Storytelling is essential to engage employees and attract customers, making them believe in your cause.
As managers and business leaders it is easy to get caught up in the day-to-day and lose track of the people behind the growth that you’re working for each day. Keeping employees and customers engaged is difficult, but one part of motivating employees to keep moving forward and believe in your strategy and attract new customers is effective storytelling. Storytelling doesn’t come easy, however. There’s a fine art behind the company’s that have a proven track record of keeping employees onboard and making customers return for more.
Storytelling in corporate settings
In June 2003, senior editor at Harvard Business Review, Bronwyn Fryer pointed out that many executives fail to properly convey their strategies or reorganization, why investors should buy into the dream and get partners to sign on the dotted line. Executives get lost in memos, PowerPoint slides and funneling messages through the corporate communication departments, who distill the message into a soulless internal email. These methods result in cynicism and dismissal, Fryer commented.
In order to learn how business leaders can improve their communication through storytelling, Fryer went out to seek advice from the world’s greatest storytellers. Hence, Fryer met with screenwriting lecturer, Robert McKee, about how business leaders can engage their listeners. McKee has taught students who have written for the most popular entertainment products in modern history, from Forrest Gump, Toy Story to Monty Python. He acts as a project consultant for Disney, Pixar and Paramount.
McKee explained that the easiest way for executives to engage their audience was to part ways with their PowerPoint and learn how to tell good stories. Stories help ground the human need for patterns, going beyond an intellectual exercise. Stories add an emotional layer, he explained. Business leaders can adopt this technique, tapping into the emotions of the people they are trying to persuade. This means leaving the toned done, straightforward rhetoric behind.
Communicating statistics and targets creates distance, only allowing for an intellectual exercise. It decouples the emotion required to meet these goals. Business leaders therefore have to add a layer of emotion that grounds the topic, the strategic vision that people will have to get behind. This is easier said than done, Fryer argues, as rationally has to be transformed into a creative package and have enough depth to evoke emotions. Business leaders will therefore need a firm understanding of what a story is.
Fryer describes the creation of a story as a telling of the how and why life changes. A story starts with a default state, which is disrupted, better known as the incident that throws the story out of balance. In a business setting, this can range from job loss, a large client that threatens to leave or the loss of a manager. The story in turn details the path to restoring the initial balance. Fryer explains that a good story teller is able to create a protagonist who will guide the audience to this end state. The protagonist gathers the crowds, motivates the audience to work with the scarce resources available, make difficult decisions and take action.
Organizational change
Storytelling is an important tool to ground organizational change. In April 2018, the Paris School of Advanced Business Studies (HEC), highlighted that organizational change can be challenging for companies. Storytelling can become a useful tool to frame large operational transformations such as merger and acquisitions or drastic strategic realignment. Associate Professor, Giada Di Stefano argued that few business leaders reflect on how they tell these stories and they should spend more time reflecting on the journey the company has made thus far.
Stefano observes that companies use storytelling to increase productivity, but underutilize it as a means to drive successful transformations. He brings forward kitchen utensil company, Alessi, where the CEO, Albert Alessi mastered storytelling as a means to reposition the company over the course of several decades. Alessi transformed itself from a steel serving tools manufacturer to become the benchmark standard in kitchen utensils.
The transformation has been well documented through internal production books, which unveil how the company aimed to retell the story of the company to its employees, customers, retailers among other stakeholders. These books revealed how Alessi kept reflecting on its changes, displaying them publicly to engage audiences for the journey the company had embarked on. Di Stefano found that Alessi used a fixed formula throughout the books that cemented the vision of the company and set out a course for the future.
The successful transformation was made possible through memorializing, a technique that aims to create a shared understanding and memory of change over time. Identifying key figures and events that capture these tipping points. Revisioning was used to rewrite parts of the company’s history to maintain a sense of consistency, ensuring that the story remained interesting, inspiring and exciting.
Alessi drove the message home by attaching the story to an inspirational figure, better known as sacralising. The leader was depicted as an icon for change that parted with the old strategy. These themes kept recurring, making sure they stood for change and maintained support for the strategic vision the company had set out for itself. Di Stefano noted that this radical storytelling technique might not be suitable for every company, but there are pieces that can be reused.
Reinventing Uber
In November 2023, Frances X. Frei and Anne Morriss, laid down the foundations necessary to build a story that will motivate the workforce to embrace a major strategic shift. Frei and Morriss note that many business leaders fall into jargon and complex language as they are unable to distill the message to a simple, structured message. In doing so, only experts in the subject matter will be able to understand the message.
Frei and Morriss reference T-mobile’s transformation that helped it become the major cellular player we know today. In 2012, then appointed CEO, John Legere, started to listen to customer service calls daily and quickly discovered that the overall customer experience was terrible. A phenomenon widely discussed in the press. Customers were trapped in a maze of confusing contracts riddled with hidden fees.
This led to Legere drastically revamping the service plan offering. T-Mobile simplified its plans, introducing transparent pricing and pivoting itself away from the image that plagued the industry as a whole. This was a radical departure, but was captured in one single word, uncarrier. The entire realignment was simplified to an easy to remember mantra. On top of simplification, just like Di Stefano observed at Alessi, is honoring the company’s past.
