Six Big Mistakes in Selling with Customer Case Studies
A guest post by Casey Hibbard These days, buyers increasingly rely on the experiences of others to make decisions. We consult Amazon reviews before clicking “Add to Cart,” talk to friends about their...
View ArticleNew LinkedIn Endorsement Feature: Genius or Blunder?
In the midst of the presidential election season, LinkedIn has rolled out its own endorsement program… I consider myself pretty savvy with LinkedIn, but something caught me completely off guard today....
View ArticleWhat to Do When the Hero is a Crowd…
The myth of the solitary genius responsible for momentous advances is strong in American society. The legend lives in the tales of Thomas Edison and Steve Jobs single-handedly inventing the lightbulb...
View ArticleA Single Hero. Don’t Settle for More.
A quick question. In rural Pakistan, how much lower is the literacy rate for females than it is for males? Well, chances are that you have no idea of the exact percentages, but you do know who Malala...
View ArticleConsumers Hungry for Brand Stories
An October 2012 survey by Edelman Berland and Adobe found that American consumers are looking for deeper brand engagement than banner ads and social media “like” buttons. 73% of the 1000 adults...
View ArticleAizuchi Playbook: Brand Your Business with Story
Would you like more people to better understand the great work you do? If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know that I believe that most business leaders have amazing stories that would build...
View ArticleCoffee, Lunch, Coffee, Network
Do you have a love-hate relationship with networking? Does the misperception that networking is cheesy, sleazy, and awkward keep you from putting together a plan that might actually help your career...
View ArticleCan You Explain to Grandma?
“So what exactly do you do?” You will probably be asked some form of this question during Thanksgiving tomorrow or at other gatherings with family and friends in the coming months. Do you have a brief,...
View ArticleWhy I Want a Computer to Tell Me a Story.
It’s often said that humans are hard-wired for story; that we learn and communicate through the code and language of stories. Some say that the capability for story learning is in our DNA. Yet for all...
View ArticleStories: More than Campfires (Infographic)
The simplicity of the storytelling tradition, born around the campfire, is part of why stories still work in so many modern settings. Whether you’re responsible for the “brand of you,” or a billion...
View ArticleDoes your business have a compelling future story to share?
As the new year begins, it’s time to ask about your future story. Call it a “vision story” if you like, because it will probably be more motivating and memorable than organizational mission and vision...
View ArticleTwo Weeks to a Good Habit
I forgot to eat the chocolate! There’s a lot of motivation and inspirational talk going around this week, with New Year’s resolutions and the best of intentions in the air. But what we really need to...
View ArticleStory Radar (Not Everything is a Story)
Fine tune your story radar before launching into storytelling. The idea of storytelling for leadership and business is generating a lot of interest these days, as it well should. Stories are one of the...
View ArticleLiving Your Brand Promise Beats Pushing the “Brand Button” in Emergencies
(Guest Post by Alex Greenwood) The easy way to say your company is meeting the needs of its brand promise is to break the glass in an emergency, reach in and push the “brand button.” In this context,...
View ArticleStand Out with Story
“What does your organization do that no other organization can do?” Asking this question connects you to your brand story. In this brief video excerpt from the 2012 Philanthropy Midwest Conference,...
View ArticleWired for Story
“Stories are ancient technology. That’s why they still work so well in the digital age.” Whether you’re leading a business or non-profit, the power of stories for influential communication remains...
View ArticleWhat Shape Is Your Brand Story?
Some people talk about the “arc” of a story. Others talk about “coming full circle” and “forks in the road.” When we think about the emotional ups and downs inherent in a compelling story, our minds...
View ArticleA Business Love Story
In honor of Valentine’s Day, seven things I love about the way stories work: Effective. Research shows that stories can touch our left and right brain hemispheres, for more impact than an exclusively...
View ArticleBecoming the Confident Raconteur
Guest post by Jeff Brunson Do you believe you have a story? As a leadership coach, I’ve built my life around helping individuals see their story. While the individuals with whom I work know they have a...
View ArticleSee the Idea in the Story: Infographic Storytelling
The most effective stories communicate ideas and information with little effort. (At least it should be effortless for the listener.) But as information designer Jonathan Corum pointed out in a recent...
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