What's Your Story - Part I

A friend's daughter asked me the other day what it was that I did for a living.

Given that she is 7 years old, my usual answer, "I own and run my own marketing communications agency," wasn't cutting it.

I could tell by the blank stare I got in return for that answer.

Considering my audience, trying again I said, "I help companies market their products and services so they can sell stuff and make money."

Better - she seemed to be considering that. "So how do you do that?" she asks.

"I create websites and brochures, I write direct mail packages and newsletters and I help my clients get these things in front of their new customers," I said.

"So that's all you have to do to get people to buy stuff?" she asked me.

"Well, no," I said. "It's more than just the brochures and websites and stuff."

"So what do you really have to do then?" she asked.

And about this time I was wondering if all 7 year olds were this curious. I looked pleadingly to her mom, and all I got from her in return was a shrug and her reply, "welcome to my world."

"You have to put a whole integrated campaign together so that everything makes sense. You have to make sure everything is consistent with the image of the company you're promoting. You have to tell the customer a story," I answered.

"You tell stories for a living?" she asked, obviously amazed.

And I realized it was true. "Yep," I said. "That's what I do. I tell my customer's stories to their customers. That, in a nutshell, is what marketing's all about."

"Cool!" she answered.

Of course, marketers didn't invent storytelling - we just perfected an art that has been around since time began.

As humans, we're all looking for ways to explain the world we see. Early humans noticed things in their environment and invented stories to help understand them.

The sun rising in the East was the "Great Sun God" smiling upon them. Sickness was a curse brought on by any number of transgressions, and rain could be summoned by dancing in circles.

We've progressed (some) since that time. But we still all rely on stories every day to explain the world around us. We tell stories to each other, and we tell stories to ourselves.