Whether you’re looking to impress angel investors, inspire collaboration with prospective partners, or onboard top talent, the ability to influence others is invaluable. But what’s the easiest and most effective way to impact the decisions of others? Through the power of story.
Charts, graphs, and data sets can never do what a good story can, and that is to make the listener feel something. The core idea of what is good storytelling is the power to create genuine connections between people while at the same time communicating purpose and values.
Here are some other benefits of storytelling for influence:
Increased Engagement
Think about a time when you were thoroughly bored by what someone else was saying. Maybe your boss tends to drone on and on about the latest quarterly earnings reports or your colleague often holds you hostage with the pitch deck they’re working on. Whatever it is, you most likely found your mind wandering.
Now think of the last really great movie or TV show you saw. Were you glued to your television unaware of the rest of the world around you? That’s the power of story!
Story is ultimately what captures an audience’s attention and sustains their interest, leading to greater engagement and retention of information.
Simplifies Complex Ideas
In business, leaders often have to share complex ideas and information with team members and other stakeholders. If handled poorly, their message can get lost, leaving their audience confused and unable to take action.
Storytelling for influence can simplify complex ideas by presenting them in a relatable and understandable way, making it easier for the audience to comprehend and act on the information they’ve received.
Builds Trust and Credibility
How can you ever begin to influence another human being that doesn’t know you? What can you say or do to help them feel they can relate to you, a real human being with purpose and passion?
Stories help you to show the listener that you understand their needs and struggles. And not only that you understand, but that you’ve been where they are and you’ve overcome them. These types of narrative are ultimately what builds trust and credibility.
Creates a Call-to-Action
We want to influence others because we want them to take a specific action. Usually, that action is to adopt a new behavior, support a cause, or make a purchase. But should someone do something simply because we tell them to? We’d like to think so but that’s not how the world works.
Let’s take an example from the world of sales. You can’t simply tell a prospect to buy your product or service and expect them to do it. And gone are the days of listing a bunch of bulleted features, hoping that will entice the consumer on the other end of that credit card.
But what you can do is illustrate the value you offer through a narrative that was crafted with the consumer in mind. If your story is relatable and emotional, you have the best chance of getting the action you seek.
5 Features of a Powerful Influential Story
It’s simple to say that stories are a powerful and effective way to influence the decisions of others. But if you’re new to using storytelling to influence, you may wonder what makes a compelling narrative. We’re glad you asked!
Structure
Imagine if you sat down to stream a movie one night and the movie started in the middle, continued with the end, then finished with the beginning! You’d find it pretty difficult to follow the story.
It’s important to focus on story structure so you build a framework that makes following along easy for your audience. All good narratives follow a similar structure:
- Beginning – introduce characters and setting
- Middle – create a conflict or problem
- End – resolve the conflict or problem
In The Wizard of Oz, we are introduced to Dorothy and her little dog Toto. Then, a tornado approaches and carries Dorothy and Toto to the land of Oz. This is a real problem, as Dorothy doesn’t want to live in Oz, she wants to go home. That’s her problem and she needs a solution to it. She travels around Oz with her new pals the Scarecrow, Tinman, and Cowardly Lion, searching high and low for a way to get home. It’s quite an adventure. In the end, she realizes she had the power to go home all along and she clicks her ruby-slippered heels together three times and… voila… she’s back home. Beginning. Middle. End.
We will help you create and structurize your stories that will leave your audience impressed.
Use Sensory Details
People don’t want to just hear a story, they want to experience it personally. They want to feel like they are right there in the middle of it. How can you place them there? By using as many sensory details as possible to create vivid images in the audience’s mind. Use descriptive language to engage the listener’s sense of sight, sounds, taste, touch, and smell. Why have so many folklores started with, “It was a dark and stormy night…”? Because you instantly feel that darkness and that storm and it puts you in a very specific mind frame to receive the rest of the story.
