Making Business Ideas and Strategy Stick with Storytelling

When the football game between India and Nigeria started it took a quick turn. The Nigerian side understood that they were up against unexplainable forces. Every time a Nigeria player tried to kick the ball, they saw a ball of fire, or an approaching Lion, or a stone. The only Nigeria player Samuel Okwaraji, who risked scoring a goal, lost his life in the 77th minute of the game. The final score was India beating Nigeria 99–1. I still remember this story even though I heard it over 30 years ago in Nigeria. This urban legend has been told to millions in Nigeria. The same urban legend is told in Ghana and some other African countries, and it has stuck. Storytelling can be a vehicle for driving ideas deep into the minds of your audience. It is a strategy that businesses can use to impact the emotions of their audience. Ideas or strategies layered in storytelling can yield tremendous results. This article offers a technique to make ideas stick, and how to make storytelling a strategy.

Bob Iger CEO of Walt Disney said, “Your strategy is only as good as your ability to articulate it.” Unfortunately, many businesses make the strategy document hard to understand to their employees. Strategies and ideas should not be complicated or alienate a few. Businesses should aim to design and communicate strategies systematically to ensure universal understanding. Often strategy is about change or where a business what to be in the future. If a business makes its strategy and ideas simple, more people will connect to it, even owe it. That ensures that some are not left to figure it out on their own. Yet, how many of us can say we understand the strategy of their organization? A poll of 23,000 employees by Stephen Convey in the book “The 8th Habit” shows the following:

• Only 37% understand what their organization’s strategy is
• Only 1-in-5 understand the difference between the tasks, team, and organization’s strategy

Do you understand the daily tasks, and monthly goals, or the long-term steps to achieve that? Using everyday stories of how solutions were offered helps communicate core values. Yet, we find ourselves lost in a sea of information or with fancy buzzwords struggling to convey ideas in a way that does not resonate. It is important to lay it out early in the business because a good strategy can develop into an organizational culture. When strategy or idea is wrapped in stories, it becomes a lot more memorable. An example is Michael Kors. When the business was starting, his strategy was to make clothes for women that were versatile, glamorous, comfortable, and accessible. He used that strategy to bootstrap the business into an eight-billion-dollar business. The core value of the business is the best design, the best quality thing at that price. He built a cross-generational brand to wear. He styled his windows to communicate with customers. The early showrooms were known to be adaptable and quick to change. For example, if it’s raining the show glass styling adapts to the weather, and clothes and accessories are changed quickly. The story of Michael Kors highlights that whether it is communicating ideas, formulating strategy, or building a new product, it is germane to craft it in a way that will be memorable.

Ideas or strategies can be likened to a football team. When everyone understands their roles, and teammate’s roles, and plays the strategy from the coach, they are likely to win. Picture the opposite, if they don’t understand the core values and role in the team. Let us assume the urban legend of Nigeria vs India goal is true, The Nigeria team will be likened to that team that does not understand their organization’s strategy, doesn’t know their teammates, or what position they are playing in the organization.

In the same way, when the ideas, or strategy is not understood, the organization is set to fail and disconnect even employee. To prevent this kind of scenario in an organization, building a narrative that captivates the audience is highlighted in the book, Made to Stick. Chip and Dan Heath. The book developed the acronym SUCCES as a framework for creating sticky stories.

Simplicity: In business storytelling, simplicity is important. Ideas should stand out. The art of making ideas simple is the art of practicing exclusion. Core + compact= simple. Imagine a business is changing to be a customer-oriented business, using simple words to communicate will ensure everyone gets it. Consider the core message to convey, strip away the complexities, and present it in a way that everyone can understand. Using metaphors and proverbs can make ideas more compact and sticky Avoid. the “curse of knowledge” with fancy words and memos. Replace data with individual stories that are memorable.

Unexpectedness: Surprise your audience! The surprise element of what is happening next makes storytelling effective. Engage their curiosity like a skilled storyteller, weave twists and turns the predictability of the ideas. Predictability spoils excitement, so the goal is to break the guessing game and fill the gap created in the minds of the audience.

Concreteness: Abstract concepts often get lost in translation. To make your ideas or strategy to story stick, incorporate tangible elements. Paint vivid images, use relatable metaphors, and employ real-life examples. Turn data into individual stories. When your audience can visualize your ideas, they become more relatable and memorable. A concrete narrative ensures your message is not just heard but deeply understood. Use analogy: ‘When something is hard you can say it is like brushing the teeth of a crocodile. When it is easy it is like a walk on the beach.’

Credibility: Trust forms the bedrock of any business relationship. Back your story with credibility. Provide evidence, statistics, or real-world examples that validate your claims. Testimonials, case studies, or expert endorsements add weight to your narrative. Credible stories foster trust, building a strong connection between your brand and your audience.

Emotions: Infuse your business narrative with genuine emotion. Whether it’s empathy, joy, fear, or hope, evoke feelings that resonate with your audience. A heartfelt story not only captures attention but also fosters a deep emotional connection. When people feel, they remember, ensuring your story lingers in their hearts and minds.

Stories: At the core of SUCCES lies the art of storytelling. Business stories should be more than a sequence of facts; they should be journeys. Weave narratives that captivate, inspire, and drive action. Use relatable characters, plot twists, and resolutions that leave a lasting impact. Business stories, when told with finesse, have the power to influence decisions, shape perceptions, and drive business growth.

Importance of building a storytelling strategy

Storytelling creates lasting impressions in memory, leading us to recall whenever we encounter related elements. Let’s take the urban legend in the beginning, Why has persisted in the minds of millions, despite not being true? The reason is people connect the elements in the story easily. The Nigeria vs India football game urban legend has stuck because people connect to some facts in this story that have happened at different times.

• It is rare to see India play football because India withdrew from the 1951 World Cup because they were not allowed to play barefoot.
• Samuel Okwaraji died of congestive heart failure in August 1989 in a game against Angola, not India.

When events are rare, it grabs attention. The two facts in the story are a rare occurrence, so connecting the elements to the urban legend has made it stick. A storytelling strategy will bring the core values of a business to the surface. It can help any organization determine its next set of strategies. Businesses should develop a storytelling blueprint. In business storytelling, the SUCCES framework serves as your guiding star. The ideas and strategies need to be simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, emotional and have stories to have a deep impact. Your business story, when imbued with the essence of SUCCES can be effective in designing a working strategy. The process of finding the core value requires all the stakeholders' participation. It requires identifying the centre of the idea or strategy and concentrating on channeling attention there. The next part of this article will use the SUCCES framework to develop a business storyboard.