How Stories Impact Sales
Even if you don’t label yourself as a storyteller, you are indeed a storyteller. Think about it: when you catch up with friends and family you most likely relay the latest episodes of your life; sharing stories about what has happened recently and how those experiences changed your life or made you feel is something you probably do on a daily basis.
We all share stories during casual conversations without thinking twice about the occurrence. However when it comes to telling stories during formal business interactions such as presentations, many people freeze up and find it nearly impossible to tell stories. This reaction is understandable. Many of us have been taught to stick to the facts and get to the point during business communication. However to reach our full professional potential, we all need to get over any fear of storytelling – especially during sales presentations and pitches.
Here’s why:
Telling stories to potential customers can have a big impact on the number of deals successfully closed, as well as the amount of revenue gained from each sale. To inspire you to overcome any hesitancy you might have about storytelling, included below are a few ways stories can impact your performance as a salesperson.
1. Stories Increase Economic Value
Significant Objects, a literary and anthropological experiment devised by Rob Walker and Joshua Glenn, demonstrated that the effect of narrative on any given object’s subjective value can be measured objectively.
For this experiment, Walker and Glenn asked 100 creative writers to invent stories about $129 worth of items and then sold them on eBay to see if the stories enhanced the value of the objects. In case you were wondering how the experiment went: the net profit was $3,6 million — a 2,700-percent increase in final markup, according to an article by Michael Brenner.
Yes, you read that correctly: items purchased for $129 generated $3.6 million in sales, thanks to the stories that were included with the item descriptions.
For example, a globe paperweight, which was originally purchased for $1.49 sold for $197.50. The increase in perceived value can be attributed to the story that was developed to accompany the object.
If you’re selling items online, consider adding stories to the item descriptions to increase the perceived value of your products.
If you’re pitching prospects in person, tell stories about your products or services during the presentation to raise the valuation of your offerings.
2. Stories Simplify Social Proof
According to Robert Cialdini, a thought leader in social psychology and author of Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
Professor Robert Cialdini has many examples that demonstrate the persuasive powers of social proof. In one study, his team tested various messages to determine the impact social proof had on the number of people who opted to reuse hotel towels instead of accepting clean towels from housekeeping. “Almost 75% of other guests help by using their towels more than once had 25% better results than all other messages. And adding the words “of other guests that stayed in this room” had even more impact.
Instead of breaking the rhythm of your presentation by awkwardly inserting customers’ statements into your pitch, maintain the momentum of your presentation by telling stories that can also serve as social proof. For example, if your product changed the life of a customer, interview the customer to learn the details of their story. Remember to get permission to use the stories in your marketing and sales materials so you can use the testimonials without damaging your relationships with customers.
If possible, you should also collect photos of the customers whose stories you will use, or photos that relate to their stories. According to research, testimonials accompanied by a corresponding picture are more likely to be believed than testimonials shown without an image.
Once you have a few social proof stories as well as related photos, create slides for each testimonial. Plan to present the social proof slides early in your presentation to help hook the attention of the audience.
3. Stories Smooth The Way
According to psychologists Melanie Green and Tim Brock, an enthralling story radically alters the way information is processed. More specifically, Green and Brock explain that, while under the spell of a good story, humans are unable to detect false notes, such as inaccuracies, missteps.
When we read dry, factual arguments, we read with our dukes up. We are critical and skeptical. But when we are absorbed in a story we drop our intellectual guard. We are moved emotionally and this seems to leave us defenseless, writes Jonathan Gottschall in the article Why Storytelling Is The Ultimate Weapon.
Delivering a sales presentation can be nerve-wracking. When experiencing the jitters during a pitch, missteps are common. To avoid losing a sale as a result of misstep, start your pitch by sharing a story so you have time to calm your nerves before launching into the heart of your presentation. If you make a mistake during your story, don’t sweat it and keep going as if nothing happened; the audience was likely too lost in their imaginations to notice your error. You get bonus points if you can tell a story that also serves as social proof.
The potential emotional impact of stories is also valuable when you need to smooth the way for a sale since emotions play an integral role in consumers’ decisions. According to PsychologyToday, fMRI neuro-imagery shows that when evaluating brands, consumers primarily use emotions (personal feelings and experiences) rather than information (brand attributes, features, and facts).
4. Stories Are Memorable
While it is ideal to close deals as soon as possible, some prospects will need time to consider your proposal. When prospects insist on waiting before making a purchase, the odds of closing the deal decrease. To improve your chances of making a sale in the weeks or months following your pitch, you need to deliver a presentation that will stick in the minds of your prospects. The more frequently your prospects think about your pitch, the more likely you are to make a sale.
Stories can help your pitch stick in the minds of your potential customers. In the words of John Kotter, an organizational change expert, Neurologists say that our brains are programmed much more for stories than for abstract ideas. Tales with a little drama are remembered far longer than any slide crammed with analytics.
To deliver an unforgettable pitch, minimize the stats and facts you share to make room for stories that will spark an emotional response and ignite the imaginations of audience members. Make sure you’re descriptive when taking the audience on an imaginative journey; describe the sights, smells, sounds, and other sensations the characters experience in the story to fully activate listeners’ minds.
Conclusion
Go revise your sales presentations to make stories an integral part of your pitches. Stories can increase the economic value of your products and services, as well as serve as social proof for your business. In addition, stories can help you lower the guard your prospects might have while listening to your pitch. Lastly, stories will increase the likelihood that prospects remember your pitch in the weeks and months after you deliver the presentation.
Additional Resources:
The Importance of Emotions In Presentations
The Science of Memorable Presentations
How To Find A Story To Enhance Your Public Speaking Presentations
