3 Stories to Make Work in Your Content

SHARING STORIES IN YOUR CONTENT WITH EASE

It’s no secret that stories are key to great content and marketing. 

But sometimes, when you actually go to share them, you can get a little stuck! The goal of this episode and short article are to inspire you to bring in more stories AND to not get stuck in overthinking or worrying when you do. 

“Tell more stories!”

The advice is ubiquitous and there are ideas galore on what these stories should consist of, where you should share them, and how to implement them. Even for a person who loves a good story, I feel overwhelmed by the advice out there 99.99% of the time. 

Simultaneously, I know it IS important and beneficial for your content to share stories.

Stories make your brand and message more memorable and build trust, relatability, and emotional connection with your community. Stories show the benefits of your product/service way better than you can ever tell about them by simply focusing on the features. 

There are a plethora of stories you CAN share in your content: 
  1. Origin Story 
  2. A Defining Moment 
  3. Lessons from Failure 
  4. Turning Points 
  5. Client Success Stories 
  6. Before-and-After
  7. The First Sale/Client 
  8. Behind-the-Product Stories
  9. Team Stories
  10. Case Studies
  11. “This Happened to Me”Stories
  12. Customer Journey Stories
  13. Funny stories
  14. Metaphors

The list goes on and on and on and on…

With ALL those options, it can feel overwhelming and you probably also don’t want content that’s JUST story after story.

Sometimes stories aren’t what you need to share, some stories don’t need to be shared, and sometimes you’re just fresh outta’ stories. 

For the purposes of this article, we’re focusing on 3 you can sit down and jot down for yourself and set into motion right away. Prefer listening to reading? Check out the episode where I discuss this at the link below.  

The Origin Story

I did a whole Content with Character episode on this recently, so to recap, the Origin Story is: 

  • How you started your business 
  • Why you started your business 
  • Challenges you overcame 
  • Successes and wins, it’s your WHY and can help people understand your purpose, values, and why you care. 

There’s a framework in improv that can be helpful for writing your Origin Story: 

Not my original concept, this is called the “Pixar Pitch” or “Once Upon a Time” framework. It’s a simple and helpful for a lot of people. 

Once upon a time…

  • Set the scene and introduce the main character(s).
  • Example: Once upon a time, there was a girl named Emily who dreamed of one day opening her own business 

And every day…

  • Describe the regular, unchanging world.
  • Example: Everyday, she locked herself in her room, and dreamt of being a writer, a shop owner, on the radio, or a bed and breakfast host

Until one day…

  • Introduce a catalyst or change that disrupts the status quo.
  • Example: Until one day, she finally took the leap into entrepreneurship and started a mattress shop with her husband  

Because of that…

  • Show the consequences or reactions to the change. This part may repeat multiple times.
  • Example: Because of that, she realized she loved creating content and marketing pieces for her business 
  • Because of that, she decided to help other business owners with their content marketing 
  • Because of that, she niched down into copywriting 

Until finally…

  • Resolve the conflict or achieve the goal.
  • Example: Until finally, she found her sweet spot where all of her dreams culminated into a dream business! 

And ever since then…

  • Describe the new normal or the lasting impact of the story.
  • Example: And ever since then, she’s been the world’s happiest business owner
Where to use your Origin Story?

You can share your origin story on your website, especially that About Page. You can turn it into a social post, share it in an email, on a podcast, and beyond!

Try it out try it out with this framework and have fun sharing what brought you to where you are. 

Client Stories

I love client stories for so many reasons: They give social proof, they help your future client see themselves in examples and stories, and they highlight the results and transformation you give people. 

You can use client stories to share bits of your process, what makes you different, what makes your clients your clients, etc. 

A consulting client recently asked me a great question about sharing client STORIES in her content. She said, a lot of hers are confidential, personal, or about someone in her network. So what then? Where does that leave her with sharing them? 

I love being specific in my stories AND sometimes I don’t want to be wildly specific for reasons just like this. 

So, here are four ideas that allow you to still share the story without upsetting your client/colleagues/friends or having to share from inside the depths of your personal world:

  1. Ask their permission* (I did that with this client story!) I flat out asked if she minded if I share
  2. Muddy up the details: You can take some creative license and skew the details a bit to make it a story that’s NOT actually about them
  3. Conglomerate multiple stories: For example, for this one, I could’ve said, “Clients ask me this all the time…” or I could’ve shown you three different ways they ask the same question, or how they get in their heads about it. You can mix and match common stories and turn them into one.
  4. Create a totally fictional character and tell their story instead.

If it’s a story that when they hear told about them, they’ll beam, then by all means -share the specifics! And if in doubt, go back to number one and ASK permission first.

If you’re really in doubt and questioning and it’s keeping you up at night whether or not to share or not share… think of a different story 😉

Client stories aren’t just limited to before and afters they can be questions they ask you, funny moments, misconceptions, and misunderstandings. Your first client, your favorite client, the most successful, a client you didn’t know you could help, a client that surprised you, a lesson you learned from a client, how you upgraded your approach thanks to a client. 

Don’t stop at just the simple case study! Think outside the box, and look for client stories great and small. 

Behind the Scenes Stories

AKA YOU in the wild. Why share them? I think they’re 1. Pretty FUN and weirdos attract other weirdos, so share your weirdness 2. They’re relatable, they show a bit more about you, your workday, your processes, the way you work, and you can weave in lessons when applicable, which I love doing. 

I’m a lesson finder. I go to the grocery store and come up with a life lesson or marketing tip. 

Other stories to tell are mishaps and mistakes, humorous moments, wins, flops, defining moments, personal challenges. There are SO many! If you don’t want to get too specific, use those same four principles we talked abo​​ut for client stories when it’s called for: 

  1. Ask permission.
  2. Muddy up the details.
  3. Conglomerate multiple stories.
  4. Create a fictional character.

Here are some questions to turn over when you’re about to tell a story so you can ensure you’re doing it with the right intention: 

  • Is this my story to share? If not, do I need to / can I ask permission first? 
  • Will sharing this hurt or embarrass someone?
  • Am I being honest, or am I exaggerating? 
  • Why am I sharing this story? 

Here are some of my favorite practical Tips for Finding/collecting my stories

  • Keep a “story vault”: a list of ideas, moments, or client wins you can draw from later. 
  • Look for the lesson or insight in everyday moments – give yourself time after a call, appointment, etc. to Reflect and pause. Journaling is hugely beneficial for this. 
  • Use prompts – Google, AI, get a book like Story Stash “What’s one challenge I’ve overcome recently?” or “What’s a funny or unexpected thing that happened this week?” 

What else do you want to know about making stories work for your content? Reach out! I love hearing from you!