When crafting a convincing story, organizations should focus only on displaying the parts they like and dislike about the company’s past. By addressing the good, gatekeepers who want to maintain the status quo, feel their worries are addressed as they might be lost in the transition. By addressing the desire to preserve the company’s history, Frei and Morriss argued, business leaders will display a sense of understanding and willingness to keep existing pirates on board.
Frei and Morriss referenced an organizational study conducted by Merlijn Venus at the University of Amsterdam, found that employees fear that the transformared company wouldn’t adhere to the values they were accustomed to. This increased anxiety among them. Leaders in turn could mitigate these feelings of unrest by emphasizing continuity. This approach could be found in Dara Khosrowshahi, who became CEO of Uber, inheriting a disorganized corporation that was in dire need of salvation.
Khosrowshahi organized a town hall meeting in 2017 where instead of placing the spotlight on the company’s missteps and appointing himself as a saving icon, he acknowledged that Uber’s radical approach to conducting business would remain. By emphasizing that the company would remain true to its core beliefs, team members were reassured Uber’s passion remained intact.
However, Uber’s issues were too great to be ignored, with leadership having to make amendments with its troubled past. In order to address these issues, Khosrowshahi pledged to keep intact Uber’s fiery spirit, but also part ways with its missteps. Confronting these painful chapters is essential to main credibility, Frei and Morriss warned. Authenticity allows for empathy, which is an integral part of human storytelling.
Storytelling increases empathy
Adding emotion to cold data serves an important role to convey a message. In November 2014, the need for storytelling isn’t a new phenomenon to drive business results. Cody C. Delistraty for the Atlantic, explained that humans have been fascinated by stories for thousands of years. For the better part of their lives, humans tell stories, sharing them with others. They serve as a mechanism to control the world, adding patterns to a chaotic world.
Delistraty observes that humans are inclined to see narratives where there are none as we are hardwired for existential problem-solving. Stories allow us to convey people’s emotional experiences. Fiction works such as novels are a window into a person’s consciousness through which we in turn, as the audience, can mirror our own experiences. Delistraty cites a psychological study conducted by Dan Johnson, published in the journal for Basic and Applied Social Psychology, which found that reading fiction increases the levels of empathy towards others.
The study found that the more readers were engaged with the story, the higher levels of empathy they displayed in real life. Delistraty cited another study published in 2013 in Science magazine which found that literary fiction had unique ways to elicit psychological processes that promote empathy. Some argue that the need to tell these stories are a trait of evolution that improved the survivability of the human species.
Delistraty notes that a story about survivability, serves a tool for the receiver on how to survive themselves. This can be as simple as retelling an encounter with an animal, to a fictional story about a man-eating monster, informing the audience about perils beyond. The narrator reinforces the importance of the story by blending data and emotion, driving the message home. The reasons range from scientific to fascination, but perhaps there’s a need for belonging Delistraty argues. A human needs to be a part of history.
Storytellers compel
Humans crave good storytellers, stemming from a spontaneous need that starts at childhood, across all cultures, Ed Yong commented in December 2017 for The Atlantic. Storytelling has been an integral part of the hunter-gatherer tribe, the Agta from the Philippines. Anthropologist at University College London, Andrea Migliano, found that the community infuses its stories with themes like equality and cooperation, which serves as an adaptation mechanism.
While the initial research was meant to dive into what Agta most valued in their peers, the findings quickly revealed that the Agta valued those who were the best storytellers. They conveyed their knowledge through compelling stories. Migliano assumed that the stories were but minor aspects that revealed the community’s most valued members. However, the team gathered their findings, they found that the Agta people place storytelling above all else.
Migliano commented that being a good storyteller was more valued than being a good hunter. Together with the non-profit organization Agta Aid, they dove deeper into the oral stories the community shared amongst itself. Stories that were ingrained with egalitarianism, equality and cooperation. Research conducted by Migliano shows that such themes are present in about 70 percent of other hunter-gatherer groups.
Choosing the right medium
In February 2022, Matt Abrahams from the podcast Think Fast, Talk Smart, spoke with professor at Stanford University, Paula Moya, about how different parts of a story can be used to engage audiences in different scenarios. Moya explains that each story is made of several core components. A story follows a plot that characters have to navigate, different viewpoints or perspectives, placed in settings through a particular narrative style. Conflict is central to driving the story.
Combined they form the building blocks for an engaging narrative. However, Moya noted that the experience of a story differs from person to person. One can find a story compelling, whilst the other finds it poor. Audiences judge a story based on what they know, value, love and recognize, she adds. The perception of a story can also be influenced by cultural background, upbringing or the daily lives we lead.
Those accustomed to consuming stories, will be more easily bored with them, as stories can become predictable when following the same patterns. Audiences become bored when a story is repeated too often. However, while some might become bored, for others, a story might be refreshing and novel. In order to prevent certain audiences from checking out, a storyteller needs to avoid common clichés or techniques.
