I agree with the your thoughts and the other commenters on this being such an underrated part of selling. In my industry (media, but I’m sure it’s not unique), so many presentations and pitches are lifeless, read from the screen without any kind of narrative or personality.

The point that you make that I particularly like is in point 5, providing a vision for the future where you talk about the God in the Machine. Demonstrating past success is an important part of securing new business, and I agree that too many times there is a lack of acknowledgement of some of the issues faced on the way to success. These are key learnings that should fine tune a process and any good narrative to a client should include these and what was done to address them, as it demonstrates adaptability and commitment to success.

Keep up the great work.
best
Ben

A

However, the bit about projecting a “Better Future” is but one side on the coin I believe. The other, the one about potential negative consequences, can be used to motivate as well by invoking ALARM.

Mind you, sales people will need to TAKE particular CARE here for anything negative can be too over powering if laid on too thickly or in an obvious self-serving way. But none the less, it does provide an alternative way of motivating prospects for all of us I think can appreciate how success is not only about what you realize, but also what you avoid.

For some context about this, read bankruptcies and car crashes in my Biz Money Matters article Debt Chickens Coming Home to Roost.

When we are together in April at SOBcon, I’ll share the whole story with you. I never laughed so hard in all my life . . . and, of course, I retained the story because it was so entertaining and engaging.

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This is one of the best (an most useful) sales posts I have read in months. Storytelling is such an under-appreciated and under-trained sales skill. You have hammered the value home in this post.

I also think you have presented a pearl of insight when you cited the politician’s storytelling. Every successful politician has learned to build empathy and support for their positions by using storytelling–forcing constituents to directly identify with their position.

Why wouldn’t we do this in sales?

Thanks for the great post!

Storytelling is the ability to create a compelling vision of the future. Great salespeople include in their stories the challenges and the obstacles that will need to be overcome in order to create that future. They write the future positive outcomes w…