What’s Your Story? 27.January.2007
A couple of years ago, instead of starting small talk with something along the lines of “where are you from?”/”what do you do?”, I started asking people “what’s your story?”.
What is your story? I get lots of cocked heads and have to repeat myself. What’s your story?” Most of the time it’s more interesting than what they do, or the fact that they are from North East Ohio. “What’s your story?” leads to the more interesting portions of one’s life. And a lot of time, the discussion leads me to learn how this person ended up at this particular social event. It also leads to more engaging discussion as opposed to the more typical “I have an aunt who lives in Ohio; she says she likes it.”
It is this kind of opening line that companies need to start out answering when they are introducing themselves to potential customers. I believe it is especially true for small service oriented businesses. There’s probably a dozen companies in the phone book that say they can deliver the same end product as you, and one of them is bound to beat you on price. Because of these things, you can’t start your pitch with “We’re the only one in town”, cause you and I both know that’s not true. Price shouldn’t be your only selling point. So why choose you? Maybe because you are uniquely suited to meet your customers’ needs. Maybe you take the extra time to do the job right. Maybe it’s something else. There is something unique about you. Find it and tell them what that is.
The trick is you can’t just make this stuff up. People aren’t going to believe you; American’s can see through your crap. If you have to use an adjective in your name describing how great you are, a general rule of thumb is, you aren’t. Would you go to a place called “Dick’s Quality Used Cars”? But “Richard’s Pre-Owned Vehicles” accompanied by a handsome sign, and a web site someone spent actual money on, tell your story. They say that you, and the cars you sell, are quality.
If your service reps are the best in the biz, but you have to pay to keep them, don’t run an ad saying you have the lowest prices in town. Tell your customers about your great service reps. That’s your story. Stick to it.