Stories: The Most Potent Selling Force Imaginable

Posted by David Tendrich on Nov 1, 2009 in All, Expert Copywriting | 3 comments

Hey there,

Been a little while since I posted… Things have been crazy lately! But the good kind of crazy. The kind that means bills are getting paid and food is being kept on the table

Last weekend (or was it the weekend before? <_<) I was at FIS, the Fitness Info Summit, in Orlando. Holy cow I was forced so much substantial, in-depth information about creating and launching information products that my head nearly exploded by the end of Day 2, and for about 2 days later I was a muttering zombie who just stared at the wall, brain fried, trying to process it all.

Plus, my bro Steve Hochman brought me up on stage. I’ll post the video when I get it. We’re pretty ridiculous together. I think you’ll get a good laugh out of it.

But anyway! Onward!

I’d like to demonstrate for you guys the power of story. There is literally no more powerful way to enter into the heart and mind of your reader than through a story.

Allow me to demonstrate…

Here’s a not-story:

Stop and ask yourself…

• Are you tired of being overweight?
• Are you ready to lose 5 pounds this week?
• Are you frustrated because nothing has worked, from diet pills to personal trainers?
• Do you want to feel great about yourself in a swimsuit when you go to the beach?
• Do you want to see your reflection and love what you see?

Here’s a story:

Jane always wore a one-piece bathing suit when she went with her friends to the pool. She thought she was doing everyone a favor.

“No one wants to see my fat stomach!” she’d say.

Her whole life she’d been overweight, at least 80 pounds overweight, so she got used to the “looks” people always gave her. She got used to people laughing at her. And she got used to the feeling that she wanted to be anywhere in the world other than inside her own skin.

Now let me ask you…

Which of these made you want to read more? Which one sucked you in and really spoke to you as a human being? Which one could you connect with?

Assuming I did a good job, it should be the story! Can you see how my story communicated everything those bullets did, but it did so without being so forced and obvious?

Now, I’m not saying that the bullets were BAD – bullets very similar to these have been proven to sell. They work. All I’m saying is that if you want to take things a step further – a story is necessary too. A story can communicate everything bullets can, just more subtly and hypnotically.

However, both are necessary, because some people will just skim and read headlines and bullets. But for the people who stop and read what’s inbetween – hit’em with a story.

Stories slip right past our defenses – we let them in. When they’re touching and sincere we drop our guard and become absorbed, entranced, in what they have to say.

I’ll leave it to you to connect the dots of what this means for your copywriting.

Till next time,

David