How Narrative Messaging Works in All Your Marketing

In my last post, I explained how I create narrative messaging for businesses so they can tell a story that draws customers in.

I believe messaging is the foundation on which all pieces of marketing should be built. If you are not crystal clear about what you offer, how you make people’s lives better, and what people need to do to buy your product or service, you’ll have a difficult time creating a website, knowing what to post on social media, and selling to clients. It’s a bit like moving furniture into a house before the walls are up; you can do it, but it makes everything else more complicated.

I love running messaging workshops for clients because they are so eye-opening! Most people don’t know what to expect from our time together, but they get excited when I can start putting a compelling story together about their business.

There is one question I ask that tends to trip people up more than the others. Asking people “What problem does your business solve?” can result in long discussions, either because there are “lots” of problems they solve, or because they don’t know how to articulate the problem, and how to describe what sets them apart from similar businesses.

 It can take several hours to move through all the pieces of the messaging framework, but I find that people are so energized when it’s complete. They have a new way of looking at and talking about their business. And once they share this messaging with the rest of their company, their entire workforce is united and focused on the company mission.

It can take a lot of brain work to create your company messaging, but it is the step you should spend the most time on. Good design is important, but the right words are what sell your product or service. Make sure you are using the right words in the right order to get people to buy your product or service.