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Everybody Loves a Happy Ending: Using Stories to Sell Your Products and Services

Guest post by: Jason Helfenbaum

Article Overview: Once exclusively used in hi tech companies, case studies are compelling sales tools for your prospects and customers

Everybody Loves a Happy Ending: Using Stories to Sell Your Products and Services

Everyone loves a good story, and if Hollywood is any barometer, then people equally love a happy ending. Although they may not be aware of it, many hi tech companies use Hollywood's formula to sell their products and services. Instead of... ...we have...

1. Boy needs girl 1. Company needs a solution.

2. Boy finds girl 2. Company finds hi tech company with the right solution.

The challenges may differ, but the ending is the same...

3. Together they face challenges and overcome them

4. They have a happy relationship that will continue to blossom in the future

This formula works in hi tech, because hi tech is solution-focused. Using metrics, the company will claim how using its solution will save you time, money, or both.

What about your own products or services? It may not be a computer program, reside on a chip, or require someone with a PhD to explain how it works, but it does solve a problem. Would telling a real-life story starring your product or service help to sell it? Absolutely.

In order to understand something, we first have to be able to relate to it. In fact, relating is storytelling. You may have the greatest product ever, but to convince your prospects, you will have to create a scenario where people can use your product or service in action in a way that they can identify with.

Let's use real estate as an example. Every agent has her or her card and advertising literature that boasts how they are somehow number one. With so many seemingly conflicting claims, credibility becomes questionable, and no clear leader emerges. Imagine now if a real estate agent were to write a series of brief case studies, or stories really, on actual sales that they did: one on a family that moved from overseas and how she was able to help them find their dream home, another on a couple that was unfortunately separating and how she was able to sell the home with tact and above the asking price, and another on working with first-time home buyers. In each case, a segment of her market is going to be able to relate and declare: "If she could help them, she can help me."

Before people want to be sold to, they want to be understood. Case studies are a great way to do both. Once upon a time, case studies were strictly the domain of hi tech, but now, well, like I said, everyone likes a good story and a happy ending. More and more non-hi tech companies are seeing the merit of using case studies to sell their products and services too. Find out how ClicKnowledge can help you to effectively tell your success stories.

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Article Tags: case studies, case study, effective selling, selling, stories, story, storytelling



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