A good movie…book…story… when they’re good, we all love to be entertained.
The success of great movies hinges on having a great plot line, it’s simple. That’s also why it’s no secret that Indie films have a rep for flopping - they choose not to follow the plot line every human is wired to enjoy and can also be applied to your marketing strategies.
This goes:
It sounds like every Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, or Harry Potter movie right? Except without all the extra fluff and I’d safely guess we all love or at least have seen one of those trilogies.
Reading StoryBrand by Donald Miller switched my marketing perspective more than any college class. Re-filter your brand and you can easily turn a potential customer into a buyer with these seven universal steps from above in mind.
Sharing is caring so here’s my quick synopsis:
Avoid costing yourself thousands of dollars by simply not clarifying your message. People are people at the end of the day and they buy things simply because they read words that make them want to buy them.
Does your marketing pass the grunt test?
If a caveman spawned to 2024, understood English, and couldn’t find within the first four minutes looking at your brand the answer to these questions then you are costing yourself potential customers.
The story begins here…
1. A character: The customer is the story's hero, not your brand.
It’s all about how you portray your brand.
This means your brand should only ever be positioned as the ‘guide,’ ‘trusted helping resource,’ or ‘Yoda’ to shift ourselves out of the main character light and make it all about our customers. Define who are they, and what they want, and answer their question, “Can this brand help me get what I desire?”
When we identify something our customers desire, and communicate it simply, then we are inviting them into a story with definition and direction… leading them to their story gap and their success. A story gap is addressing the bridge between where they are now and where they want to be. Identify in your brand how you are crucial for their survival.
When I say survival, this refers to the primitive desire to be safe, happy, healthy, and strong.
Here is an example of identifying the customer's desire for a fresh-cut lawn, and how a brand could highlight the customer's need to survive: ie build their social network, gain meaning, and also the innate desire to be generous all in one simple sentence.
Compare these two slogans:
”We will turn your lawn into a lush paradise.” (bad)
“A fresh lawn that your family and friends will love to grill out on.” (good)
In the first slogan, the lawn company has already messed up by positioning their brand as the main character who does the transforming and doesn’t identify the customer’s problem or story gap either. A lush paradise might sound nice but it doesn’t communicate the perceiver’s needs and it’s too centered around the brand.
The second slogan instead communicates the thing the customer truly cares about (a fresh lawn) AND how their brand will guide them to their best survival (being the cool neighbors on the block who are happy with being surrounded by friends and family.. higher status...meaning... and the innate desire to be generous)
So how does your brand help the customer conserve financial resources… leading to happier family vacays, less stress, or conserving time and building social networks so they can enjoy dinners with friends? Status…resources… the desire for meaning… these are all survival aspects. The goal of your brand is to quickly address their question and desire, then show them exactly where you’ll take them and help them visualize it.
2. Has a problem: Brands tend to sell external problem solutions when customers buy solutions to internal problems.
You’ve entered their story, but how do you keep their interest? It’s 2024 and we all have an extremely low attention span.
The key is addressing customer’s problems by identifying the villain in their story. It should be relatable and easily recognizable as something they dislike. The villain should be the root source; frustration isn’t a villain but high taxes are. Dramatize it but don’t overdo it. Think Mucinex commercial - the green glob guy - he’s the villain and the focal point of the customer’s frustrations.
Reminding customers of their villain enables brands to position themselves in a place of help. This way our brand serves as the key to addressing the problematic issue that affects other areas of life, targeting those internal struggles.
There are three levels of the problem: External, Internal, and Philosophical
We want to offer the resolution to all three levels with our clarified messaging.
The purpose of the external issue is to manifest the internal problem. In every movie, the guy doesn’t just waltz in and disarm the bomb, takes more steps because he’s internally struggling with something else - there’s more to the story. By assuming our customers only have an external issue, we fail to address the deeper issues in the story they’re living.
Apple is a great example. They almost went under until it clicked for Steve Jobs people were overwhelmed by tech and wanted simple interfacing. Their marketing positions the products and company as the go-to, if you want to enjoy life and express yourself but feel intimidated by tech talk - this addresses all three levels of the problem.
Apple
External: Need a computer
Internal: People felt intimidated by tech
Philosophical: People want to be a part of something bigger than themselves.
Shoutout to Steve Jobs for taking away our consumer choice long ago. If you’re reading this on a Samsung I am secretly judging you…kidding. Is there a deeper story your brand contributes to? Include some philosophical stake in your messaging.
Here’s another example to help get the ball rolling in your brain:
Tesla
Villian: Gas-guzzling cars
External: Need for a car
Internal: I want to be an early adapter of tech
Philosophical: My choice of car should help the planet.
Now here comes the guide… all dressed in white…
3. And Meets a Guide
This was the biggest shift in my strategic approach toward reaching the customer. It seems self-explanatory to avoid the fatal mistake of positioning your brand as the hero itself, but more commonly than not brands come off as the main character of the marketing story.
It’s all about your customer and their story. Not us and how awesome we are because we have this service or product. Carefully curate your words with this in mind.