We might think about the hero’s journey, which is very commonly used in modern media. Some of you might also be familiar with the Save the Cat Beat Sheet, which uses certain story tipping points at set intervals to drive a story forward. A storyteller needs to find the right balance between familiarity and novelty, which makes the story a form of unpredictability and predictability.
However, repetition can be important depending on the medium, Moya notes. Storytellers might want to keep pushing for novelty, but in audio experiences, there’s a need for more frequent repetition. This ensures the listener can keep track of important events during the story. In cultures with a heavy emphasis on storytelling, there’s more repetition. We can see this with the Agta community, who ingrain their stories with familiar themes.
The medium is the deciding factor as to how stories should be shaped, Moya commented. Abrahams cites the infamous PowerPoint riddled with bullet points, with presenters aiming to tell a story through a static tool. The medium should dictate how a story is shaped and whether it is suited to get the message across.
Simplicity in storytelling
In the better half of this piece, we’ve primarily focussed on the need to engage the audience, convince them for a cause and keep them motivated. This is crucial for setting out a company strategy or selling consumers on why they should pick your product over that of the competitor. However, we must also acknowledge that storytelling can be used maliciously, explained author of The Science of Storytelling, Will Storr, to the British Psychologist Society in December 2021.
Storr notes that crafting a good story means simplification, which is at odds in the scientific community. Some scientists believe that simplification means detaching the content, adding fabrications to obscure or misdirect the audience. Storr comments that in these instances, simplification is done purposefully, namely to sell the audiences on a particular worldview. Storytelling is the best tool to achieve this cool, he argued. But, in scientific writing, simplification is necessary as the general public will struggle to digest the material.
Using simplification is a strong tool, but should follow the same basic storytelling principles, Storr continued. When writing complex, long-form pieces, you need to start from the most simple place possible. This means limiting the amount of characters in a given situation. What challenges does this person face, what is the situation they’ve found themselves in and how can they resolve it. In a business context we could reframe complex, multifaceted, business challenges.
The publishing and software development industry are facing massive disruption due to the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI). This translates to a workforce that is on edge that their jobs might become redundant, forcing them to seek new employment. Others within the industry will be forced to drastically change their workflows, learning to work with new tools and internal processes that deviate heavily from their day–to-day routines. Business leaders will have to anchor their story to AI and simply the impact it has on the workforce.
Once the foundations have been created, the narrator or messenger can add more complexity. In journalism this is often lost as editors want to quickly jump from simplicity to complexity, leaving the recipient overwhelmed, Storr observed. Journalists throw in multiple names, bloated with jargon, crammed into one or two paragraphs. When operating a mass market, where audiences aren’t accustomed with the material, simplicity is necessary to not overload and overwhelm them.
As a ghostwriter, Storr notes that clients want him to give as much information upfront to make sure the target audience is convinced the writer is capable and versed in the topic. However, one should have the confidence that they will be judged on the entire project. Business leaders and managers should have patience before driving the message home. This might be daunting when presenting to a crowd, but having faith in the audience is just as important.
Simplicity and repetition
The need to tell stories goes back millennia. Humans want to be part of a common history. A tale through which they can relive their experiences, pass it on to next generations who can use it as a tool to acquire knowledge. However, as business leaders and marketers, we can forget these basic principles of engaging our audiences. Removing any semblance of emotion from our stories. This results in audiences that get disengaged, become unmotivated and ultimately dismiss our product or leave a company.
However, not all is lost. There are techniques that can be employed to keep audiences engaged. A storyteller has to keep the target audience in mind, communicating a clear vision and antagonist through which the story can be told. A running theme therefore is simplicity. Overwhelming your audience will lead to disengagement. Having confidence that the recipient is able to digest the entire message is crucial to create a compelling and engaging story.
We can also look for inspiration in the army. While business situations are hardly ever a matter of life or death, we can draw inspiration from storytelling techniques used in the army that unite a group of soldiers to aim for a certain goal or objective. U.S. Army Engineer School Directorate of Training and Leader Development, Lisa Brown wrote for The Army University Press that storytelling can be used as an instructional technique by military educators.
Brown notes that military educators use storytelling in their classes to illustrate instructional points, their practical applications and keep students engaged during these sessions. A common storytelling technique is the usage of shared experiences, which allows for knowledge sharing and foster critical skills. In her study, Brown examined 15 military instructors and their students at three Army schoolhouses. Instructors at these institutions used storytelling to share their personal experiences to motivate students and help contextualize the materials.
The students meanwhile reported that the addition of storytelling was beneficial to the credibility and application of the material. In some instances, Brown found, storytelling was crucial for the success of a lecture. However, this doesn’t mean an instructor can use any story he has. The story has to be relevant to objectives and should be devoid of bragging and should serve as a tool to reminisce on past effects. The story needs a purpose for the student and has clear, specific elements. Abstraction can be employed later.
Self-disclosure can be infused in the stories to reinforce trust. This means leaving out any unnecessary heroism. Leaving out heroism shouldn’t mean overemphasizing failure. Brown comments there should be a balance of vulnerability and upholding competence. A crucial aspect of strong military leadership. You might have witnessed this during stressful events at work, where leadership, when the going got tough, failed to stabilize the organization.