The Growth Guide

Have you ever picked up a book that you couldn’t put down? Entranced by a series and bubbling with anticipation for the next episode? Immersed in a movie to the point that you began to cry? Those are the signs of a good story.

Our inclination toward stories is in our genetic makeup. They not only keep us entertained but reveal the complexities of our inner selves.

Since it’s crucial to our daily lives, which are stories in themselves, we must invite prospective clients into our company’s story as the hero. By presenting a compelling storyline for our product or service, we can captivate others to join the narrative.

Why Do You Need a Story?

A good story has the power to keep a customer engaged and make your brand memorable. Instead of merely blaring BUY NOW from every direction, you get a chance to show prospective customers how you can improve their lives in a way no one else can.

That’s why the StoryBrand framework works far more effectively than the average marketing plan.

What Is a Good Story?

There are essential elements in every good story: a character, a problem, a guide, a plan, a call to action, and a resolution.

The character is your ideal customer avatar. This ICA is a prototype of the demographic that you are appealing to for your services. You must be aware of their interests and problems, so you can provide have a strategic plan that appeals to their need to fix them.

Most stories start with a protagonist who wants something, but there is a problem that becomes an obstacle for the character to achieve what they want. Therefore, you have to identify what your customer wants.

If you’re a business consultant, your ideal clients are seeking growth in their company.

If you are a fitness coach, your ideal clients want to build strength and lose weight.

If you operate a restaurant, your ideal clients expect delicious food at a reasonable price.

Get the gist? You must use your messaging to make your ideal clients feel like the main character in their story — moving along just fine until they encounter conflict. This conflict can be external, internal, psychological, or a combination of all three. By identifying this problem, we can connect our customers to us for help.

The next component is the guide, which is YOU! For the hero to win, they need your help to land on the solution. As the guide, you must position your brand as a way for them to improve their lives and achieve what they desire. Give them a plan to reach their resolution through stages of interaction with your services or products.

After the plan is laid out for them, you must call them to action by using key selling points to show them how you will help them achieve success and avoid failure. And they lived happily ever after…the end.

How to Successfully Use Social Media

Social media platforms have become an essential part of marketing within the past decade and are a dominant part of many companies’ marketing presence. In the past, websites, billboards, radio ads, and tv commercials were prominent avenues for gaining customers.

But, with the evolution of social media, companies have a more accessible, affordable way to reach prospective clients.

Yet a lot of companies don’t utilize this tool effectively. As a business owner, you must know which platforms will help your business grow and flourish. Consider how many people rely on social media for education, information, and entertainment:

• Facebook has over 2 billion users
• Instagram has over 1 billion users
• Pinterest has over 450 million users
• Twitter has over 350 million users

With this many people on these platforms, it is critical for entrepreneurs to take advantage of the opportunity to reach these people efficiently and effectively.

Here are some best practices to follow when using social media:

Be deliberate with your strategy.

Choose the right platforms for your company. Where are most people in your ideal demographic when it comes to social media? Do your research.

• Pinterest highlights people’s interests and connects users with profiles that they will need for their daily lives. You can even pinpoint the content you want to see on this site. This platform’s setup will ensure that anyone looking at your pins is undoubtedly interested in what you have to offer.
• Facebook is excellent for networking, following accounts of interest, and setting up a business profile so customers can book online for convenience.
• Instagram showcases picturesque moments and uses hashtags to attract interested followers.
• Twitter allows you to post short messages and connect people to your website.

Be intentional about branding.

Have a transparent, memorable logo and brand that customers can easily recognize. The more you show up in their feed, the easier they will recognize you and remember your offerings when they need it most.

Be consistent in posting.

Consistently post new content, success stories, and a professional portrayal of your services and products. If you disappear for a couple of weeks, your followers won’t understand why and will eventually forget about you (or worse, unfollow you!).

Share valuable resources with your audience.

Be sure to share insightful tips and information that highlight your expertise on the problem you can solve. Make it your goal to provide value-driven content at least three times each week, providing your followers with information to help them solve their problem — but without giving away the secret sauce, so they’ll see why to book you!

Engage with your audience.

Don’t forget to interact with your followers! Respond to personal messages and react to others who share your brand online. Make sure you respond to positive and negative statements so that your company is transparent.

A Key Fact to Keep in Mind:

The average human attention span is about 8 seconds when it comes to marketing content. This article gives a more in-depth look and how important it is to Keep It Simple when delivering marketing points otherwise, you will be creating content that no one will read. (Source)

Connecting Your Story to Social Media

Your story is your greatest selling point, so it’s essential to weave it throughout your social media content.

Start with a post about the character (your ideal customer) that embodies the type of person who uses your services. What kind of person will be the hero of your story? Who will read your post and think, “YES! This is me!”?

Then, follow up with posts that present the problem your character has. Use those posts to demonstrate your expertise in your field.

Next, present a showcase of your company’s services, even a link to testimonials from satisfied clients. But keep it brief or prospects won’t read it! Remember those attention spans — short and snappy goes a long way!

At this point, you have positioned yourself as a guide with a solution. Now, you can post a call to action, letting prospects know how to contact you. Be assertive with how they can get a resolution. Consider including a link to your website with easy steps on how to schedule a consultation.

If possible, show off some social proof by asking previous customers if you can showcase their story on your social media. Provide a brief description of their concerns and how your services resolved the issue. This way, prospects can see precisely how this has worked for actual people. Case studies are powerful sales tools!

Key Takeaways

Using the elements of storytelling, customers will find your services more relatable, engaging, and accessible. Through social media, you can present a story that others will be excited to join.

But, there are a few key points to keep in mind when marketing your services:

• Keep your message clear and easy to understand. Clarity goes a long way in ensuring prospects know how you will guide them to a resolution without confusion.
• Keep information concise. Don’t overload prospects with unnecessary wordplay or non-essential information. Give them what they need to make a decision, no more and no less.
• Most companies act as the hero and alienate their prospects who can’t identify with the story. Remember: You are the guide that will help your prospects take the initial step to becoming the hero of the story by choosing your services.
• Overcome objections. Why wouldn’t someone book with you, and why is that thought a misconception?
• Testimonials and social proof are great ways to help customers feel safe and protected when choosing your services.
• Assure your prospects that your client’s help is guaranteed a stress-free, simple experience that will leave them satisfied. Highlight the transformation you will help them go through as they achieve success.