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What selfish marketers overlook

Some marketers treat us as kind of dumb.

For example in the way they try to persuade us by hiding their cons and exaggerating their pros (if not downright inventing some).

Let’s call them the “selfish marketers”.

The fascinating part is how much effort selfish marketers invest into this. They spend huge resources on inventing promises that sound irresistible or stories that create buzz – not to mention all the money they throw towards marketing agencies who give them more of that.

By doing that, they try to decorate a product they don’t trust in themselves to be good enough if they told us the truth.

In my experience, your effort is better spent in telling a true story and making it work. That involves refining your product so that you can actually trust it to be good. It also involves listening closely to what your customers actually want (and need). It doesn’t stop with the quest for clarity to find the words that make your customers see what you see.

The selfish marketer starts from building something and puts all their effort in crafting a story on top of that something.

The honest marketer starts with empathy, uncovers what matters to the customers, builds a special thing that delivers exactly that … And then they tell a true story about it … using words they trust in and believe, themselves.

The best products are those that customers love even more when they know the complete truth. They are not irresistible because the promise sounds irresistible but because it is. And so, your customers support you in creating the buzz.

What’s a product where that’s the case for you?

Consider the of course effect

In chasing the “wow effect”, many businesses overlook the “of course effect”.

The of course effect is what makes it a no-brainer to choose your product. It’s what makes people wonder why no one else had that idea before.

The of course effect makes people get accustomed to a product so quickly that they would miss it after the first use should someone dare to take it away from them.

The central locking system on cars was an of course effect. The skip intro button on Netflix was an of course effect. The double click to zoom on iPhones was an of course effect.

Of course effects are way stronger than wow effects.

What’s the of course effect in your offering?

Monty Python’s animations

Want maximum effect from minimal work?

That’s why I use cutout. It’s the quickest and easiest form of animation that I know. – Terry Gilliam (Monty Python)

The quote is taken from this clip and dates back to 1974:

Compared to what Pixar does today, Monty Python’s animations were crude. Paper cuts, made from actual paper with actual scissors, very, VERY roughly animated.

And yet, for Monty Python’s fans they worked. Terry Gilliam, who was responsible for all of the group’s animations, explains why:

The whole point of animation to me is to tell a story, make a joke, express an idea. The technique itself doesn’t really matter. Whatever works is the thing to use.

It’s easy to get lost in perfecting your technique. Using the latest and greatest methods to make shiny trailers that look professional, take an awful amount of time to make and, well, fail to make the point.

Terry Gilliam was more interested in making the point rather than using the fanciest technology. “Whatever works is the thing to use.”

He started from the story, not from the technology. Once he was clear what story to tell, he was looking for the easiest way to tell this story. For him, it was paper cuts. For you, it might be something completely different.

Whatever it is, start with the story and then use whatever works to tell it.

Brutal honesty

Do you trust you customer with the decision to buy from you? In other words: If they knew everything you know, would they buy?

If not, then why not?

The best way to find out whether your product is breathtakingly good, is to tell a brutally honest story about it (even if it’s just to yourself). Then, observe what happens.

The best products are those which people fall in love with even more after they’ve been told the complete truth.

Everybody is interesting

“We believe that everybody has a story and is creative in their own way.” – Astrid Klein

Long-time reader Thomas Maile nominated Mark Dytham and Astrid Klein as leaders who light the path.

The two founders of the PechaKucha movement have changed the rules for presenting forever. In a world that was used to death by PowerPoint with presentations that seemed to run forever while leading nowhere, they established a format that has made quite an impact.

PechaKucha Nights are held everywhere across the globe giving everyone a stage and the chance to tell their story and let us in into their world.

Thomas made his nomination with these words:

“German news magazine DER SPIEGEL once called PechaKucha speakers ‘pop stars of PowerPoint’. While that’s a cute description it’s also one that doesn’t quite do justice to what PechaKucha is really about.

First (and obviously), PechaKucha is a strict presentation format: exactly 20 slides each advancing automatically to the next after exactly 20 seconds, adding to a total of 400 seconds, i.e. 6 minutes and 40 minutes. Every presentation is the same length and has the same format.

But underneath, PechaKucha is way more. By spreading across 1200 cities around the world, PechaKucha gives a stage to the unheard voices. It allows people like you and me to talk about what matters to them. That to me is the power of “EVERYBODY HAS A STORY”. PechaKucha gives the opportunity to tell it. It’s also why the Spiegel headline is not quite true. It’s not for pop stars. It’s for everyone.

Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham have done an amazing job of fostering that movement. To me, they serve as a role model for leaders who light the path.”

I couldn’t agree more to Thomas’ words. Recently, I’ve had the pleasure to chat with Astrid and Mark and they deserve every word that Thomas has said about them.

What struck me most was their deep belief that everybody is equal. In their own words: “PechaKucha is about democratizing the stage”.

It gives everyone an opportunity to speak up. It surfaces those voices that don’t consider themselves pop stars but have stories to share that are just as interesting – often even more so – than the ones that the pop stars, influencers, and gurus share.

