People don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it. - Simon Sinek
For small, independent brands, it's nearly impossible to compete with the ad spends and splashy campaigns of well-established names. But one thing smaller labels can take away from marketing best practices is telling your own story: Why are you here? Why did you create your products? How did you get your start? What inspires you?
People do not buy goods and services. They buy relations, stories and magic. - Seth Godin
Customers want to feel they know you, and they want to like you. Your story can help you establish a relationship with you customer right from beginning. This builds trust, and customers who trust you will continue to buy from you. Loyal customers believe in you and your product, and will want to support you now and into the future.
People buy from people they know, like or trust. - Joel Comm
So how do you craft your story, and how do you tell it? The first step is "remembering your why." Why did you start designing or crafting your products? Who or what inspired you to start on your journey? How does doing what you do make you feel, what and why are you passionate about your work? Start asking and answering these questions for yourself, and you'll be able to design your story in a way that authentically connects you to your potential customers.
Next, you'll need to edit your story. People want short, easy to access content. You don't need to tell your customers everything about yourself, or everything that's influenced you from your childhood on up. Stick with what's relevant to your business, and what will resonate with customers the most. If there's one life event that sums up a lot of those questions you answered above, use that. Stories with emotional impact are the most effective. So make sure you're thinking about the audience you're sharing your story with. What do they want to know about you? How will it help them make a decision about buying your product. Once you've edited your story to a digestible format, you're ready to share it.
How you share your story can take many different forms. What format will you use to tell your story? Words, images, video, or combinations of those mediums? Decide how you feel most comfortable sharing your story, then create it in that medium.
Now it's time to share it. Put it in the About section of your website. Tell it in your Instagram Stories, or provide excerpts of it on other social media channels. Write a blog post. Include it in your press release boilerplate. Lead with it to pitch your product to buyers, industry or media. There are countless ways to share your story.
Find ways to get feedback about your story. Of course, more people buying your product is the preferable feedback, but there are other ways to understand if your story is making an impact for your brand. What are people saying in the comments of your posts? Are they giving specific examples of what part of your story resonated with them and why? Do they mention it in their product reviews?
Whatever feedback you get on your story can help you clarify what is working, and where you may want to expand on your story, or clear up any confusion to strengthen it. Use relevant feedback to tweak your story for the most impact.
In our next post, we'll be sharing a powerful example of sharing your story to drive your business from a meeting with @Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart, founder of the former @vaute_nyc brand.
If you need help crafting and telling your story, we consult with our brand partners on how to do it effectively for their audiences. Join us!
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