This article examines the key elements behind Corporate Storytelling: how and when to start, the frameworks that can be used and the over all drafting process.
Firstly, a big thank-you to everyone who attended my ‘Corporate Storytelling in Pharma’ online roundtable earlier in the month. It was great to get so many interesting discussions going so I’m particularly grateful to all those who spoke up. This article will touch on many of the points were raised in that session, as well as looking forward to the next one.
We were all agreed that key messages are crucial to successful Corporate Storytelling. Without them, it can be very difficult to stand out in a competitive marketplace, and the value and positive change you intend to bring to the world can easily sink without trace. This was good to know, although sadly it was pointed out that often key messages are not as established as they should and need to be.
It was pointed out that often key messages are not as established as they should and need to be.
Revisiting the basics was another significant consideration, as raised by several attendees. This covers the transition from promoting product-driven storytelling to one focused around the emotional impact on the customer. Another way of putting this is to discuss the ‘why’ rather than the ‘what or the ‘how’. As I’ve mentioned before, this allows you to focus on the human, empathetic side of your customers’ experience and is ultimately more likely to encourage them to look on your product favourably. Closely connected to this, of course, is building trust – that is, ensuring that you and your company are reliable and transparent, that you have the customer’s or patient’s first interests at heart, and not your own. This could involve, where appropriate, providing independent sources to mirror what you yourself are saying.
Corporate Storytelling needs more support from senior management
The point was also made that sometimes comms in general, and Corporate Storytelling in particular, have to remind – and for that matter, influence – colleagues about the great work they do. Identifying and building on ‘success stories’ for both the company’s external audience but also for internal teams was seen as essential. Sadly, some made the point that senior management often seem to need to be reminded of this – as they need to properly fund Corporate Storytelling, which is often lacking. Holding a series of workshops to convince senior colleagues of your course of action can be very useful for overcoming this.
Roots and heritage of a brand
Closely linked to the above are two further points. It can often be very important to go back a while, back to the roots and heritage of the brand, repurposing content and giving it a new angle for a new story. This underscores the vital nature of personal branding too.
Finally, there was a discussion about the process behind Corporate Storytelling – that is, how to get from start to finish, from the rough concepts to the finished product.
Constructing the narrative from start to finish
I will begin with that last point first and start by saying, perhaps unhelpfully, that everyone is different! By this I mean that everyone will have their different way of working. Some, for instance, will need to make their first jottings long-hand in an ‘old-fashioned’ notebook, whilst others will be able to write directly on to their computer. Myself, I always try to establish the key messages and audiences before doing anything else. As I’ve written before, these are not always obvious at first, sometimes not even to the client. I read through the source material that the client has sent me – ensuring, of course, as I’ve also written elsewhere, that it’s as complete as it needs to be – and make notes as I go along. After a while, the basis for the key messages should emerge, as all organisations are formed around a series of products or services they offer, and it is these that should shine out.
I will then place these in a messaging framework, that is, on one side listing the services and products and on the other the value and unique selling proposition of the organisation. It’s crucial that your audience understands and remembers the key message, and that it brings across the value to them of whatever it is you are providing. An excellent explanation can be found here, which describes a simple ‘Value by How with Capabilities’ – that is, what positive change you acquire, the method used, and the tools required to do this.
It’s crucial that your audience understands and remembers the key message, and that it brings across the value to them of whatever it is you are providing.
Do we need test audiences?
I then present these draft messages to the client, and if they approve, I will go ahead and write, using the messages as my guide. In fact, this is exactly how I approach the stage 2, ‘Core Organisational Narrative‘ section of the services I provide. I was also asked at the roundtable if test audiences are ever used. The short answer is ‘no’, but I’d suggest that really the drafting process is the testing-ground for what you are writing. Why? Because most organisations require input not only from several different people, but also from several levels of the organisation, and if it can satisfy so many people, it is more than likely that you can consider what you have written to be fully ‘tested’.
The first draft is often the most challenging element, or perhaps I should say, the element that always takes the longest to write. This is as it should be – subsequent drafts should never take as long as that first one, as the detailed, core information and message is now down on the page. The remaining drafts could often just be a matter of tweaking, and this will usually be at the discretion of the client. And it may seem counter-intuitive, but one indicator that things are not going as well as they should be is if there are no comments or changes from the client at all. Often as not, it most likely means that whomever you are writing for has not read it properly, or perhaps not even read it at all.
Breaking down my Audit Assessment Framework
As I outline elsewhere on my website, I deploy an Audit Assessment Framework which I have designed specifically for clients as part of my Corporate Storytelling services. This breaks down each story into six categories, each of which contain a further five sub-categories. One main category is, for instance, on the effectiveness of the key messages, and the sub-categories are designed as ways of detailing if these come across well or not. I use a red-amber-green ‘system’ for each category, with red meaning urgent changes are required, amber indicating that there is room for improvement, and green signalling that all is well with that area and no changes are needed.
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