The Strength of Story
My father was an amazing storyteller. He had that special gift that drew people to him. Watching him, I understood that stories have the power to create connection. They help us understand the world around us. By telling your brand’s unique, authentic stories, you are creating narratives that set you apart in the AEC industry and humanizing your brand.
Vivid descriptions of how your team handled a project’s problems and challenges, as well as its solutions and successes, engage customers on a deeper level. Stories also stick with their audience longer than facts and figures alone. According to research conducted at the Stanford Graduate School of Business by marketing professor Dr. Jennifer Aaker, people are 20 times more likely to remember information shared through a narrative.
Whether you’re telling the story of your company’s evolution or outlining a particular project’s development, every good narrative contains a few crucial components:
The Purpose
What do you want your story to illustrate for potential customers? Knowing the goal helps you identify exactly how you want to tell your story. Is this a tale of perseverance, ingenuity, or triumph over adversity? While these concepts might seem grandiose, every good story has a theme. Define the reason behind the story.
The Problem
Every project is, in essence, a problem to be solved. Whether it’s creating a particularly tricky structure, working to please multiple stakeholders with competing interests, or simply finishing a project on time and on budget, every job presents a unique challenge. As you begin your story, identify the problem to be solved. Be specific. This elicits interest and creates a compelling tension for your reader.
The People
Who on your team tackled these problems and how were they uniquely suited to do so? Here’s the place to show your company’s expertise and innovation. What specific skills, tools, or technologies did you bring to the table? This is a chance to articulate your unique approach to problem-solving.
The Payoff
Use hard data—costs, timelines, increased efficiencies—to illustrate how successfully you solved the problems outlined at the beginning of your story. Consider including customer testimonials to add another layer of human connection to your narrative.
Once you’ve outlined the story you want to tell, there are lots of effective ways to share it with potential clients.
First and foremost, your website is a wonderful way to communicate with potential customers through narrative. Consider how to illustrate these stories. Use eye-catching images, colorful infographics, and even video to pull visitors deeper into your storytelling. Remember to utilize keywords whenever possible and to cross-link with others in your industry to help drive traffic.
Visual features are also an easy way to share snippets of your stories on social media. An appealing graphic from your story makes a great Instagram post. Don’t forget to point viewers back to your company website through hashtags and links.
Newsletters are another method that can help spread your story. Use a story as a feature article in every newsletter, allowing subscribers the opportunity to understand your people and processes on a more human level.
Leveraging conference speaking engagements, media opportunities and award submissions are also great ways to share your expertise. This lends third party credibility to what you are doing and connects the reader or audience member to your brand.
Each of us has a unique story to tell. This is as true of companies as it is of people. Spend some time spinning your successes into unique narratives to create meaningful connections.
About the Author: Whitney Thrower has led marketing teams across the country and understands the importance of running efficient marketing programs that provide returns. In today’s world there are many sources of data and information that can help inform marketing programs to create the best returns possible. She leverages her talents to guide clients towards creating campaigns and content that generate brand awareness and qualified businesses leads.
To learn more about her click here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/whitney-thrower/
To connect with us on LinkedIn click here https://www.linkedin.com/company/90748974