Lesson 5: Selling Through Your Story
SELLING OR JUST TELLING YOUR STORY
One of your best assets is your story:
- Embrace, live your story.
- Keep it real. People will sense if it sounds forced or fake.
- Cater your story and the language with which you use to tell the story to who you are telling it to.
- Know your story well. Don’t memorize, it, but know it.
- Do your potential customers buy into your story? Would you buy into it?
- Be very careful about brag and boast marketing - we are the best, greatest…
ALL BUSINESS IS THE RELATIONSHIP BUSINESS
Even if your product is great, people will go the path of least resistance, the easiest route.
Why would they do what’s hard and buy from you when the could call Cisco or go to a grocery story? They will do what is hard if there is a relationship there that they value, trust, and believe in.
- Relationships will take time to develop.
- It’s peer to peer - not a soulless, faceless unknown - it’s another person.
- Treat each customer as more than just a transaction.
- Of everyone that I have talked to that is doing well, they are all good socializers and talkers.
PRACTICE TELLING YOUR STORY
A good story told badly is a bad story.
- Keep it concise and specific.
- Bring your personality to it.
- Weave an emotional thread into it.
- Tie your experiences into the common experiences of your customers to take customers on a journey.
- Be vague about you, detailed about them.
- It will evolve over time as your story changes.
EASILY SHAREABLE?
Is your story shareable?
- Will someone want to re-tell it?
- Can they re-tell it semi-accurately?
- Use words that your customers uses and understands.
HAVE A ONE LINER
- What do you do?
- Why do you do it?
- Where can I find you?
I’m Diego, I create podcasts to help people pursue the farming dreams, you can listen at permaculturevoices.com.
THEN…. shift the conversation to them.
LISTEN TO WHAT PEOPLE ASK ABOUT AND COMMENT ABOUT
- Cater your story to that.
- How do people respond to your answers?
- Make it about them. You are solving your customer's problems.
An example of great story telling from Luke Groce:
“Do you ever worry that the item at the center of your dinner plate could be full of toxins that could be hurting your family? Over the years we've learned how to raise meat in a way that harnesses the vitality of healthy land, bringing it right to your plate. Meats raised on pasture can be nutrient-dense and clean, and can taste better than we thought possible. We offer an easy and affordable way to make farm to table eating a part of every meal you eat at home. Click below to learn about how our Meat CSA can provide convenient access to healthy, ethical, and delicious meat!” Groce Family Farm
ARE YOU THE BEST STORYTELLER?
A good story told by a scary person won’t be heard.
IF NOT:
Who is or are you prepared to get better?
Can you get away with doing this online versus in person?
MOVE PEOPLE ALONG
DON’T ASSUME PEOPLE WILL JUST MOVE IN THE DIRECTION YOU WANT THEM TO MOVE IN.
- Would you like to give it a try?
- If you like what we are doing, sign up for our mailing list and you can learn more.
- If they ask - what do you guys do, tell them, then next step might be, take a look at these sheets to see what we offer.