What Hollywood can Teach You...
About how to use Stories to Promote your Business

Why do some people seem to be easily generate leads and make sales while you try everything possible and work really hard to build your business.  What if there was a way that you could easily generate leads and effortlessly make sales?  How much more money would you earn as a result?  How much more fun would you have?

If you could read just one article about how to generate leads and make sales for service-based businesses, this is it.  I dare you to read this entire article and not change the way you sell.

If you’ve ever wondered what is the single most important skill in business, that when mastered, would single-handedly account for more sales than any other skill, I would tell you that without a doubt – it’s the ability to tell a compelling story.  That’s because the single most important ingredient to any sales process is … stories that sell.  Read closely.  You can spend tons of money on brochures, network like mad, and invest in your website – but all the marketing and sales materials in the world isn’t going to do much good if your message falls on deaf ears.  In the next 2 minutes, I’ll show you how to easily master the skill of storytelling, increase your leads, and convert more prospects and reap immeasurable financial rewards.  Here are just a few of the things that you will learn from reading this article.

1. Why traditional marketing techniques that have worked in the past are failing today
2. How storytelling gets your prospects interested in your services
3. How to tell a compelling story
4. The secret that Hollywood knows about telling a great story

There is a science to telling great stories.  And there are certain immutable laws, which govern the telling of stories.  Once these laws are followed, anyone can achieve commercial success using stories.  This is an incredibly opportunity that is available to you.  Your first step is to read this article in its entirely.  Please do not skim through it – because when you learn the mystery and power of storytelling, you simply cannot fail to increase sales.

The Traditional Strategy

Making sales is harder than ever because your prospect is buried deep in a Sales Fortress.  Yes, they have built a fortress with high, thick walls and a deep moat.  They are protected by call display, voice mail, and anti-spam software.  They have a thick skin so that they can hang up the phone and throw out letters without even reading them.  But you can assault the fortress.  You fire 10,000 brochures against the fortress walls and send your sales force to pound on the gates.  And yes, if your assault is successful 100 or 200 of your brochures will get through (good marketing campaigns have a 1-2% success rate).

But even then, the battle far from over.  Those soldiers are now inside the fortress but the arrows of skepticism, distrust and apprehension rain down on them.  Little does your prospect know that you are not to be feared.  You want to help them.  As a matter of fact, working with you can make their lives better.  But unfortunately, much of the message lies dead on the battlefield.  The harder you pound on the gates the more your prospects fear you.  The greater the assault, the more armored they become.

This is the battle plan based upon traditional marketing.  Interrupt the consumer, get their attention, and force them to listen.  But it is a whole new world out there and the prospect, your prospect, does not need to pay attention and has better tools than ever to withstand your barrage.

Frame of Mind

Do you want to know how to reach them?  And reach them when they are actually very open to your message.  Do you want to know the secret to being invited into the castle with open arms?  Well Grasshopper that requires a whole new strategy.

You see, while the battle is raging below the Prospect is climbing the stairs to reach the tallest tower in the fortress.  From there they cautiously peek over the tower walls in search of answers.  In search of the solutions to their problem.  Something that fits their frame of mind in that moment.

The Prospect of today is both guarded and open.  They are guarded against any message that does not meet their frame of mind or what they are seeking.  At the same time they are seeking solutions to their complex lives.  The marketer of today understands the frame of mind of their prospect and crafts a message that speaks directly to them like they are the only person on the planet. A message that answers the questions that they are asking.  A message that demonstrates that they can solve the problem.  A message that rises above the noise and fits what the prospect is seeking.

The Story Telling Strategy

It is no longer the age of interrupt, get their attention, and make them listen.  It is now the age of listening for the questions and provide the answers.  Now more than ever, you need to be tuned into the needs of the Prospect.  You need to be the solver of problems and be able to communicate using the language and the frame of mind of the Prospect.

And nothing does this well than a powerful well crafted story.  When told right, the listener will insert himself or herself into the story.  They will connect.  They will be moved.  Stories have been scientifically proven to connect with people, move people and motivate them.  Storytelling is not new.  It has been used from the first time that mankind spoke to each other.  The real magic of storytelling allows you to craft a message using tools that connect with a large number of people at once while each person feels you are talking about them.  The power of story makes you message memorable.

But good storytelling, especially storytelling that generates leads, requires a proven structure.  A way of telling the story that works.

The Hero's Journey

One of the most powerful story telling techniques is called the Hero’s Journey.  The Hero’s Journey story has been around since the beginning of civilization.  It is such a powerful way to tell a story Hollywood has been using it over and over again to make great movies.  Movies like Star Wars, the Matrix, and just about every Disney movie made have been written using the Hero’s Journey template.

And now, the secret to using the Hero’s Journey template is available to you to so that you can get more leads and make more sales.  I have taken this long and complicated template and boiled it down to its most powerful essence.  I have learned how to use this process for creating powerful stories that generate leads and sales.

The best stories of all time are a journey.  A journey where the main character is unhappy with their present situation, where they face a call to action to change. They take the first step and go on a quest that changes their lives forever.  They have a mentor to guide them as they achieve their goal and reap the rewards of a better life.

What if that character was your prospective client?  How could they relate if the story was about their challenges and their dreams?  What if you were the mentor, there to guide them?  After all, is that not what your service already does?

Stories that Sell

The Hero’s Journey story is one of the most powerful stories you can tell.  It is the template that most myths have been written on; stories like Star Wars and the Matrix along with just about every Disney movie made have also followed this template. 

But the story you want to tell is slightly different.  You want to tell a story that helps you sell your services, presents your expertise, and motivates your prospect to be a client.  Basically, a story that sells.

The 90 Minute Expert Positioning Session

If you would like to learn how to sell your expert services than the 90 Minute Expert Positioning Session is for you. The 90 Minute Expert Positioning Session is a one-on-one coaching program that takes place over the phone. We can teach how to put The Expert Sales Process to work for you. The first thing that you need to get started is an Expert Positioning Statement. For a limited time we are offering this 90 minute Expert Positioning Session for no charge. Register now and one of our consultants will contact you to set up a time for us to talk on phone. At the end of this 90 minutes you will have a short elevator pitch that will clearly define your expertise.