You’ve probably been advised, “Tell lots of stories. It helps your marketing.”
I recently got an email claiming that you can earn some outrageous amount of money–just by adding a story to your marketing.
So…time to queue up the stories, right? Especially the personal ones. You know: “I was miserable and unhappy till I discovered the secret of…” OR “Here is where I did something dumb…”
The truth is, everything you do in business has a purpose. Everything you do or say in front of clients and prospects will contribute to your brand.
If someone asks, “Why on earth did you tell that story?” you’d better have an answer that’s better than, “Because I needed a story.”
Some people tell stories to explain or justify their actions to themselves. I talked about that in a recent podcast: Click here to listen.
But that doesn’t always help you.
In my latest podcast, I get a lot more positive with 4 stories that help with branding. Three of the stories are both branding stories AND selling stories. One story is purely a branding story.
Why don’t we have selling stories that don’t brand? Because everything brands you: the joke you share, the deeply personal story, your opt-in page…those all contribute to your brand.
This is especially true for solopreneurs in a service-based business. You’re branding as a person. When you’re sharing with prospects, there’s no such thing as “personal.” Everything you put out there answers their questions: Do you know your stuff? Are you fun and easy to work with?
So next time you get ready to tell a story: stop. Ask yourself WHY you’re telling this story.
Do you want to tell a branding story? Click here.
Do you want to tell a selling story? Click here.
Don’t listen to that mentor who said, “Any story is a good story for your business.” Listen to these examples and learn.