On their freshly remade website there are a lot of gems to discover. Head over to discover some.

And then, when you come back, read the “Leaders Light the Path” manifesto and nominate someone yourself. It’s really easy.

There’s something wrong with storytelling

If storytelling is that ancient tool that fuels all human learning, then shouldn’t it be easier after all these years?

Shouldn’t we just have learnt by now how to tell a story? Just like we know how to add 2 and 2 together?

And yet, looking around (or googling the term “storytelling”) I sometimes get the impression that telling stories is designed to be complicated. That somehow only a privileged breed of “storytellers” are supposed to really master the art. And that you need to learn a complex framework (such as the hero’s journey) and a number of other techniques before you can even start to tell your story.

I don’t think that’s true. Quite the opposite: I firmly believe that if you care for what you do and if you have an offer that actually solves someone’s problem, then you already have all you need to tell a compelling story.

The most surprising aspect is that in my experience, the best stories are not even the stories you tell but the stories you spark in your audience’s minds.

Later this year, I’m launching a new online course to unleash the storyteller in you. My promise is that this will be the simplest and yet, most effective approach to storytelling you’ve seen, yet.

We’re doing without any complex frameworks and start from what you deeply care about. We’re looking at the fundamental reasons why stories work and then make them work for you. So that you can just start to tell your story from where you’re at.

If that resonates, I’d love to make you a special pre-launch offer.

Reserve your seat to …

  • get early access to crucial insights on and masterful examples of storytelling, released weekly until launch.
  • secure 25% off when you decide to actually enroll in the course at any point pre-launch.
  • join an exclusive, free group video call with me where we discuss common pitfalls in storytelling and during which you have the chance of getting 1:1 feedback on your storytelling.

Fake tension vs. real tension

Bad newspapers lead with fake tension.
Great newspapers lead with real tension.
What’s the difference?

Fake tension is created by holding information back.
Real tension is created by the information itself.

Here’s an example:

A. Scientists made a sensational discovery. Click to learn why space as we know it is about to change.

B. Scientists were able to create a wormhole in the lab. Read on to learn the story behind the discovery.

The first version doesn’t tell me what’s so sensational. I’ll have to click to find out. Most of the time, I’ll be disappointed because, well, wormholes aren’t the usual reveal. More often than not, what the writer called sensational, turns out to actually be lame to me.

The second version does tell me what’s sensational. The crucial difference, though, is that it trusts the reader to judge this. It doesn’t pretend to know better than me what I find sensational. It trusts me with that decision.

The problem with fake tension is that it easily becomes addictive for the writer. Because it works. At least for a while. People do click to find out. Which makes it appear as though the readers appreciate that kind of writing.

Real tension, however, is a lot harder to create. Because it requires empathy. What is it that my readers are actually interested in?

But when you consistently figure that out, not only do you get rid of fake tension. But because you deliver on your promise of real tension, you create trusted long-term relationships.

So, what do your customers actually find sensational? What creates real tension for them?

The Creator’s Adventure

Here’s a tightly packed conversation I had with Bryan McAnulty on his podcast “The Creator’s Adventure”.

We discussed

  • why it’s so hard to focus when you deeply care about something,
  • how you can gradually lead your audience to follow you deep down into that rabbit hole,
  • how an effective money-back guarantee can look like,
  • and so much more …

We also discovered that we share a passion for playing the guitar and found an important business lesson from the way you become better at playing an instrument.

If you’re a creator – or generally have an important story to share – this episode will very likely be worth a listen. You’ll find it on all major podcast platforms (e.g. Spotify or Apple Podcasts) and on YouTube:

The storytelling difference

There’s a huge difference between telling stories DURING a speech and telling a story WITH your speech.

Most storytelling advice aims at the former. It helps you tell anecdotes and share experiences effectively.

But too often it stops there. It’s used to decorate the communication or hammer home a point.

But the most compelling pieces of communication go way beyond that. They don’t merely tell stories. They turn the whole piece into a compelling story that takes the audience on a profound journey.

Interestingly, professional speakers often excel at the former but fail at the latter. They are super good at sharing experiences and telling anecdotes to hammer home a point. But way too often their speech as a whole lacks a compelling structure and a clear story arc.

When it’s over, it’s over

Another simple truth that great authors understand:
When the story is over, it’s over.

Great authors don’t repeat the end a second, third or even a fourth time.

They don’t hammer the take home message in a plethora of variations.

They say it once, but clearly. And then they stop.

The story has come to an end.

Business communication is different. For example, most business talks end with the speaker repeating their take home message over and over. These speakers don’t trust their stories to be clear enough. They don’t trust their endings to be convincing enough. So they repeat it. And again. And again. With the effect of weakening the impact each time they do it.

If your message isn’t clear and convincing, instead of repeating it make it clear and convincing.

Spread the Word

Dr. Michael Gerharz

Dr. Michael Gerharz