How to Sell More with Stories
Why Stories Matter
The best storyteller wins.
We all buy for emotional reasons first. Then, we rationalize. An engaging story makes an emotional connection with buyers. Better stories lead to greater sales.
Example
Mary sells cars. Her monthly sales production was just enough to stay employed. One day she was called aside by Bob, her sales manager. He said, "Mary, I've watched you work. You build rapport with everyone who walks in the door. You learn their needs. Up to that point, everything is great. Then, it falls apart."
"You present the features of the vehicle. The buyers say they'll think about it. They never come back. I've seen some of them the same day, driving a new car they bought from our competitor down the street."
Mary responded with, "Maybe it's the product. Maybe it's the price. There's a remote chance that I'm the problem. I want to make this work. What can I do?"
Bob taught Mary how to use stories to sell. The audience is the hero of the story. The story is about the journey of the hero. Mary's cars were merely the vehicles used by the hero during the journey.
Mary wrote brief stories to use in each step of her selling process:
- Stories to help greeting and need-finding
- Stories to help present the cars
- Stories to help handle objections
- Stories to help close the sale
Results
The day Mary began using stories to sell, she sold more cars. Buyers stopped saying, "I'll think about it." They bought from Mary without further shopping.
Now, the competitor down the street is trying to hire Mary.
Your Challenge
Enchant more buyers and close more sales by using stories. Make the buyer the hero of your stories. Then, it's easy to make your products incidental but essential to the buyer's success.
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