Three Tips for Better Storytelling

Struggling to tell your company's story in a way that connects with customers?

Freelance writer Nadia Goodman offers three tips in Entrepreneur:

Describe your company's value in human terms. The compulsion to close deals blocks storytelling. Marketers fall back on contract-talk to define the company's value, when the customers really want to hear how you differ from competitors. "Your real value is about what you believe in," Goodman says. "You're looking for the thing that your organization truly cares about."

Get everyone on the same page. You're in trouble if your CEO describes the company differently than a front-line worker. To get everyone on the same page, Goodman suggests, ask a sample of people at various ranks to provide five adjectives they'd use to describe the company and two statements of the company's value. "Look for themes or especially strong responses, and synthesize them into a clearly defined description," Goodman says.

Give your brand personality. "Once you know why you matter and how to describe your value, choose the type of person that could best deliver that message," Goodman says. Your company should have a "personality" that's clear and consistent. You need to decide, for example, whether it's masculine or feminine; conservative or quirky; opinionated or open-minded.

Office Spaced

Office supplier Herman Miller introduced the Action Office 1 in 1964.

It featured wall-less work spaces of varying heights that allowed freedom of movement. 

The designers believed Action Office 1 was ideally suited to small professional offices, where managers and employees often interacted using the same furniture.

But the product was expensive and flopped big time.

Herman Miller quickly redesigned Action Office 1 and re-released it as Action Office 2.

The redesign was a hit. 

Today we call the product a "cubicle." 

In 1970, the designer of the Action Office 1 wrote that Action Office 2 was perfect for "planners looking for ways of cramming in a maximum number of bodies, for 'employees' (as against individuals), for 'personnel,' corporate zombies, the walking dead, the silent majority."

You're Producing Your Own Video. What's the Point?

Washington, DC-based writer/producer Dan Bailes contributed today's post. He has created shows for American Diabetes Association, National Association of Realtors, National Geographic and Urban Land Institute.

First, to power up your video, ask yourself, what’s the point?

 

What are you trying to accomplish and why?

Second, ask yourself how your product or service benefits your target audience.

And show it!

Best yet, show real people who have benefited from what you have to offer.

Third, have them tell their stories in their own words. 

Authenticity is key and that’s a great way to convince your audience of the benefit of what you have to offer.

Fourth, shorter is better. 

Fifth, if you spent all those years gaining vital experience to excel at what you do, why do you think you can just do the video yourself? 

Sorry about that, but hire a pro. 

It will make all the difference. 

And that’s the whole point, right?

Don't Make These 4 Deadly Video Mistakes

Writing for Intuit’s Small Business Blog, videomaker C.J. Bruce warns marketers of four deadly Web video mistakes.

 

Not producing a video. "Using video for your business is no longer optional," Bruce writes. The availability of prosumer gear removes the age-old excuse "video is too expensive."

 

Producing a video. One video "isn't a content strategy," Bruce says. "After all, you wouldn’t send just one email, put up just one blog post, or have a TV commercial air just once." Bruce suggests producing a series of videos and releasing them weekly through the span of a quarter.

 

Believing you'll go viral. The chances your video will go viral are slim. "You need to have a plan for your videos that includes marketing them with social media and SEO tactics," Bruce says. Be sure to put your videos on your Website and send the link to your email list. Also consider placing ads on Google.

 

Counting views. Engagement is more important than viewership. Put in place systems to track YouTube likes, shares, comments and viewing times after your video goes live.

You Say You Want a Revolution?

Then get ready.

It's called NFC.
 
It will change the way attendees discover content at events.

NFC (the acronym for "Near Field Communication") is a form of short-range wireless that bridges the gap between the real and virtual worlds.

The technology allows anyone with an NFC-ready mobile phone or tablet to access content by touching the device to a comparable one—or to a "smart poster."

Thanks to the manufacturers, nearly one-third of new phones are NFC-ready right now. Two years hence, all will be.

With NFC, attendees will be able to touch salespeople's phones and instantly download anything now delivered on line. Videos. PowerPoint slides. Flyers. White papers. Discount coupons. You name it.

Salespeople not around? No worries. Attendees can do the same thing by touching a smart poster.

But wait, there's more.
 
Provided the nearest cash register is NFC-ready, attendees will be able to pay for purchases with a touch of their phones.

The revolution NFC will usher in isn't pie in the sky.

It's underway as we speak.

EXPO Magazine has said NFC "will change the face-to-face landscape."

Learn why "NFC will disrupt how things are done."