Everywhere you look these days, people are talking about using “stories” to present information. Storytelling is apparently the magic bullet to make all your reports riveting, your sales pitches irresistible, and your presentations Oscar-winning performances.
As is often the case, all this hype around the method isn’t always accompanied by good explanations, which may leave you with a lot of uncertainty. Why is storytelling so important? What does storytelling really mean? And how do you put together a presentation using stories?
Why Stories?
Throughout human history, we have used stories to explain and remember things. Stories resonate with us. The human brain seems to be designed to generate and hang onto them. Stories are remembered. Stories inspire us.
This is very handy to know when you’re tasked with communicating information to a group of people. If you want them to pay attention, remember what you say, and take action, storytelling is one of the very best ways to do it.
How Can a Presentation Become a Story?
Obviously, you’re not going to get up in front of the Board of Directors and recite a fairy tale. But if you’re presenting quarterly sales numbers to management, it can be hard to look at a bunch of numbers and raw data and imagine telling a story with it.
Here are five tips for finding the hidden story within your presentation and bringing it to life:
There are almost always people involved in generating even the dullest of data sets. Recognize whose actions, decisions, or goals lie behind the information you are communicating. You may be able to talk about brilliant managers, hardworking employees, innovative marketers, or loyal customers. If you can briefly focus specifically on the journey or contribution of a single person, it will make the story even more relatable. Think about how politicians use anecdotes about individual constituents in their speeches.
Most stories are about a journey. If you are talking about a change from the past to present, or present to future, you can describe where things were then, are now, and will be later. Set the stage by showing how the past (or current) state is undesirable, and then describe the journey to improvement. What actions have been taken, or need to be taken, to get from here to there?
Every story has challenges or obstacles. This is where conflict and tension come from. What are the roadblocks to the journey? How will they make things difficult? How can your characters tackle and overcome them? What are we up against, and what are we going to do about it?
Everybody loves a story with a happy ending. Get your audience emotionally invested in the outcome. What is at stake? What will success look like? What would failure look like? Discuss the consequences and results of action (or inaction) in terms that your audience can relate to. How will that outcome feel to your characters, or to your audience?
If you have an anecdote or personal experience that is relevant, share it. It’s okay to get personal, and even vulnerable, as the audience will generally identify with you. Personal stories resonate and foster rapport. Just don’t ramble – make sure to keep your story short and to the point.
5 Tips for Storytelling
Don’t Tell – Show
If you can use a striking visual aid to illustrate your point, it’s an additional sensory piece that will help your audience understand and remember your message.
Use a Metaphor
It can be very effective and memorable to use rhetorical devices to compare your data to something else, especially when combined with a visual aid.
Give it a Twist
Stories become much more interesting and exciting when there is a surprise or a twist, like an additional, unforeseen obstacle, or a sudden breakthrough. If you have one, use it!
Give Them Pause
Pacing is important in storytelling. Whenever there is an opportunity for wonder, reflection, or suspense, give the audience a moment of silence to bring the emotion home.
End Strong
Don’t let your story putter to a stop like a car that’s run out of gas. End with a bang that will drive your point home and leave them with something to remember. If you want them to take action based on your message, make sure it’s clear what action is expected.
Baker Communications offers leading edge Presentations Training solutions that will help we address the goals and achieve the solutions addressed in this article. For more information about how our organization can achieve immediate and lasting behavior change that leads to success during presentations in any setting, click here.
