Today has been quite a day. I’ve had three very profound conversations with three influential business people who have asked me about how to improve the effectiveness of their blogs. In the past, each person wrote the “nuts and bolts” about their business and industry, spewing regurgitated facts and figures about markets and health care and insurance.
I’m sure there are analysts and bean counters out there who may find that to be interesting. However, I’ve learned over the course of the last two days that what really grabs people’s attention is the story. Yesterday, I had the distinct pleasure of speaking with a former journalist-turned-memoir-writer. Her articles were riveting because they told a story which conjured images in my head and compelled me to continue to read. One of the three with whom I spoke today mentioned this to me: business sales people often talk about the “What” of what they sell. Then they sell the “How.” Really, who the heck cares.
What people want is the, “Why.” Why were you in business? Why is your product the right choice? Why are people raving about the product? Why does it work to meet the customer’s requirements. It’s in the story telling–the parable of the product (or service) and the characters surrounding it–that compels people to continue reading.
So… what’s your story?
Keep Moving Forward.