Beat Your Competition with Storytelling

Published by Katy Doss, Script CEO | August 27, 2024

Remember the old marketing adage, “highlight the benefits, not the features?” While that’s still definitely true, there’s an even better way to connect with your customers and sell your products or services. Storytelling.

In the world of luxury outdoor products and services, where affluent customers are discerning and expectations are high for anything you’re selling, even highlighting the benefits can fall flat.

In fact, psychologist Jerome Bruner found that consumers were 22 times more likely to remember details about a product or service when stories were used to sell them, rather than just facts and figures.

Affluent buyers seek more than just functionality; they desire an emotional connection and a narrative that resonates with their goals and lifestyle. This is where the power of storytelling comes in.

Weaving compelling stories around your products and services helps you create a profound impact that goes beyond transactions and fosters connections and lasting relationships.

Why Stories Matter

Let’s talk about why stories matter and why they’re a non-negotiable when it comes to selling your luxury outdoor products or services.

Stories evoke emotions and differentiate your brand in a crowded market. They make your products relatable and aspirational, and they give a luxe feel that sets you apart from competitors.

How to tell stories that sell

So how do you actually craft these stories? I’m not going to lie, it can be difficult to get the hang of it, but once you do, you will reap the benefits. Let’s talk about three ways you can begin crafting stories that sell.

1 – Know Your Audience

The foundation of effective storytelling is a deep understanding of your audience. We talk all the time about affluent buyers and what they have in common, but you need to understand your particular affluent buyer.

To start, think about your best clients. What did they have in common? What differentiated them from clients who weren’t ideal, didn’t buy, or were a headache in general? Some of this information you know instinctively; some of it may take a little research. Think through how they found you – was it word of mouth or an ad? What stage of life were they in? Were they buying for their primary residence or a second home? Do they have kids? Do both husband and wife work outside the home?

Once you have a good idea of who your target audience is, we recommend creating target personas for your business. Target personas, or buyer personas, are fictional representations of your ideal customers based on real data and strategic insights. They make it much easier to write stories for your business, because they let you speak to a “real human,” rather than an abstract idea.

Download our Storytelling Worksheet

For example, you may create a high-level target persona that looks like this:

Mary is a 51-year-old mother of two sons – one is a sophomore in college, the other is a senior in high school. She and her husband both work – she owns a bakery, and he is an accountant – but they’re both considering scaling back to enjoy time once both kids are out of the house. They value home time spent with family. They don’t own a second home, but have made substantial investments in their residence, and are ready to continue doing so to allow them to enjoy this space they’ve created…

You see where I’m going with this. Once you’ve fleshed out your target personas, you can see how it’s much easier to write a story for your business that will resonate with them. You’re talking to Mary, not an abstract idea.

I’ve written about target personas in a previous post, and if you haven’t listened to that one, definitely go back and check that out. But in general, you need 3-4 target personas for your business that give you information about who you’re talking to. Give them a name and a photo to make them more realistic and easier to write for.

2 – Use Real-Life Testimonials

Real-life stories from happy customers and clients are incredibly powerful. I’ve written previously about how the affluent appreciate social proof, which means they find value in hearing about your product or service from others.

But note – I didn’t say “real-life REVIEWS,” I said “real-life STORIES.”

If you have a customer or client who was especially happy with your product or service, get in touch with them. Find out how they’re using it. How it impacted their life. Why they would buy it again and again. Then mold that into the story.

Here’s an example:

If you’re a landscaping company that completed a design and build out of a beautiful backyard escape for a family, talk to the homeowner about a particularly fun time the family had there. Maybe the oldest child was home from college for the weekend, and what started as a simple dinner preparation in the outdoor kitchen turned into an evening dancing to favorite songs under the stars and telling jokes and stories until it was much later than they realized. The family made a memory thanks to their beautiful, functional outdoor space.

That’s a much better selling strategy than describing the granite countertops on the outdoor kitchen and the landscape lighting that lets you enjoy the space after dark.

Stories from happy customers provide social proof and make your narrative more relatable. Highlight how your product or service has positively impacted their lives, making it easier for potential buyers to envision themselves experiencing the same benefits.

3 – Tell your story visually

I say it all the time, but a picture is worth a thousand words. Incorporating high quality, professional lifestyle photos into your story solidifies the message with your target audience.

Lifestyle photos show your product in use – if you’re a pool company, lifestyle photos show a happy family enjoying time together by the pool, the kids playing, adults enjoying a beverage – potential clients can envision themselves there. If you’re installing hardscapes with outdoor TVs, showing a group of friends cheering on their favorite football team while grilling burgers shows potential clients they can have that lifestyle too.

Remember – you’re not REALLY selling products and services – you’re selling a lifestyle, family time, time with friends, a better quality of life.

Your lifestyle images should be professionally shot and used throughout your marketing efforts to reinforce the story you’re telling. Imagine reading the story and then seeing the visual – your ideal customers are practically signing the contract.

What if You’re Not a Writer?

I know – it can be difficult. Luckily we have a free worksheet to help you craft a compelling story on our website. Download our Storytelling How To Guide from our Resources page.