Storytelling is as old as human civilization itself. In this competitive market, businesses must do more than market their products or services; they must tell stories that can emotionally connect with their customers. Storytelling remains one of the most powerful tools for capturing an audience, as it is with this knowledge that the Harvard Business Review takes readers to great lengths in “Storytelling That Moves People.” With that knowledge gleaned from “Building a StoryBrand” by Donald Miller, we can get more specific about how businesses can use storytelling to guide their customers toward success.
Miller’s framework emphasizes that the customer is the story’s hero, while the brand is the guide. This shift in perspective helps companies build stronger relationships with their customers by showing empathy, authority, and a clear path to transformation.
How Storytelling Works for Business
The idea of using storytelling toward moving people figures centrally in the HBR article on how business makes a dent in decisions. Stories can tap emotion in people, making them both memorable and impact-making. However, for Miller, it is about crafting an emotional story and putting the customer at the heart of the story. An understanding of human psychology underpins this approach. People naturally gravitate toward stories that reflect experiences and desires. When a brand frames its messaging in the context of the customer’s journey, its needs seem aligned, so the product or service becomes more relevant.
In Building a StoryBrand, Miller describes the elements of a strong story by developing a structure in which companies can place themselves in close connection with their customers. The most important of these central components is:
- The Character (Customer): Every story begins with a character who wants something.
- The Issue: The customer has an identified problem or challenge.
- The Guide (Brand): The brand takes on the role of the guide, presenting a solution and showing the customer how to win.
- Plan: There is a definite course of action that the buyer should take to overcome his problem.
- Call to Action: The brand presents a call to action that urges the customer to take the next step.
- Avoiding Failure: The story describes, in bleak terms, the possible dangers or unpleasant results if the prospect doesn’t act.
- Success: At last, the customer sees the success that can be his if he implements a plan found in the guide.
Your Customer is the Hero, Not Your Brand
The first similar principle is that the business should never play hero. What most companies do, which is usually their mistake, is to focus too much on their success, accomplishments, and expertise, thinking that by doing so, they can convince customers to purchase from them. Most customers are more concerned with what they need and how a product or service helps them to solve their problems.
In this, Miller’s framework repositions the customer as the hero. On the contrary, the business takes up the post of a guide, the wise mentor with knowledge, experience, and means to help the customer succeed. Think of it in terms of the classic hero’s journey structure in literature or film: Luke Skywalker is the hero, but Yoda is the guide who helps him achieve victory. This perspective shift will make the customer feel powerful and important, as they are at the forefront of directing the story of their success.
Positioning the customer as the hero, they feel seen and understood. You make it obvious that you understand their struggles and that your part is to enable them to win. Forging trust is very important if you build a relationship with a customer.
The Problem: A Major Protagonist in the Story
But for a story to resonate, it needs tension: this is where the customer’s problem comes in. The HBR article is sure that effective storytelling is not the happy ending but the struggle and conflict that moves the tale along. The customer has to perceive that you understand their problems.
Miller specifies that the problem should be decomposed into three levels:
- External Problem: It is the physical or tangible issue the customer is dealing with, e.g., “My website is not generating leads.”
- Core Problem: This gets to the customer’s true feelings about the problem (e.g., “I feel frustrated and overwhelmed because my business isn’t growing”).
- Philosophical Problem: One pertains to a belief or value at a higher order.
Conclusion: Connecting Through Storytelling
Addressing all these three levels endears you to your customers, and your solutions are not constrained to only curing a surface problem. In other words, the agony you remove is not merely physical; you care for their emotional or philosophical concerns, making your solution meaningful. Such an approach shows how much you know and care about your customer, providing a ground for further connection and trust.
How to Position Your Brand as the Guide
Next, you have the customer’s problem; now, position your brand as the guide. Building a StoryBrand by Miller has it that the role of the guide is to show empathy and authority. Customers want to know that you understand their struggle.
To dive deeper into the psychology of storytelling in business, you can explore more on this topic at Harvard Business Review.