June, 2019 -

Story selling is a way of selling your product or service through story telling.

People hate to be sold. But, we’re hard-wired to pay attention to stories. By leveraging story telling, you can engage potential customers and sell without selling.

Story telling has become an extremely valuable marketing tool for brands to connect with consumers as well as increase sales for products and services.

Stories can capture people’s imaginations… and they can capture profits as well.

Stories move people and reach them on a deep emotional level; this is crucial for creating brand preference and long-term loyalty.

Do Stories Really Move Both People and Products?

A study done by Hill Holiday’s Origin research group showed that stories were much more effective in selling products. By associating stories with products, brands generated more sales and profits without spending any additional money.

The Value of Stories — The value of a product was perceived to be higher when it was sold by a story instead of a simple description. Products sold by stories were believed to be worth 5% more than those without.

Stories Let Brands Name a Higher Price — In the study, a painting was shown to consumers and accompanied by either the artist’s name and title or by a detailed description of the artist’s story with an image of the artist. The painting that featured the detailed story was perceived to be worth 11% more.

Stories Command Attention — Stories can help a product both grab attention and grab more value. One of the study’s experiments showcased a bottle of wine with either a few tasting notes or with an in-depth story about the winemaker. The winemaker’s story made the wine stand out from the others and made study participants willing to pay 6% more for a bottle.

Fiction Affects Value — Fictional stories can make a product appear more valuable. The study showed participants a pair of spoons sold on eBay that either had a short description or featured an award-winning story by a famous poet. The spoons paired with the fictional poem commanded 64% higher bids than the spoons sold by a brief description. Associating fictional stories with products can deliver real profits.

Story Selling: Using Storytelling to Sell Products [Infographic]Credit: MDG Advertising