cry. Borrowing from Foreigner, the writer doesn’t tell us, “she’s cold as ice.” It’s the showing that leads us to this conclusion.

“Tom meets Summer on January 8th. He knows almost immediately she is who he has been searching for. This is a story of boy meets girl, but you should know upfront, this is not a love story.”

With paths of Tom and Summer intersecting, we know a train wreck will ensure. This is also when the opening cliché gets turned inside out with the closing line, “This is not a love story.”

I encourage you to take a listen to the narration which only lasts 93 seconds.

Business communications — and particularly PR — often fall into the trap of telling the audience, not showing the audience.

For example, every company wants to be perceived as innovative, so the communications effort typically shouts to the world that “We’re innovative.”

Adjectives don’t win over the audience much less shape perceptions. Stories do, which brings us back to “showing” a company’s innovative approach.

In the kick-off narration for “500 Days Summer,” I’ve highlighted the adjectives and adverbs.

500 days of summer opening quote

This exercise reveals that adjectives and adverbs have a place in narrative. They add texture (not showy). But it’s the story, the showing, that should do the heavy lifting.

One final point —

In business communications, there’s a tendency to jump to the point as quickly as possible, which can mean cutting out what might be viewed as superfluous details. Yet, these same details can help shape and bring a certain realness to the communications.

In the “500 Days of Summer” opener, what happens if we eliminate the hometowns of Tom Hansen and Summer Finn? The story still holds together. It still shows us how each individual is wired. But we lose a touch of realness in the fiction transport.

Even though business communications by definition is non-fiction — let’s save the issue of “spin” for another day — the cynical nature of today’s audience means that they don’t automatically believe everything they read or hear. That’s why the details are important. They deliver cues to the audience that they should believe the communications.

Scrutinize any feature story in business publications like a Fortune or Fast Company, and you’ll discover that such details make the final cut. Journalists want readers to believe their stories as well.