Engaging Ecommerce Audiences With Storytelling

My wife asked me why I was working at 11 PM again… Stop there. What did you think? What did you envision in that sentence? Did you know that is basically a story? One sentence and I put you in a scene. I work with a TON of clients who "hate" storytelling, so their content across all touchpoints is just an endless churn of really helpful advice. Here's what happens: They post frameworks. They share templates. They give away their best stuff for free. Zero engagement. Zero leads. Zero brand recognition. Meanwhile, their competitors are building audiences by sharing simple moments that anyone can visualize. Just yesterday I was on a call with a founder. Smart guy. Been creating content for years. Posts five times a week religiously. Newsletter up and running. YT channel is active. His content? Pure education. "5 ways to optimize your sales process." "The framework I use for customer discovery." "How to build a high performing team." All useful. All ignored. (Thank goodness he's a hunter... in sales parlance. He can go out and find sales... ) Then he tells me this story about his power going out in Bali while he was trying to pay an electricity bill he'd never paid before, running around town, missing sales calls, ending up at some random restaurant with a cocktail just trying to get WiFi. I said, "THAT'S your content." He looked at me like I was insane. "But that doesn't teach anything about business." Wrong. That story teaches everything about resilience, problem solving under pressure, adapting when systems fail and still showing up for your commitments. But more importantly, it makes him HUMAN. It makes him memorable. It makes people think, "I want to work with this guy." See, storytelling isn't about being dramatic or profound. It's about setting a scene in one sentence so people can SEE what you're talking about. "I was in a board meeting when..." (You can picture the room) "My biggest client just canceled..." (You feel the gut punch) "Got a text from my wife during my presentation..." (You know that panic) These aren't elaborate tales. They're moments. But moments people can visualize stick in the brain. Pure advice gets forgotten the second they scroll past. Your expertise is commoditized. Your experience is unique. Stop giving away frameworks that anyone can Google/ChatGPT/Perplexity. Start sharing the moments that only you lived. That's how you build a brand people remember. PS- The client shared a framework he learned from Hormozi's own content guy (yes... he has access to that guy). All content is either Flexing, Educational and/or Transformational. I'm going to use his own words: he was pure educational.... What make's Hormozi great isn't that he's educational (he is) but he flexes and is very transformational (guess what both of those are... storytelling).

If your story doesn't hit in the first 5 seconds It's Over You don’t get minutes to earn attention anymore. You get moments. That’s why the best ads today don’t start by selling. They start by storytelling, fast. Take this campaign: It opens like a zombie thriller. Not a product demo. Not a stat dump. Not a polished brand shot. But a story that grabs your brain before it even knows what it's watching. So why does it work so well? 📌 It uses genre to create instant tension Within seconds, we’re in a world. It’s not just an ad, it’s a scene. A story. One you can’t look away from. 📌 It anchors emotion before explanation We feel before we understand. That’s what powerful stories do 📌 It educates through narrative By the time we realize the message (synthetic materials take 200+ years to decompose), we’re already emotionally invested. 📌 It aligns cause with creativity This isn’t preachy. It’s precise. The storytelling is the message. The product is the punchline. Want to build content that hits like this? Here’s a storytelling framework to try: 1️⃣ Hook with conflict Every good story starts with tension. Show us something broken, scary, or just plain weird. Make us lean in. 2️⃣ Introduce transformation What changes? What insight or solution comes next? Keep us moving through the arc. 3️⃣ Reveal your message last Don’t start with “what”, start with “why care.” Let the product or idea emerge from the emotion. 4️⃣ Make it feel cinematic Use sound, visuals, pacing, not to show off, but to bring your audience into the moment. 5️⃣ Keep it short, sharp, and story-first We’re in the TikTok era. But attention spans haven’t died, they’ve just gotten pickier. Stories still win. Always. The best storytelling doesn’t sell the product. It sells the belief behind the product. And if you want your brand to rise above the noise Stop pitching. Start telling better stories. #storytelling #branding #sellwithstories #marketingtips I share storytelling and creativity to help you and your company sell more and grow. Let's Connect! 1. Try my other course on LinkedIn Learning: https://lnkd.in/gTh8R5Mc 2. Join 10,000 others learning weekly growth tips at: https://lnkd.in/eCDKabp2 Use the 3-Act E.P.I.C Structure to turn stories into sales: https://lnkd.in/e9_eczTG 3. 3 Ways To Grow Guide: https://lnkd.in/gZaq56hT (no sign-up needed)

Two brands sell the same product on a store shelf. But only one grabs your attention. Why? It's not because of the benefits or tagline. → It's the story behind that brand that hooks you. The story explains why it exists. It also tells its purpose beyond profits. See, people don't buy what you sell - they buy why you sell it. This creates and emotional connection. Stories are what forge those bonds. The best brands in the world use the power of storytelling. - #Nike collects inspiring athlete stories. They show struggle and triumph. The stories personify Nike's "Just Do It" mentality. - #Apple positions itself as the underdog revolutionary. It shakes up the tech world to "Think Different" and empower creativity. These brands could sell shoes and electronics. But they tell stories about championing society. They do it through their products. So, how can you give your personal brand a magnetic story? One that customers invest in? First, identify your values, vision, and ideals. These drive it beyond profit. What impacts or changes do you want to make in society? Next, look at stories from your founding roots. Also, look at customer experiences that show those purposes in action. Personal anecdotes bring your brand storytelling to life. Finally, make storytelling a pillar of all your branding and marketing. Weave those stories throughout your content, visuals, and messaging. In the end, your products and services alone. They likely aren't unique enough to stand out. But communicating your brand's purposes and visions through compelling stories? That's how real differentiation is achieved. I'd love to hear about the stories shaping your brand's identity.

In a world where algorithms and analytics often dictate marketing strategies, I argue that content marketers should embrace a more human-centric approach through narrative-style storytelling. Sure, SEO plays a role in driving website traffic and visibility. But when we lean on it too heavily, it can overshadow the fundamental truth that content marketing is ultimately about connecting with people on a deeper level. The reality is: Humans are inherently drawn to stories. Always have been; always will be. From ancient myths to blockbuster films, narratives have always captivated us because they satisfy our innate desire for meaning and connection. Unlike SEO-driven content, which can sometimes feel mechanical and transactional, narrative-style storytelling leverages emotions, provokes thought, and forges genuine connections between brands and their audiences. When you prioritize narrative over SEO, you can get into character-driven storylines. Characters are the beating heart of any narrative—they bring stories to life, create empathy, and allow audiences to see themselves within the narrative arc. Companies are made up of people. People are characters who have experiences: Successes, failures, lessons learned…you name it. The question is: What stories can you tell, and how can you make readers root for you as a main character in the story? When brands weave narratives into their content, they humanize their message and make it relatable on a personal level. This emotional resonance helps create a community of engaged followers more apt to connect to the brand's values and mission. Moreover, narrative-style storytelling encourages authenticity and creativity in a way that SEO strategies often do not. It's one human telling a story to other humans. By crafting genuine, insightful, and thought-provoking narratives, brands can differentiate themselves and stand out in a sea of content that looks and sounds the same.