Use The 7-Step Story Framework To Reach Your Customers And Sell More
Are you making your customer use too many brain calories?
We all know that stories are the most powerful tools for bringing change and reaching deep into people’s emotions.
It’s the one tool that can make a human sacrifice fewer brain calories and still force them to take action.
Do you want people to pay attention to what you’re saying? Tell a story. Easy-peasy right? But most brands mess up in this aspect. They make their brand all about themselves, keep hitting their chests with pride, wail about lack of customers, and go down the drain.
Why?
Because they don’t tell stories in the right way.
So today, I’m going to introduce you to a world-famous framework (commonly known as SB7) to make your job easier and more sales.
#1 A Character
Begin your story with a character who wants something. The hero. Your customer.
When you specify what you offer, you invite a specific type of customer into your story — a customer with the same problem who wants what you offer.
If your customer cannot understand your story within 2 seconds, they walk out. Sadly that’s the attention span of people today.
Ask: What do my customers want as it relates to my brand? Is my brand known for one thing it offers?
#2 With a Problem
Imagine this.
You have three specific files in your brain for three particular problems. You’re intently trying to find solutions to them.
Now, if you go into a website, it doesn’t ‘seem’ like they solve your problem at first glance. What do you do?
You stop giving a damn and move to the following site, right?
Define a problem your customer wants and solve it.
Ask: Have you clearly defined the problem your brand solves?
#3 And meets a guide
A critical paradigm shift
Someone like Dumbledore to Harry Potter. Or Jackie Chan to Jaden Smith in Karate Kid.
Your customers don’t need a hero. They need a guide. Someone who holds their hands and guides them through the dark tunnel ( problems) into the light at the end of the maze (solution).
When you imbibe this mindset shift, your focus will automatically go on them rather than yourself.
Ask: Are you positioning yourself as the guide?
#4 Who gives them a plan
What’s your role (guide) in your customer’s life (hero)?
Most companies make the mistake of asking for a sale at this stage. DON’T!!
Giving money from the wallet is scary. What if I lose? What if you dupe me? It’s a commitment, isn’t it?
By giving them a plan, you’re building trust. That’s why free trials are world-famous marketing strategies.
For example, when I take 1:1 sessions, I give the first session free:
- Listen to their problem and assess them. Also, know the WHY
- I draw out a customized plan for their communication strategies
- If they choose, I help them execute the process (paid)
Ask: Do you have a simple plan that makes it easy for your customers to do business with you?
#5 And Calls Them to Action
Challenge your customers to take action. Otherwise, they won’t. But it must be evident.
No one cares about your About Me or FAQs section. Do you have a “Buy Me” button at the top right corner? Or immediately after you’ve told the story?
If not, you’re losing out on thousands of dollars.
Ask: Do you have a clear call to action?
#6 That Helps Them Avoid Failure
We make choices because something’s at stake.
Harry Potter was ready to leave his comfortable life and friends behind to defeat Voldemort and keep his promise to Dumbledore.
In Pursuit of Happyness, Will Smith decided to do whatever it took to get a job to keep his son safe.
What will your customer lose if they don’t take action? What’s at stake? Are you drilling it down?
Ask: Have you communicated what’s at stake to your customers? What are the negative consequences of not doing business with you?
#7 And Ends in a Success
I hated sad endings my whole life and always gravitated toward happy ones because they gave me hope. Because they gave me tingles. The good kind.
You need to show customers how your product can positively impact their lives.
Your images and sales copy should only imagine a dream world where your customer’s problems are solved. Show them a life where they can pursue their passion, live free without body pain, enjoy movies with their family, or keep up their status with their latest car.
Remember that POINT A to POINT B should be ultra clear in your head.
**You don’t need to shy away from clickbait, ONLY if you solve what you promised. Are you promising the customer to make $1000 in one hour? It doesn’t go into clickbait if you can keep up your promise.
Ask: How can you help your customer envision success after doing business with you?
Now go back to your sales/landing pages or the one place you get your customers from, and think. How can I fit these steps into my brand? Am I telling a story here? Am I making it easier for the customer to understand, removing friction and preventing them from using more brain calories?
You’ll get your answer.
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