Selling With Stories: A Key Tool For Business Development In Professional Services
Storytelling is a dying art.
In an age of soundbites, special effects, snappy comebacks and the 30-second attention span. It seems that no one today has the time to listen to, or tell a good story.
But think of the last time you were truly gripped by a thriller on TV or were moved to tears by a poignant film.
Was it because of the special effects, snappy dialogue or even great acting? Probably not.
No. The chances are your interest and engagement with the film or play was because of the storyline. The writer hooked you with an interesting story. And most especially, they got you to really care about the characters in that story
Stories in Professional Services Business Development
Now think about that example, and how we can apply the principles for selling professional services.
Don’t you want your clients and prospects to really engage with what you are saying? Don’t you want to grab their emotions rather than just their logical brain?
Of course, you can’t expect the same degree of engagement in a sales meetings as in a thrilling film. But you can certainly make major improvements over most of the dry, dull pitches made today.
The secret, of course, is to use stories. And the most powerful stories to use are personal ones. Stories with real human protagonists rather than faceless corporations.
When you introduce your company, for example, don’t tell your prospects you can save them 10% on their telecoms costs, or that you’ve worked with the top 5 car manufacturers. Get that same message across in a personal story and it will have so much more power.
Compare these two introductions:
“We’ve worked with all the top consumer goods manufacturers. Our lean six-sigma service can save you at least 10% of your operating costs and cut 20% from your lead times”
and
“We recently worked with Alan Jones, the MD of Packco. Alan’s challenge was that because of long lead times, his supply chain was very inflexible and he couldn’t respond to the rapidly changing requirements of his top customers. And so he was losing customers rapidly. We partnered together, and by using our lean manufacturing and six sigma methodology, he was able to deliver the kind of flexibility his customers were demanding – and as an extra bonus, he managed to cut operating costs by 10%.”
Of course, the second introduction is longer. But the difference in wording makes a world of difference.
How would you respond to these different introductions if you were running a Packaging company?
The first introduction is OK. The professional builds some credibility by highlighting that they work for the top companies in the industry. And the fast changeover times and 10% saving on running costs sound OK.
But there’s no emotion here. It’s cold, hard facts.
And there’s a risk too. By saying “we could save you 10%” they’re almost challenging the person they’re speaking to. The reaction of most people to this is often to silently think “Oh right. You could, could you? Then prove it”. After all, it’s just an initial meeting: what does the professional really know about my business? How presumptuous of him to assume I’m not already highly efficient?
But if instead, the facts and figures are rephrased as a story, these problems can be sidestepped.
Firstly, the prospect becomes more engaged when he hears someone’s name. You’ve indicated you work with executives just like them – perhaps even someone they look up to. And by focusing on frustrations and personal challenges – not just business problems, but real frustrations – then they begin to feel empathy towards that person. Chances are they’re feeling frustrations too – but like many executives, there are few outlets for them to vent those frustrations. Now, by talking about someone else’s frustrations you’ve begun to create an environment where they can safely talk about their issues.
Also, because you’re using a story where you “just happened” to cut lead time and costs you’re not making a direct claim. You’re not introducing a challenge because you’re talking about a different situation. You’re not saying “I can save you 10%” – but they will begin to make that inference for themselves. So instead of thinking “he claims he can make those savings, but I’m not so sure” they’ve reached that conclusion themselves. So they’re much more likely to believe it.
In similar vein, when you get a prospect or client talking and they tell you about some of the issues and challenges they are facing; you can use your stories to build credibility and confidence that you have experience in these areas and know how to help. But notice that you’re not jumping to providing a solution for the client’s problem (where you run the risk of being wrong) – you’re relating a story about a client in a similar situation and what worked for them. Again, the prospect thinks for himself: “Maybe this can work for me. And even if not, they were able to solve this guy’s similar issues – maybe they can find a different solution for me”. As opposed to their thinking if you try to suggest a solution to their problem: “How can they know how to solve my problem after 5 minutes? Do they think I’m some sort of idiot who hasn’t thought about this?…”
How to Craft a Compelling Story
Some people can create stories naturally. As they go through life, they record experiences and have no trouble recalling them and turning them into interesting anecdotes and stories.
For the rest of us however, we have to work a little harder.
You need to create a small catalogue of 6 or 7 interesting stories which cover a variety of situations where you or your services have added a great deal of value to your clients. In any situation, you can then select from the stories as needed to fit the relevant circumstances. And you can use the same story to introduce yourself, as your elevator speech, or as an example or answer to a question.
To craft the stories, first think about the typical problems your product or service solves. Then think of some recent examples of specific customers where this has happened.
Next, write a short paragraph summarising the example. A few guidelines should help here:
Make sure the story is personal. Focus on the individuals in the example, not the organization.
Talk first about the challenges the person faced. Again, try to describe them in personal terms so that the prospect builds a connection to your story. Don’t belittle the person – turn them into the hero of the story – they had a problem which (by working with you) they overcame.
Don’t waste time describing the details of what you did. What your potential clients will be interested in is whether the issues were similar, and what they achieved.
Close with the benefits your product or service provided – but underplay this. Almost add it as an afterthought – as if the tremendous value you brought was just part of everyday business for you. Avoid boasting or self aggrandising statements.
Make sure it doesn’t sound like a script. Write in natural language as you would speak.
And make sure you get permission to use people’s names.
Putting the Stories to Work
With these stories you can now begin to put them into action in to help win business Don’t overuse them as you risk hogging the conversation when you should be listening. Instead, use them sparingly to spark the curiosity of the prospect, gain credibility, and provoke a reaction or question.
Personally I use one story to introduce my company and what we focus on (selected based on what I think is likely to be of most relevance). Then I may use further stories later on to illustrate a point, or to show that I understand their situation. But I will rarely use more than a couple in a sales meeting of an hour or less. To do so runs the risk of dominating the conversation and not giving the client enough space to open up about their problems. And if they don’t talk about their specific problems, then I can’t begin to show them how I can help them.
Ian Brodie helps lawyers, accountants, consultants and other professional service firms Get Clients and win more business. To get a free copy of Ian’s ebook: How to Get More Referrals, sign-up for the Outside In Newsletter.
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