Remember the last time you read a good book or saw a good movie? Remember how it captivated you? You listened intently. You wanted to know more. And you excitedly went along for the ride - thoroughly engaged.
If you’re involved with influencing or engaging with people or organisations in your job, that’s exactly what you want them to feel too. These people, who either affect or be affected by the work you do, are stakeholders.
The reports you write, the presentations you prepare, and the meetings you participate in, are all moments where stakeholder engagement is of premium importance. What’s the best way to engage and influence them? Through storytelling.
Storytelling for business is just like storytelling in books or films. The reason you use it is to take people on a journey with you. Your stakeholders are your characters and you are the hero.
While we don’t often put creative writing and business in the same box, they’re closer than you think. Having excellent writing skills is extremely important in business. Storytelling extends beyond fiction and fantasy. Telling a business-related story is about creating context and a relatable journey for an individual or an organisation.
The purpose of your business communications should be to take your peers, managers and leaders on a journey. The most memorable journeys often revolve around some form of change, so weave in a backstory so that your stakeholders can relate and compare.
Tell a great story with a terrific ending and you will more likely be able to convince others to take a similar journey. The ending might be about financial results or business growth or resilience, but it's the starting point – and the journey – that is key. What next? Here are our storytelling tips for the next time you need to present, report or engage with stakeholders:
- Honour - and talk about - the previous journeys the organisations has taken as well as the outcomes
- Positive stories work better than negative ones. Even if you’re delivering negative information, talk about the lessons learned along the way.
- There are both internal and external stakeholders that need to hear your organisation’s stories. Ensure that your stories are appropriate for the intended audience.
- Make your business stories relatable for your stakeholder audience. If people can relate or identify with the story, they’re much more likely to get on board.
- If you’re using storytelling for a presentation, encourage, facilitate and allow enough time for the people you’re presenting to, to share their own stories. When they do, they’ll likely be even more engaged.
These tips come from our Storytelling for Business course. This three-week online short course shows you how to effecitvely use creative and screenwriting stories in the world of business. Learn how a story can save or reinvent a business. And equip yourself to use business storytelling with impact in your next presentation, report or meeting.
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