Storytelling: The Value to Retailers and Manufacturers
Storytelling is probably the most underrated technique in the retail world today. The “story” your business tells your customers is crucial. Why? When you have a story to tell, people get engaged. Be it sad, funny, or informative. When there’s a story being told, people are going to stop what they’re doing and read (or listen).
For now, let us distinguish the what, why, and how your storytelling should be communicated to your customers. Excited to read on and fill your brain with storytelling knowledge? Good. That’s the emotion we’re talking about! We are establishing a connection with you! By making our information memorable, we attract your attention. Now it is time to find out how you can attract your customers all through the power of storytelling!
What is Storytelling?
Storytelling is, to put it simply, the art of building a brand and humanizing it. Give it a personality, a voice. It is a critical factor because this is what customers want. If you have a good story, it will stick, and customers are going to remember it.
Why Storytell?
Storytelling breathes life into a brand, making it human. And a human is more likely to connect with other humans, right? That’s why creating a story is essential for your customers. A positive and influential experience leads to more positive actions (or the next level in the buyer’s journey).
There’s nothing like a good story to grab your attention. In turn, if it has an emotional influence on you, whether it made you laugh or made your mind wander, you share that same story to friends and family. And depending on the influence it has on them, they go off and tell their friends and family. From that point on, your story is being remembered and spread throughout both existing and potential customers.
In the home furnishings industry, communication matters. The reason why storytelling works is because you are engaging customers rather than reading them a list of facts.
When it comes down to it, we are all emotional beings who need to communicate. Storytell the right way and you’ve got yourself the best method to expose your business and increase customer reach!
Brand building: we’ve touched on this before if you can recall.
How to Storytell
You want to attract attention, but in the right way. Make customers aware of your brand and engage them in order to build trust and loyalty.
There are a few ways you can reach out with storytelling. Here are some suggestions to get you started!
Update Your “About Us”
Your company website should have an “About” section where you talk about what you do as a business. But what is it that is going to make you stand out? What makes you different from all the other home furnishings retailers and manufacturers?
Testimonials
Don’t be the only one doing all the storytelling! Getting customers to share their own stories strengthens the relationships you’ve built with them. The MicroD testimonials page is a great example!
During Sales
Trying to close a sales deal can be challenging. But storytelling can make a huge impact on this. When selling a product or service, you can use past stories from previous customers to connect with prospects on an emotional level. If they’re feeling unsure or frustrated, share a story relevant to the situation. But don’t make something up on the spot! Storytelling must be authentic and real. Would you buy from someone you don’t trust or believe?
Remember: It Is Not About You
It’s about your customers. You’re building trust with your brand story. Show them how you make an impact. Once that point is reached, it’s easy sailing from there. When trust is established, it’s possible customers turn into brand advocates. Brand advocates lead to more storytelling. And more storytelling is just spreading your reach. Next thing you know, everyone’s talking about your business and sales start going up!
It’s rare for anyone to take action based solely on facts. Facts are forgotten, stories are memorable.