Instead of “We have…” use “We’ll help you…through our…you can have…”
As the guide, you have all the knowledge and authority the customer is looking for and they’ll choose you if you showcase it correctly. Be the Yoda, not the man show with all the tricks. The customer needs to feel like they can achieve their desire only with your help.
Once your clear message is directed at the customer and gives them the story gap to defeat their villain emphasize your authority and empathy in how you’ll help them defeat it. Use lingo like “We understand how it feels… or Like you, we are frustrated by….” to identify their internal problems and let them know your brand can help them find the solution. Mix this with your expertise in the field without being a know-it-all through testimonials, stats, awards, and logos.
When presented correctly, you answer two questions in the customer’s brain
“Can I trust this person?”
“Can I respect this person?”
If the answer is yes to both then they’ll 100% be more likely to do business with you.
4. Who Gives Them a Plan
We’ve identified what our customer wants at this point, which began the story…
Then we identified their problems and created intrigue on how we’ll get them to where they want to be after defeating that pesky villain (IE problem).
They trust us and respect us, but still, the customer won’t place an order.
This is because of the risk of using their hard-earned dollars and the what-ifs playing in their heads.
To diminish those and win over your potential buyer you need to place clear steps on how to cross the river of hesitancy. Present it so simple that it wouldn’t make sense not to continue, and now the creek of paying their hard-earned money is no longer as daunting to cross.
Add a three to five simple-step plan that leads them to the purchase. Label it something that eases their mind like, “Easy Installation Plan.. 3 simple steps to your dream vacation... ” Easy on the brain titles like so will increase the perceived value.
5. And Calls Them To Action
In every story, the main character never takes action on their own until they’re called to it. If you’re a Marvel fan think back to every movie you’ve watched.
There are two types and surprisingly marketers are too passive about it. Our sole purpose is to constantly remind them we have something they want. Lots of companies don’t want to ‘overwhelm’ their customer, but in reality, they probably are not presenting enough opportunities to buy or keep learning more about what our brand is offering.
It’s important we directly invite our customers on the journey with us. If they’re on your brand’s website, or platform, just looking at your brand then it’s clear they are intrigued.
Part of the process of directly inviting customers on a journey goes like this:
“Will you marry me?” Direct Call To Action and “Will you go out with me again?” Transitional Call To Action
The moral of the story is you keep asking a girl out and if she keeps saying yes, eventually she’ll say yes again when you pop the question because so far she hasn’t told you no to going out again.
This same concept of transitional and direct CTA’s can be applied in marketing to your customer and remember it’s our job to pursue the customer. Woo them into buying. Also, 9/10 those who ask again and again shall receive, so don’t be afraid to be direct with your customer and lead them to CTA’s for purchase over and over again.
6. That helps Them Avoid Failure
Every story hinges on the success or failure of the hero. Customers are the main characters of their lives (aren’t we all) and we need to remind them of the ‘tragic ending’ we can help them avoid.
There needs to be a reminder of what’s at stake if they choose not to buy your product or partner with your brand. People’s main desire is to avoid pain points - you have to remind the customer what could happen if they don’t buy their product - it’s the “so what?” question going through their brain.
Que the Mayhem All-State commercial
Prospect Theory: People hate losing $100 more than likely winning $100 bucks. This means loss aversion is a greater buying factor motivation than to achieve a gain. Don’t fear monger but make sure the customer is aware of what could happen or what they’re missing out on.
For example, If you are not clarifying your brand’s messages you are losing thousands of dollars.
7. Ends In Success/Transformation
Everyone loves a happy ending and the customer loves even more imagining themselves in one.
People want to be taken somewhere and make sure your brand shows them that - the ending where you take them should be specific and clear.
Some may be:
Everyone wants status or the coming of age movies wouldn’t still be in Netflix’s top 10 so offer access or a premium, create scarcity, or an identity association. Delta Sky Club or Starbucks membership card, should I say more?
Complete their need for something external for them to feel whole by offering external help that may reduce anxiety, and workload, or give them more time.
Cleaning brands have positioned themselves to not just offer cleaner spaces, but also give the buyer anti-anxiety medication for the job well done. At the end of the commercial, they are always looking at their smiley face after wiping because there’s closure about a clean house where their family can all happily exist together.
The need to reach out to potential has been engraved since day one through the old-time question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Now it may be deeper but how can your brand offer a sense of ultimate self-realization or self-acceptance?
Clarify how your product or service will be the inspiration, acceptance, or transcendence they need. A good example of acceptance is Dove’s campaigns.
It’s the final hoorah, How does your brand end the customer's story?
You close that story gap that you placed in their mind at the very beginning. Even having visuals of smiley happy people on your website can offer closure to the story loop. If you sell camping gear, it could be an adventure to remember with a couple or family at the top of the mountain with the tent in the back or cooking S’mores.
What problem are you resolving in your customer’s life and what does the solution look like? Have you told your customers where you want to take them?
Keep these seven universal steps in mind that humans are wired to pay attention to when framing your brand and see an increase in reach.
At the end of the day it’s all about being clear and strategic with your messages, but remember you are trying to reach a human behind the screen.