A shaggy dog story: Corporate story telling

The power of the anecdote: how to find stories for your business

It can be really hard to make things interesting – a client engagement email, a tweet or a blog post. There is one useful technique, though, that marketers have been talking about recently – storytelling.

Here’s Ira Glass, the host of the radio show This American Life, discussing this topic in this brilliant video.  He talks about the power of the anecdote and how it can grab your audience’s attention:

“The power of the anecdote is so great … No matter how boring the material is, if it is in story form … there is suspense in it, it feels like something’s going to happen. The reason why is because literally it’s a sequence of events … you can feel through its form [that it’s] inherently like being on a train that has a destination … and that you’re going to find something.”

Do you have a great story in you? If not, here are some tips for where to find them.

Use Kindle popular highlights to find great quotes

Go to popular highlights on the Amazon Kindle website. You can do this even if you don’t own a Kindle device. Here’s a link to the most highlighted passages of all time.

Either use this list, or search for a book of your choice. The search will return the most highlighted passages in that book. Pick one and build your story around it. Think metaphors or literal meanings.

You can use these to open your emails, introduce your articles, or in face-to-face conversations.

Browse Reddit for unusual stories

Although it looks slightly late 90s/early 2000s, Reddit is one of the best places to find stories or anecdotes.

Did you know that when you look at Berlin from space you can see different shades of light coming from the east and the west of the city? It’s all down to the difference between the light bulbs they use.

You can use a story like this one as a starting point when communicating your company’s merger with another business.

Check Quora for media stories around your topic

The website Poynter.org has an article that lists ways in which Quora can be used for finding stories. Ideas include:

– Finding out what people are saying about the topic you want to cover and what questions they’re asking about it

– Asking other people what they want to know

– Exploring the extent of interest surrounding your topic

Keep a story log to remember ideas

Many marketers keep story logs where they record ideas when they come across them. You can categorise your ideas and then just dip into your story log instead of browsing the net whenever you’re in need of a story.

Whatever you do to find your stories, remember the power of the anecdote.