Stories are the Key to Buyer Engagement

One of the biggest challenges for B2B companies is what they do to keep prospects interested and engaged across a long-term, complex buying process. And, with buyers pushing sales conversations to the later stages, the bigger question becomes how to keep them moving to help them get there faster.

I submit to you that storytelling is the answer. Stories are an expression of movement. Stories, by their very nature, progress from beginning to middle to end.

Things happen in stories. The main character has a goal, overcomes conflict and gets to the happily ever after. In business terms, the client has a problem to overcome so they can achieve a strategic objective. Not so different.

Build Your Marketing Story:

 
Stories link ideas – This is a key factor for your content strategy. The norm in the past has been one-off, one-way messaging that gets generated when an idea strikes or a particular event is happening within your company. Companies spend a lot of time “telling” prospective buyers what they should be thinking.

The difference with stories is that they position your communications to evolve. They build from one idea or premise to another. They pull buyers forward in the process by giving them contextual reference points and discussing one topic at a time to transition them through the pipeline without anxiety or information overload. Another benefit to stories is that they establish your company's credibility, showcase impact and allow buyers to envision their future, once the pain has been eliminated.

To create a story strategy for momentum, map the complete knowledge transfer requirement and tackle a piece of it. Then give buyers a prod, or preview, into the next piece they can either request, or that you’ll be sending as a follow-up. Learning is a process. You can’t just dump all the information on them at once and expect them to say – Yes! This is exactly what I need. Where do I sign?

Especially not for a B2B complex sale.

Remember the ebb and flow of decision making. Buyers may move two steps forward and one step back, then forward again, as questions and obstacles occur. Look for places where they can get off track and plan ahead to address them before they happen.

Here's an example of how a "story" might exist for a buyer

An IT systems manager needs to roll out patches and updates across his network more quickly but doesn’t have the technology and visibility to know which computing device needs what without a manual check.

He learns a variety of software tools are available to solve that problem. He also learns that these tools can update his inventory catalog. He’s found your company via a search that returned a blog post at the top of the results page. Upon further investigation, your products look viable for his situation and he found a customer story that directly relates to his situation. Suddenly he’s heading toward happily ever after.

Then, the step back – Your prospect slams the brakes on as he starts to question how easy this change is really going to be and whether your repoorting tools are really as customizable as you say. What if his expectations aren't met?

This doesn’t have to be a set back because you prepared for this and are ready with a paper[ a story] that discusses all the steps of the implementation and the division of responsibility. You share testimonial proof[a story] that the solution can be implemented in less than three weeks. The buyer sees he can well manage his side of the requirements and gains confirmation that the reporting will do what he needs.

All the “I’s” are dotted and “T’s” are crossed. He’s back to visualizing happy days and how he’ll shine when the project comes off without a hitch.

Wait. The CIO is concerned that the new tool will won’t adapt to their corporate compliance policies and that the total cost of ownership is too high.

Not to worry, you assure your buyer, and whisk him a link to an article or video[a story] that highlights the time savings achieved with your software and the customization capability that will map to their compliance policies. And the buyer becomes a customer.

You may not be selling IT software, but it’s likely that this ebb and flow—from positive to hesitant—exists within your buyers’ process. Salespeople and customers can help you narrow down the critical points where these step backs are likely to happen. By mapping the buying journey and preparing stories to handle each step, you’re not only prepared, but elevating trust with each relevant, timely response to your buyers’ needs.

Comments

[Shimon]

Good 'story' Ardath, so if I understand this correctly, the stories should connect all the different massaging you are using in the buying process, right? But what are they different from the messaging really?? Would love to hear your viewpoint.

[Ardath Albee]

Hi Shimon,

I'm not sure I understand what you're asking.

Let me take a stab at it and see if I'm close.

If we stay with the problem my example IT guy is solving in the post, then the story and messaging that keeps him moving is all about solving that problem - rolling out patches and updates efficiently.

If we change the story by suddenly switching to providing him content focused on the issue of securing of mobile devices on the network, for example, then we've changed the story to something that isn't his top priority. He may overlook this once or twice, but if we continue to shift the story, he'll move on to a competitor who is telling the story he wants to hear.

This is why segmentation and issue identification is important when assigning leads to nurturing programs and also why we need to know what other communications leads may receive during the nurturing process.

Did that help, or did I miss what you were after?

[Engagement Marketing]

Nice blog. We might try to work a reference to this one into our post about engagement marketing next week is that's cool?

[Marketing Course Brisbane]

So many small business owners just don't understand the need for, and the power of, keeping in touch.