How To Pitch Your Business With Narrative Marketing
Engage your audience with clarity using this simple formula
When it comes to marketing, writing is usually the last thing that gets touched, but should be the first.
Your website, advertising and social media could have the coolest graphics, the most amazing lead-capture software — you could have the BEST sales team ready to answer any call, they may even be able to sell snow cones (called shave-ice here in Hawaii) to eskimos.
But no one is clicking, no sign-ups, no calls…WHY?
It’s because there is a problem with your messaging.
What makes you different?
There are probably several different companies that do what you do. Which contrary to what you might think, is great for a Startup. Competitive market validation means there is a commonly understood problem to be solved…plus its great incentive to get your stuff into gear ;)
But with a plethora of options out there, why would a customer choose your service over your competitors?
You may even sell basically the same thing as your competitor…whats the point then?
How does your potential customer choose?
This is where you get to leverage perception. You want your potential customer to perceive your business as the obvious choice. To do that we’re going to ensure the perception of your brand is the BEST it can be, and strengthen your position in the market.
Understanding Business Perception
Business Perception is made up of 3 things:
Your Messaging
How you talk about what you do
Brand Touchpoints
How your messaging is carried
Relevant Experience
How you’ve done it before for others
In this post, we are going to focus on strengthening your messaging using a practical value pitch formula that you can use TODAY.
The Basic Formula
This value pitch formula was originally developed by Liam Veitch. I’ve modified it to match the connections and language we use in the Story Circle.
The formula is deliberately simple, this is a tool that you can recreate and adapt over time.
[Your brand][higher calling]. We help [the hero] by
[the frame] with [primary] and [secondary]
This statement in less than 100 words, will give your brand focus and the clarity it needs to engage in your market.
Let’s break it down:
[the hero] The customer/audience segment you’ve identified on position (1) of the Story Circle.
[primary, secondary] Defines your strongest solutions that you offer in position (5) of the Story Circle.
[higher calling] This is your big picture end goal, what you stand for, why you do what you do, aligned with position (8) of the Story Circle.
[the frame] This is the improvement your hero gets as a result of using your solution, this sense of value can be found in position (7) of the Story Circle.
Let’s look at each one in depth:
The Hero
This is a specific, targeted, small pool of prospective clients. Using a narrative, we’ve defined our dream client as the Hero, and we are going to paint a picture of their worldview through your marketing. If you’ve gone through the Story Circle this is the Hero we’ve defined in position (1) of your Story Circle.
To give an example, I’ll create marketing for a fictional business called NarrativeBrand. With this brand, I’m not just focused on Businesses in general. I’m going to specifically target Startups: Marketers, Founders, and Growthhackers.
My marketing may hit a bunch of other types of business owners or industries, and that is perfectly natural. But for my core message to resonate, I need to be specific.
Example: “Startup Founders, Marketers & Growthhackers”
Primary and Secondary Solution
Being specific and focused is KEY. It’s not always easy though. Picking a couple of solutions out of the myriad of things you offer can be hard. This exercise is to help you hone your focus to become super effective.
In position (5) of the Story Circle, we lay out all the business solutions, products and problem-solvers that addresses the needs of your Hero. Out of all the options, what is your primary product or service?
You might have the newest Data Collecting App, thats cool, and most people can get behind that. Now what about a secondary service? This is part of what separates you from your market.
Example:
Primary — I offer practical high-conversion marketing strategies
Secondary — I also offer storytelling tactics that helps clarify marketing
What’s Your Higher Calling
What do you stand for? What’s really important? Take some time to think about this. Are you looking for only a few clients with a focus on a high quality end-product? Are you aiming for a mass-volume of users at lower range prices, and becoming more accessible?
Clarifying your positioning will repel bad-apple clients, and begin attracting the people who really want to work with you.
“The great part is that bad apples won’t care what you stand for. They just want it cheaper, faster and will hire a laborer. Your core messaging will distract them, maybe even offend them, and ultimately repel them from reaching out to you.”
— Liam Veitch
Let’s focus back on your dream client “the Hero”. What big picture values do they have? How do you connect with their long-term-goals? We find the answers by mining position (8) of the Story Circle.
Dream clients will connect with your mission to improve their business holistically. They understand that this takes time, and that they should lean on your expertise in a genuine partnership.
— Liam Veitch
I want the brands I work with to grow, and to radically shift things so that they have more clarity in marketing than I did when I first started my business.
Example: I strive to help Startups connect with their customers, growing their audience every month, by leveraging marketing insights, and creating practical steps for improvement.
The Frame
How do you improve the lives of your clients? We’re not mentioning your primary or secondary services, but instead focusing on the byproduct of using your solution.
We can find this information easily from position (7) of the Story Circle.
This section is all about the return journey — now they are back in their familiar situation equipped with stuff thats going to work! Up until this point life has just happened to them…now things are different, how must that feel to have the power to change things?!
Example: I provide the confidence that comes from having clarity and understanding how to market their business effectively
All Together Now!
A completed value statement would end up looking something like this:
NarrativeBrand exists to help Startups connect with their customers, earning more attention for their brand month-over-month, by leveraging proven marketing insights and creating constant momentum and practical improvement for their business.
We provide you with the confidence that comes from having clarity and mastery of your brand, with high-conversion marketing strategies and storytelling tactics.
Now thats a powerful statement! My brand’s value is clear, my target customer is not only identified but is at the heart of everything I do…my dream client can see the multiple benefits they receive from working with me.
This simple statement answers the great marketing question:
“What’s in it for me?”
So what next?
Make this the heart of your marketing and sales processes. Use it to guide headlines, website copy, ads and social media profiles.
This statement should end up being the essence of your company — something that can adapt to different marketing platforms, yet provides consistency — clearly communicating the value you offer.