Create Relatable Characters
Your audience is more likely to connect with your story if the characters are relatable and likable. To do this you should develop your characters based on your audience members. Think about who you are speaking to. What problems do they struggle with? Give your characters these same problems and then offer the solution.
Add Conflict
The Wizard of Oz would have been pretty dull if there were no Wicked Witch of the West or her flying monkeys. Your story needs conflict and an antagonist (the one who battles your protagonist or hero). Conflict is ultimately how your story can offer a solution or moral.
Use Metaphors
“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” This is a famous metaphor coined by William Shakespeare that helps the reader instantly understand a profound truth about life. We all have our own drama and comedy we live each day. We all pretend to be something we’re not to satisfy the role of father, executive, pro-athlete, sex symbol, etc. Without this simple but profound metaphor, it would be very hard to get this concept across succinctly.
When you need to convey complex ideas to others, be sure to come up with your own metaphors. They’ll help turn the complex into something cohesive and relatable.
4 Types of Influential Stories to Experiment With
You know the benefits of using storytelling to influence and what features your stories should have. Now let’s take a look at the different types of influential stories you can tell so you can determine which will work best for you.
Personal stories are based on an individual’s personal experiences or events that have happened in their lives. These stories often include emotions and provide insight into the author’s life, struggles, and triumphs.
- Personal Stories
When leaders share personal stories, they give their team members a glimpse into their humanity. This helps to create emotional bonds and builds trust. Personal stories often lead to continued dialogue and create a culture of connection.
- Success Stories
If you’re looking to motivate and inspire, tell plenty of success stories. These demonstrate how hard work, perseverance and dedication can ultimately lead to success, no matter the challenge or hurdle faced.
Success stories offer the listener practical advice on how specific action leads to a desired outcome. By sharing your successes, not in a boasting way but in a motivational way, you can help others develop strategies that streamline their efforts so they can experience their own success. Sometimes all your staff or sales team needs is a great story with a happy ending to keep the momentum going. That and free bagels and coffee!
- Customer Stories
Gone are the days when a company could rely on a stack of glossy brochures to sell their product or service. Today’s consumers have seen and heard it all. They want to be emotionally moved.
Customer stories are a great way to cut through the traditional advertising noise to reach prospects in their heads and hearts. By highlighting how your offer helped your customer – who coincidentally had the same problem as your prospect – you can authenticate and humanize your brand. Customer stories don’t always have to explain how your product or service saved someone time or money. It can show that your offer positively impacted someone’s life in some way.
- Humorous Stories
Everyone likes to laugh. If you have a knack for funny, be sure to include some humor in your stories. You can do this through jokes, anecdotes, satirical commentary, wordplay, and unexpected twists or surprises to elicit laughter to draw attention to a particular message or idea.
Don’t just take our word on how powerful humor can be to influence. Look at this study that suggests leaders who use humor in the workplace can often inspire their staff.
Funny leaders are often confident ones and humor often signals great emotional intelligence. And, perhaps more importantly given the topic at hand, funny people are popular people and can often influence others.
Tips to Make Your Story More Influential
Don’t go just yet. Before you begin to craft your own influential stories, here are some quick tips to get you started:
#1. Speak from the Heart
There’s no need to complicate this. Your job is to be real and authentic with your storytelling. The more authentic your message comes across, the better of an impression you’ll leave.
#2. Don’t Shy Away From Conflict
Conflict isn’t fun to deal with in real life, but it’s absolutely necessary for personal growth. It’s also necessary to show your audience how to overcome challenges in your stories.
#3. Go for Their Emotions
Remember, stories are all about emotions. Leave the facts and the data in your desk drawer and load up your story with plenty of human emotions that will trigger a response in your listener. This is how you build trust and connections.
Conclusion
Storytelling for influence is about convincing others of something, yes, but it’s about inspiring and motivating them as well. Conveying bland information or reciting facts will only go so far. Use impactful stories to effect lasting change and inspire others to their own greatness.
Experience the transformative power of storytelling by joining our storytelling training workshop at Clear Communication Academy.
