Using Story to Attract Customers

Jacksonville Online Marketing for Businesses & Entrepreneurs

Date: Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM

Location: Office Evolution Jacksonville

5011 Gate Pkwy building 100 · Jacksonville, FL

 

Details

The monthly meeting of The JOMM began with introductions of Jay Owen, CEO of St Augustine based marketing firm Design Extensions. The introduction included mention of his podcast "Building a Business that lasts.” Owen mentioned the basis of much of what he would discuss was from the Storybrand marketing principles devised by Donald Miller, that emphasizes that "The brand is not the hero, the customer is the hero.”
Using Story
Photos of the individual slides Owen presented are below with some of the key takeaways being that as marketers we should focus on what the customer wants which is a solution to a problem whether they know it or not. Their problem is either 1)external, 2)internal or 3)philosophical. By understanding this we better qualify our leads. For example, a lead may be seeking to replace their broken coffee maker and some who consider it an external issue or philosophically doesn’t like the high price of some coffee makers could be happy with a $15 Mr. Coffee while someone else that makes it personal and feels they deserve better would rather be sold a $250 expresso machine.
According to Owen, this orientation should be reflected in our website messaging focused on reducing the emphasis on brand accomplishments such as years in business and awards and rather addressing customer’s problems and solutions and what the customer DESERVES. A dash of the negative aspects of NOT using your brand should be included. While many brands don’t want to mention the negative at all Owen recommends considering it like a “dash of salt” in a recipe. Too much salt will leave a bad taste, but no salt whatsoever likewise leaves the food tasting as if something is missing.
Simply said: What is the problem? And, What is the solution?
Right off the bat, Owen noted the flow of marketing relative can be viewed as Brand Identity to Attract audience— convert to leads—close the leads—and delight.  Similarly, the purpose of marketing related to the sales funnel is to attract strangers to become visitors and leads that convert to customers that they become promoters of your brand.
Regarding the Power of Clear Messaging and Clarity of Message Owen compared the Trump and Jeb Bush 2016 presidential campaigns noting how with less money and by using precise messaging the Trump campaign beat Bush with Make America Great Again and Build That Wall, messages that were consistent with a cultural story that resonates within its simple framework to the target audience. Owen noted the power of the message and challenge to counter it as opposition was widespread, but scattered and un-unified qualifying it all as noise versus clarity. Owen floated the possibility that the Trump campaign may actually instigate the noise for the resulting advantage to his campaigns' clear and concise message.
Owen emphasized the phrase that “Design Builds Trust WORDS SELL” meaning a certain look to our websites and marketing materials is crucial to draw the trust of someone to for instance enter their credit card information into a website checkout portal, but without the proper wording the visitor won’t be sold.
Owens addressed the psychology of “Survive & Thrive” & “Conservation of calories related to confusion that distracts and takes away energy. Confusion simply taps our energy eliciting the flight response that further emphasizes the necessity for clarity and simplicity of message.  Owen noted marketers should “Stop handing out bowling balls” such as flowering language and industry jargon unfamiliar to the target audience. Such lack of clarity and simplicity compiles and gives customers reasons to go somewhere else when looking for a solution to their problems. Furthermore, if we don’t make the process of closing the sale and asking in calls to action for the audience to become a customer more often than not they won’t.