Power to the people
Your company’s story is probably great. Maybe it’s even told in a very engaging way. But what makes your story less compelling is that it’s told by you. And because it’s told by you, people only believe it that much. They’d believe it more if it came wrapped up in stories about people they can relate to. You get the idea here. So, in these times of content ubiquity, literally everyone is telling stories of some sort – making your life harder and your voice less likely to be heard. Drawing on great and inspiring people around you who can deliver your messages as magnetic stories can be a true competitive advantage. Here’s why:- Your own story becomes more credible. The more people talk about the stories you choose to tell, the more likely we are to believe it. (Not always a good thing, but true.)
- You keep your existing audience happy. Everyone loves to share something great they’ve done or contributed to. Plus by putting your audience in the spotlight they get the chance to extend their own network. Win-Win.
- Your star rises. People will like when they see how you are helping others – directly or indirectly. (Even if they don’t have anything to do with your product now. But who knows, maybe they will in future.)
- You become more attractive (and may welcome one or two new people on board). People want to be part of something great.
- You may even lay the foundation for a community. Look at IBM and their the IBMers programme. They are literally everywhere.
- It’s fun (and interesting). A selfish reason, but usually this kind of content collaboration is way more fun and interesting than the stuff you create that’s all about you.
- You tick the MOFU (middle of funnel) content box. Just like that.
A few examples
There are so many great examples out there, it’s impossible to do all of them justice. But here are some of the latest initiatives I’ve seen and loved: #1 Google Stories (The skateboarding one is my favourite one.) #2 American Express’s “Shop small” initiative https://youtu.be/ybpGXuWkMg8 #3 Skype https://youtu.be/5nRKyQ11494 #4 IBM’s ‘Big brains. Small films.‘ https://youtu.be/VYGvbZgjYuM #5 Salesforce.com Social Heroes It does the trick, at least for me. I love every single one of these stories. I shared them with friends. I even write about them. And my love for the companies behind them has grown a little. Actually, not just a little. – – – – – – – – – – – – *hum.hum. At least to a small extent under its own name.Enjoyed this article?
Take part in the discussion
Comments
Greg Elwell November 26th, 2013
Martha, Inspiring. Thank you for sharing and reminding us the hero is NOT us (brands). They are our customers, neighbors, friends, colleagues, family members…and the list goes on and on,
Alessio December 5th, 2013
Martha, thanks for this. Really inspiring. And yes, brands tend to forget that it’s all about a good and healthy relationship. There is a large gap between the brand and the people who are making that brand survive, especially in the online world (let’s face it…offline sometimes it’s even worse).