I learned the power of storytelling with a machete against my kidney.
In the summer of 2006 I was conducting fieldwork in Nicaragua for my master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Transformation. Ironically, while researching peace I was attacked and robbed at machete-point in downtown Managua next to a cathedral, the second time such an incident happened to me.
When writing my master thesis I spent months trying not to allow that incident to corrupt the “objectivity” of my data. Ultimately, the event was too jarring to leave out and I ended up focusing my thesis on the issue of including personal experience (qualitative experience) in scientific research (quantitative data).
Personal storytelling and marketing
Fast forward seven years and the power of storytelling is all the more apparent.
We know that creating valuable content helps you educate your customers, market your business and differentiate yourself from the competition. Plus, getting attention through content helps generate leads and sales. But how do you get this content to stand out from the noise online?
The answer: with a story.
Just as my thesis could not be written without my personal story, marketing your business should not be done without personal storytelling. That’s why we’re excited to have partnered with professional storyteller Michelle LeBow in our latest whitepaper: Loneliness and Love Stories: The Business Case for Telling Personal Stories
Storytelling Whitepaper
In this whitepaper, Michelle walks us through:
- The power and value of personal storytelling for businesses
- How to create a business story using a personal story format
- Three case studies of how Pfizer, American Girl and Tiffany & Co. use storytelling
- Three types of stories: creation, vision and value stories
As a marketer, your job is storytelling. That’s why we’re so excited about this whitepaper.
We’ll save you the stress of needing a machete pointed at your kidneys to realize the power of storytelling and just tell you: perfect your story. It’s the best weapon you have.
Download the whitepaper on storytelling and view our other resources in our resource library.
