When it comes to "What Kind Of Story " to tell, it’s no secret that I’m partial to movies. The numbers tell us that business communication is increasingly headed in that direction too.
"YouTube reaches more US 18-49 year-olds during prime time than the top 10 TV shows combined." (ReelSEO 2016) Teens spend 9 hours a day using media (CNN 2015). By this time next year – May 2017 – those teens, born in the new millennium, will be heading to college – or into the workforce. And, they don’t remember a world before internet, new media and mobile technology.
But, movies aren’t the only way to tell your story. There! I said it!
In fact – in the grand scheme of storytelling – motion pictures are babes in arms.
We've been telling verbal stories since caveman days. In the 14th though 19th centuries the preferred storytelling method was shared between the novel and the play. In the 20th century, I was surprised to learn, the novel still held the top spot! Movies were a novelty for the first third of the century, and television didn’t make a charge until the final third. As for new media – in 2016 – YouTube is only nine years old – Twitter – ten, and Facebook – the old man in the game – a staggering twelve years old.
Storytelling itself though, has survived since the dawn of civilization. The medium changes from time to time. But, verbal recitations, cave paintings, scrolls, moveable type, radio, TV, and now digital media – are all, in the end, just tools for telling stories.
One reason a lot of people (especially those of us over thirty) aren’t all that impressed with the Billion Facebook videos we watch every day, is that the vast majority of those clips don’t tell a compelling story! Cats playing the piano just can’t stack up to Marley’s Ghost!
So what kind of stories should your organization be telling?
There are four main types of story in widespread use today.
- Novels
- Plays
- Motion Pictures
- Verbal Stories
While at a glance some of them may seem ridiculous as business tools, I assure you they are invaluable and they each work in different yet overlapping ways – so let’s take a deeper look.
The N
ovel
A novel is a way to tell a story from a particular characters point of view. It’s an internal story. The author can take us inside the hero’s mind, describing his thoughts and desires. There is no other storytelling method that allows this – first person – kind of experience.
“But, everything - word, thought and action - has to be meticulously described.” said Alan thoughtfully.
The internal experience is also why the movie is never “as good” as the novel. It can’t be – ever. It’s a different kind of story altogether. A movie can be better or worse than the novel – but never the same – because a movie, play, or even a verbal story is an external experience - meaning they can never get inside a characters mind, and see the world through the hero’s eyes, thoughts and feelings.
The Play
A play, a story told with action and dialogue, is an external storytelling tool. The audience “witnesses” what people say and do to each other. But, they aren’t intimately part of things – they remain on the outside looking in. They don’t share the characters thoughts and feelings unless they’re specifically “told” what they are.
It’s a voyeuristic experience - and even then the audience can’t easily see everything. For example – If your hero gets a letter – the only way for the audience to know what it says - is for someone to read it aloud. You can’t just hold it up and say – “See!” The closest audience members are thirty feet away.
The Motion Picture
A movie is a story told with images. You’re “showing” the audience your story – as opposed to “telling” them. Films don’t even have to be moving pictures. A perfectly irresistible story can be told with a series of still photographs.
Movies are similar to plays in that they too are a voyeuristic experience with dialogue and action, but far more intimate, because we can get in close enough to see the emotion in a characters eyes and feel like we're part of things.
While dialogue isn’t required, most movies have at least some spoken words that advance and support the story. “Advance” and “support” are the key words here – because the real story is what’s being shown. What people "say" supports what we see. If you’ve ever seen a movie of just people talking, then you know that it gets old fast.
Visual storytelling is the primary strength of film. A movie can show the audience important story details that other characters may not even know. Like a knife behind the bad guys back! - Or, a close up of that pesky letter from the aforementioned play.
This ability to “show - not tell” – also offers the viewer an opportunity to make his own decisions about what things mean. It’s a subtle way to communicate that you trust them to make their own decisions about what you offer. Allowing the audience to make their own decisions makes them feel like they’re part of your story – and playing an active role is one of the best ways to generate brand loyalty.
Movies have all the advantages of a play, with far greater intimacy and the ability to show the audience specific items of importance. But, unless you resort to some cheesy narration to explain the hero’s feelings or thoughts - you can’t get inside their brain. Film remains an external experience.
You can use narration effectively though – the way the ancient Greeks used the chorus – to set the mood and comment on the action. But, it rarely works well as a means of getting inside a character.
Verbal Stories
A verbal story is, of course, a story spoken directly to another person, or persons. I’ve saved it for last because - We already do it every day, and have for thousands and thousands of years.
Your elevator pitch is a verbal story. So is a sales call. Every time you answer the phone, you’re engaged in verbal storytelling. Or should be!
It’s probably worth the time to make sure you’ve got an engaging verbal story – delivered consistently – by everyone in the company. It’s one of the easiest ways to shape your message - attract new business - and keep existing customers interested.
But, how do you use the other forms of story to support your business?
The kind of story you tell depends on the story itself.
If your story is primarily from a personal perspective – i.e. about your opinion, thoughts or feelings – it’s probably best suited as a “novel” type of story. In business that translates to an article, open letter, or blog post. Write the novel if you want. But, make it entertaining.
If you want to tell a story primarily with words, it should be a play. Now, I know you’re not likely to write a play about what your business is saying or doing. Though, I’ve done that very thing for large conferences – with great success! Plays work best with smaller audiences - like a conference. In fact, a well written speech is a "recitation" - a type of theater which was wildly popular in the 19th century. "Corporate Theater" is how we, at AtelierIMD, refer to most speeches we get involved with. So if you have something to "say" a speech is probably best.
The most common option, in the new media age, is to “show” your story using motion pictures.
Remember - with a movie you can show things that aren’t obvious at a first glance - focusing the attention on exactly what you wish. You can also use dialogue or narration to advance and support your story. While you can’t really get into a characters grey matter – you can get in close enough to read their eyes. And, that’s almost the same thing.
My first two classes in film school prohibited the use of sound. We had to tell our stories using images only. (At first just photographs) Though it took a little practice to get good at it – it’s still one of the best tools I know for telling an engaging story.
I have to go now. I have this deep, sinking fear that I forgot to turn in a final. Yikes!