A while ago, I came across an article sharing:
“I have a rule to determine whether or not entire groups of people are playing to win. You simply have to ask:
Does their effort generate super funny stories?”
I LOVE this idea.
Most brands like to talk about their “values”, features, reviews, pricing, etc.
But very few have good stories to share.
Stories like:
~ In 1973, FedEx was on the verge of bankruptcy. The founder, Fred Smith, took the company’s last 5,000, flew to Vegas, and gambled it all on the table. He turned it into 27,000—just enough to keep the company offloaded for a few more days.
“At least the card tables didn’t reject our funding request.”
~ In the early days, Bezos and his team had to pack and ship all the orders from his garage. It got so intense that Bezos had to buy knee pads because they crawled on the floor for hours.
“Forget two-day shipping. We barely had two-knee functionality.”
~ Before Airbnb took off, the founders were so broke that they had to sell limited-edition cereal called “Obama O’s” and “Cap’n McCain’s” during the 2008 presidential election. The cereal made more than their rental platform.
“We weren’t running a tech company. We were running a cereal startup with a side hustle in rentals.”
Most owners are reluctant to share this kind of story because…
They think it’s “embarrassing.”
It damages their “reputation.”
NO
If you have a ridiculously dumb story, share it.
Stop putting yourself on a pedestal because there are infinite choices your prospects can buy from—easily—in today’s world.
As a result…
People buy from the brand they like (& trust).
So… how do you become THE brand they like most?
By helping them “learn” more about you.
By being more “human.”
By telling stories.
(ideally through your emails every single day)
Talk soon,
– WYH