Books For High Performers | Building A StoryBrand
So many companies are completely wasting money on their “marketing” efforts. In Donald Miller’s Building a StoryBrand he makes a beautiful and efficient case for how people respond to the age old art of storytelling, and explains how you can practically apply storytelling principles to create marketing efforts that matter.
Right out of the gate I would like to get one thing clear. Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller is one of the best books out there in terms of doing marketing and sales well. As a highly successful career salesperson turned marketer I had learned many things along the way regarding communicating with others in meaningful ways to influence behavior. To be clear I’m not talking about cheap parlor tricks, jedi mind tricks, or any other sort of “used-car-salesperson” dishonesty in influencing buyer behavior. Rather, I’m talking about connecting with people in an genuine way, understanding their problems, and then sincerely connecting them with solutions that were best for getting them from where they currently are to where they want to be. Building a StoryBrand beautifully labels and explains many of self-evident truths that I learned along the way in effective and honest selling and marketing.
The StoryBrand Structure | SB7 Framework
At the core of Building a StoryBrand is a basic yet powerful form of communication that is built upon the ancient artform of storytelling. If you look at any really great story you’ll see a consistent and systematic structure. Others also often refer to this as the “hero’s journey”, but the StoryBrand framework is even more simple as it’s broken down into seven steps as listed below.
This framework is abundantly present in movies such as Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Harry Potter, The Matrix, and so on.
Luke Skywalker wants to join the rebellion, but can’t until his aunt and uncle are slaughtered by the Empire. Obi-Wan, his guide, teaches him the force and calls him to use. Much is at risk due to the power of the new Death Star (Alderaan knows what I’m talking about), but Obi-Wan’s teachings help him avoid failure and ends in a success with the force lead proton torpedo that enters the small exhaust vent that culminates in the explosion of the Death Star.
Harry Potter has Dumbledore, Neo has the Morpheus and the Oracle, Frodo has Gandalf, and they all face tremendous opposition but use their knowledge and plan bestowed upon them by their “guides” to avoid failure and win the day.
How the StoryBrand Framework Plays in Real-Life
So what does any of this have to do with Marketing and/or Sales? Well, Miller points out that all too many businesses have it wrong in their approach to marketing. Most businesses set themselves as the hero in their story, but the problem is where does this leave the customer in the story? The right way to do this is to place the customer in the role of “hero” and place the company in the role of the “guide”. This repositioning of roles is fully supported by the truths I found to be self-evident in the field of sales and marketing. The primary way I phrased this message is that “it’s not about you, it’s about the customer”.
This transitioning of roles in the mind of your company and it’s employees is the first place you have to start as you look to apply the principles of Building a StoryBrand to your business. Get your people to understand that in their story they are not Luke Skywalker, but they are Obi-Wan. They are the wise sage that helps the customer get from where they are today to where they want to be in the future. Furthermore, it is their job to help paint a clear vision of an aspirational yet achievable future state. Then they can use their experience and expertise to provide the plan to the hero/customer, call them to action, help them avoid failure, and ensure their story ends in success.
One truth that is difficult for many companies to comprehend is that your prospects and customers actually care very little about you or your company. In actuality they care deeply about their problems, and they care about your ability to solve them. The more time you spend speaking to the customers about their problems the more likely they are to be interested in what you have to say.
One of the other key benefits of speaking about a customer’s problems is the inherent feeling of “they get me” that you customer or prospect will feel about you. As you speak about their problems and how they affect them at a tangible level (ex. money and time) and an intangible level (i.e how their problem makes them feel) they will naturally feel more understood by you. The more your customers and prospects feel you understand their situation the more they will trust you, and it is this trust that serves as the real capital in relationship. Check out our podcast on social and political capital or watch the video on YouTube to learn more about how that is used in sales, relationships, and negotiation.
The Building a StoryBrand framework provides a very clear picture as to how messages are effectively communicated through the format of the ancient art of storytelling. Storytelling is a proven way to connect with your audience in a deep and meaningful way, but before companies can embrace the principles in Building a StoryBrand they first have to understand what their role is in the story vs. their customer’s role. Once your company has embraced the role of the “guide” then you can firmly begin to structure your marketing and sales efforts towards helping the hero in the story to ascend to the place they deserve.
The beauty of this StoryBrand method set out by Donald Miller is that everyone gets it because they can see this framework played out in their favorite movies. This inherent familiarity makes this model readily adoptable and acceptable by your team. However, the main area where I’m seen the StoryBrand framework not take hold is in large corporations who have a long history of seeing themselves in the “hero” role.
Note | Miller’s books are some of the best books on practical marketing, sales, leadership, etc.