Storytelling and Business Communication

Business Communication and Storytelling: Beyond Branding

Storytelling is something of a corporate buzzword these days.  Every business, charity or organisation is keen to tell their story, to connect with their clients with a personal touch.

Big companies are moving away from appearing as corporate edifices, towards a more human, anecdotal approach.

It’s all very well saying we want to tell more stories in business and that we want to use storytelling to make our presentations and pitches powerful, but what is storytelling and how does it work?

It’s more than simply a case of throwing in a couple of personal anecdotes (although anecdote is often handy as long as you don’t overdo them – remember it’s not about you!)

It’s a paradoxical trend, as business becomes more digitised and communication takes place at light speed, as technology blazes a trail towards a super efficient future there’s a growing desire to integrate the ancient art of storytelling into organisational culture.

Storytelling is more than simply an add on, it’s a culture, it’s a medium we need to operate in as a matter of course.  If we are not used to reading, hearing, seeing and telling stories then our business presentations will not be story led. If we are used to functioning in a totally transactional, data based, input-output manner then it is unlikely we will be able to create inspiring stories.

This is why the arts remain essential to any civilisation, and also why it is difficult for business staff, when told they must from on high, to suddenly start telling stories left, right and centre.

So how can we help?

Well, the basics; any good story needs a clear chain of events, a pyramid of cause and effect.  So far, so dull.

This chain needs to function not only on a factual level, but also on a human level – it’s the good old case study at work.  Again, all pretty dull.

Dramatic tension. All the best stories build in some tension. Without dramatic tension, your story is flat.   It’ s best summed up by the question: what’s happening next?

Your audience need to be wondering what is about to happen next, so you’ll need to reveal your consequential facts at a measured pace set against a high stakes backdrop.  If nothing is at stake, then your story isn’t worth telling.

Keep asking yourself, does this matter?  Do I care?  Will anyone else care?

Metaphor.  Metaphor is where storytelling really takes off.  All stories are metaphorical, they are the world understood through a fictional lens.  The key to elevating your story from the basic a+b=c formula is the clarity and depth of your metaphorical imagery and imagination.

A great exercise is to take your presentation facts and try to convey them entirely in terms of something else for example a football match or the African Plain.  Give it a go, you’ll see what I mean.   While the metaphors you produce here may be static and trivial, once you get your metaphorical mind working you won’t be able to hold it back.  Check out Shakespeare and the great poets for metaphorical inspiration.

Of course, story and storytelling is infinitely varied and flexible.  There really is no single simple storytelling pill, much as the world of big business would love there to be.

Some storytelling questions always worth considering are:

Whose story are you telling?

From whose point of view?

For what purpose are you telling the story?

Is it pretending to be fact or fiction?

Where does the real world end and imagination begin?

What’s your personal connection to the story?

Storytelling in business is no quick fix; it’s a shift in culture.

Find out how we can help you with your Presentation Skills .

David Windle