Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight

You’d think that a problem makes for an interesting story. But when it comes to telling the story of game-changing innovation, the “problem/solution” model is broken. This is why so many brands and causes have a hard time telling their story. When it comes to business, you want to introduce a paradox, not just a problem.

 

What a great post from colleage Michael Margolis on how to re-think the problem/resolution elements of a story into presenting the possbility & then the obstacle being faced.

 

This is an especially important insight for nonprofits to get because the problem/resolution set up starts out with a negative -- which can be a turn-off for people. As Michale says, we are surrounded by enough problems these days.

 

So turn the problem/resolution dyamic on its head and shift to presenting the possibility/obstacle dynamic instead.  That way you are leading with a positive, and then presenting the obstacle to overcome. Obviously then people's participation in the cause/business will help the obstacle be overcome. Or part of the obstacle has already been overcome with people's help.

 

Now, I would suggest doing the same for any business -- present the possibility and the obstacle, and then the resolution or call to action.

 

I be you'll feel better setting up your story this way, and so will your audience. Let me know how it goes!

"STORY" IS THE NEW "CONTENT." As buzzwords go, story isn’t entirely bad -- for years I’ve pushed clients to be storytellers. I’ve berated the descent of story into a furtive sea of “content,” stripping all emotion from human pursuits.

 

I love this post and its irreverent attitude. It is quite refreshing in this day and age when 'storytelling', 'branding', and 'content' are such pervasive buzzwords and hyped as the cure-all for everything.

 

There are great reminders in this article that great business stories are not sanitized, and that there is danger in always crafting a happy ending.  Only sharing your 'success' stories eventually undercuts your believability. We know there have been mistakes, trials, and tribulations along the way and we want to hear about those too.

 

Why? Because it makes you human. As the author Gary Goldhammer says, storytelling is about people. Brands aren't about Hollywood actors, and "companies are not logos. There are human beings behind them all."

 

There are more insights here in this quick post -- reading it is almost like hitting the 'reset' button when we forget the fundamentals of storytelling after getting caught up in the hyped-up excitement about story branding, social media, content creation, and technology.