Who Is Telling The Best Product, Brand, and Experience Stories?

Whenever I speak, teach workshops or deliver trainings, or write about about using a story-first approach to craft intended customer experiences with products, services, and brands, I get great follow up reports and questions from attendees. Usually, they are trying the approach out in their own practice and have questions about how to refine their process. Or they have a case study or example that they want to share. Sometimes they want more examples of the type of story-engineering I advocate. Sometimes all of the above. As I was replying to one such email today, I decided that my reply was too good to share with just one person. Good because I absolutely love the two examples that I list – one from Paul Rissen at the BBC and the other from Michael Leis at Digitas Health. They nicely illustrate what I talk about when I advocate for not just telling, but building stories. Enjoy.

The question:

I’m currently at the front end of figuring out how the entire company can empathize with our users. Small task right!?!! I want to push a variety of experiences but I am feeling that story telling is going to be key.

I’m currently gathering thoughts and artifacts…I’m wondering if you have a personal “list” of favourite stories being told that you might share?

My response:

I’m so glad you’re working on this. As you know, it’s not just storytelling, but storymaking (i.e. setting the stage so that users and customers experience interactions with your product or brand like a good story) is essential to building successful products and services. I’ll have a TON of examples (from brands like Pinterest, Twitter, Slack, Fantasical, Facebook, and more) in my book, which should be out by the end of the year (maybe even sooner!). Until then, here are two great examples from colleagues that illustrate the approach I teach to students and clients – both revolve around not just telling, but constructing structurally sound story-like experiences that feel and operate like a story:

• Behavioral Storytelling: Social Content Strategy
  Michael Leis, Brand Social Strategy Consultant at Digitas Health
• Storytelling and the Semantic Web
  Paul Rissen, BBC

I’ve also got two more talks and one article that can give you some more examples:

• Story First: A Narrative Approach to Building Successful Products and Services
• Storymapping: A MacGyver Approach to Content Strategy
  (this is a talk and workshop I give with Lis Hubert – we’ve got a case study you can read — the meat part is in Part 2)

I hope that gives you something to go on until the book comes out!

And…I hope that gives you all something to go on until the book comes out, too.

(originally published at http://www.greatnorthelectric.com/blog/2015/1/14/who-is-telling-the-best-product-brand-and-experience-stories)