Crafting Engaging Stories For Community Outreach

B2B tech companies are addicted to getting you to subscribe to their corporate echo chamber newsletter graveyard, where they dump their latest self-love notes. It's a cesspool of "Look at us!" and "We're pleased to announce..." drivel that suffocates originality and murders interest. Each link, each event recap and each funding announcement is another shovel of dirt on the grave of what could have been engaging content. UNSUBSCRIBE What if, instead of serving up the same old reheated corporate leftovers, your content could slap your audience awake? Ego-stroking company updates are out. 1. The pain point deep dive: Start by mining the deepest anxieties, challenges and questions your audience faces. Use forums, social media, customer feedback and even direct interviews to uncover the raw nerve you're going to press. 2. The unconventional wisdom: Challenge the status quo of your industry. If everyone's zigging, you zag. This could mean debunking widely held beliefs, proposing counterintuitive strategies or sharing insights that only insiders know but don't talk about. Be the mythbuster of your domain. 3. The narrative hook: Every piece of content should tell a story, and every story needs a hook that grabs from the first sentence. Use vivid imagery, compelling questions or startling statements to make it impossible to scroll past. Your opening should be a rabbit hole inviting Alice to jump in. 4. The value payload: This is the core of your content. Each piece should deliver actionable insights, deep dives or transformative information. Give your audience something so valuable that they can't help but use, save and share it. Think tutorials, step-by-step guides or even entertaining content that delivers laughs or awe alongside insight. 5. The personal touch: Inject your personality or brand's voice into every piece. Share personal anecdotes, failures and successes. 6. The engagement spark: End with a call to action that encourages interaction. Ask a provocative question, encourage them to share their own stories or challenge them to apply what they've learned and share the results. Engagement breeds community, and community amplifies your reach. 7. The multi-platform siege: Repurpose your anchor content across platforms. Turn blog posts into podcast episodes, summaries into tweets or LinkedIn posts and key insights into Instagram stories. Each piece of content should work as a squad, covering different fronts but pushing the same message. Without impressive anchor content, you won't have anything worth a lick in your newsletter. 8. The audience dialogue: Engage directly with your audience's feedback. Respond to comments, ask for their input on future topics and even involve them in content creation through surveys or co-creation opportunities. Make your content worth spreading, and watch as your audience does the heavy lifting for you. And please stop with the corporate navel-gazing. #newsletters #b2btech #ThatAshleyAmber

🔴 Facts fade. Stories stick. If your training feels dry and forgettable, your learners aren’t the problem—your content is. People don’t remember bullet points. They remember characters, challenges, and choices. Here’s how to use narratives and characters to make learning unforgettable: 1️⃣ Introduce a relatable character. Give learners someone to connect with— a peer, a mentor, or a “guide” navigating the same challenges they face. ✅ A new hire learning the ropes ✅ A manager coaching their team ✅ A customer making a tough decision 2️⃣ Frame learning as a story. Instead of dumping information, take learners on a journey. ➡️ Start with a challenge or conflict. ➡️ Show the character making decisions. ➡️ Reveal the outcome—good or bad. Example: Instead of listing customer service best practices, tell the story of Alex, a rep handling an upset customer. Let learners choose Alex’s responses and see what happens next. 3️⃣ Make it interactive. Give learners control— ✅ Branching scenarios ✅ Role-playing ✅ Problem-solving challenges 4️⃣ Tie emotions to learning. Stories make information personal. When learners care about the character, they remember the lesson. Engaging content isn’t about what you teach— it’s about how learners experience it. 🤔 How have you used stories in your training? ----------------------- 👋 Hi! I'm Elizabeth! ♻️ Share this post if you found it helpful. 👆 Follow me for more tips! 🤝 Reach out if you need a high-quality learning solution designed to engage learners and drive real change. #InstructionalDesign #StorytellingInLearning #EngagementMatters #LearningAndDevelopment

The Quick Guide To Engaging Prospects with Storytelling RULE #1: Be Generous. You must show up as: -Aware of their needs or eager to learn their needs -Unafraid to be personable and engaging – even when your heart is beating fast and you’re gripped by preliminary anxiety -Confident in the power of your product to help them, even transform them to a better place -Forthright about everything you can do to help them get the results they want to fix the problem they want to fix. RULE #2: Implement Storytelling to Create Bonding. Our brains regard the story form as unpredictable, causing us to enjoy hearing stories and remember them. What’s more, stories are a route to firming up relationships. They are also an unlimited natural resource. For instance ... 1.     Stories can come from anywhere – they are literally lying around, waiting to be picked up. 2.     You can build a book of ready-to-use stories from your own experiences. 3.     Getting in the habit of writing them down (even categorizing them for future use) makes the delivery of outreaches flow. RULE #3: Adhere to the Classic Storytelling Preparation Plan. 1 - ASSESS THE STORY MISSION What kind of result do you want to get with your story? Present yourself as likable, trustworthy and authoritative? Stress your company's credibility while telling its origin story? Talk up the skills of your colleagues or CEO? Close a deal? 2 - FOLLOW THE STRUCTURE Good basic business storytelling generally includes:  ·      A setting  ·      A mission ·      Characters ·      A dilemma ·      A turning point ·      A solution  ·      A message 3 - LEARN ABOUT THE AUDIENCE Uncover as much about your audience’s demographics, values, problems and goals as you can BEFORE you speak. Adjust your story as needed, per your mission. 4 - CREATE KEY WORDS Turn your script into a list of key words that arouse you emotionally. Be open to altering words to meet changes in the mood of the room. Conversational language is not the same as written language. Even a script you created for yourself days or weeks ago might not fit how you feel and need to speak in a conversation today. 5 - CHOOSE A VOCAL TONE Decide on an appropriate vocal tone for your delivery and stick with it. Your tone when you have just met someone and are trying to establish trust, likability and authority will differ from your tone later in the relationship when you are trying to close a deal and speak with greater familiarity. P.S. What’s your best story you have shared with a prospect? Or heard somebody else share? #StorytellingForSales #CustomerEngagement #BusinessStorytelling #SalesStrategies #ConnectWithCustomers #MarketingTips