The most important video you need to make RIGHT NOW.
Grow your business with this one, simple story.
From an Instagram story, Snapchat update, Youtube binge, to Facebook feed — believe it or not, we’re in the age of the most sophisticated form of storytelling, combining 24-frames per second to connect with the world around us. And we should only be so lucky. As thought-provocateur Jason Silva has said of the higher art form, video is “a form of shamanism and filmmakers are dreamweavers”.
Okay, sure, perhaps the InstaStory you just posted isn’t some master dream work. But then again, nor are most of the videos created on a daily basis. We consume and produce them with near frenzy to the point of mindless drum. As marketing story guru Donald Miller has said,
“What we often call marketing is really just clutter and confusion sprayed all over our websites, e-mails, and commercials. And it’s costing us millions.”
So, how do you re-focus the clutter and stop wasting money? Well, there are really two types of videos you should make. The first and more traditional one— one that positions your product as the ‘hero’ — is a good place to start. But I’m going to bet you might already have that video on your landing page. It’s the more common of the two. But that doesn’t necessarily make it better. Because the other video, the one I’m going to bank is the video you should be making next, is the more under-appreciated video. And chances are that it’ll carry you further than all the other humdrum time and again. So, what is it, you ask? Well, you know, the one where you tell your story.
What I know for sure is that speaking your truth is the most powerful tool we all have. — Oprah
It might sound basic, or besides the point (especially when you’re just trying to sell razor blades on your e-com store), but trust me: time and again, your story will prove more powerful in connecting with your audiences than any other shamanic dreamwork you create. And when you think about it, it’s actually not all that surprising why.
Stories are how we make sense of the world. How we connect. Our perceptions and tastes are directly influenced by the stories we come to believe. In fact, we are such story-orientated creatures that our minds will literally create them, stringing events into story lines, out of thin air (think of dreams, where we weave disparate visions into narratives).
We have been weaving these invisible story lines ever since oral tradition began around fireside talks. Since then, stories have become, you could say, a form of medicine. The simple act of sharing one is a bonding experience of intimate proportions we often don’t get pulled into otherwise.
Knowing the mystical power that stories hold over us, it always amazes me when a client comes to me asking for help on their latest video. You see, they’re used to putting content out there, but nothing sticks beyond a few clicks. Inevitably, in the research I do I end up discussing their story, how their company or business arose. The why. Always, always, I become fascinated and drawn into their story and purpose. And yet, for some reason (usually having to do with some excuse of their story being ‘irrelevant’) these stories are rarely recounted. Or if they are, they’re found only in a section on their website’s ‘About’ page, sitting as prose, hidden in the background. Which is a damn shame. These stories need to be front and centre. And they need to be celebrated and translated into the most powerful story platform we have: film.
There is a power like no other in sharing your story. It doesn’t have to be your origin story, per se. Although, sometimes that’s a good place to start. But what I mean more than anything is telling the story that helps recount why you do what you do. What your purpose is, so to speak. If you can convey that story in as clear and concise a way as possible, people will become drawn into you — much like fireflies around a lamp at night. Story guru Bobette Buster said it perhaps more poignantly:
“Today’s world wants to know you and the real story behind why you do what you do. Whether you have a product to sell, a company mission to share or an audience to entertain, people are far more likely to engage and connect if you deliver a well-crafted story with an emotional core.”
So, as you sit wondering how you can connect better with your target audience, ask yourself this: Have you told your story? Have you made it clear to your audience why you do what you do? And then consider how the simple act of sharing that story could be the single most powerful video you create yet.
Need help?
If you’re daunted by the thought of trying to tell your story, I’ve designed a checklist of sorts, 8 principles that will help draw your story out and prepare it for the world!
Click here to get the checklist now!
