Stories that Sell Blog
What IT People Really Think about Success Stories»
The folks at the Reference Success blog pointed me to a recent article about IT pros’ opinions of case studies, success stories and references. Scott Vaughn, VP of Marketing at. . .
What Works in Customer Stories – Small Biz Using Direct Mail»
I’ve talked to a lot of companies that use customer stories. It’s especially exciting to see how small businesses get creative with their case studies and success stories. I truly. . .
Interview on Trends and Uses of Customer Stories»
Britton Manasco interviewed me for his blog, Illuminating the Future, on trends in and uses of customer stories. His thought-provoking questions delved deep into customer storytelling today. New LinkedIn Group. . .
Cap Your Interviews with This Question»
If you cook, you know that the ingredients matter. Use the highest-quality ingredients and the end product tastes better than it would with lesser-quality materials. The same goes for a. . .
Give Away Your Story!»
I’m all for using stories to connect with audiences in direct marketing. So I was pleased to see a “case study” email land in my inbox from a vendor. The. . .
Speeding Up Customer Story Approval – One Thing You Can Do»
Responsiveness is an important part of all our business and personal relationships and interactions. When you ask for extra mayonnaise at a restaurant, you want it right away. When you. . .
April Teleclass: Writing a Compelling Customer Story»
Companies are increasingly adding case studies and success stories to their marketing mix. I’ve seen huge growth in awareness and use of them over the past decade. This form of. . .
What Works in Customer Stories: About Face on the “About Section”»
How often do you read the "About" section of a marketing piece – a brochure, press release or case study? Probably not very often. There are times when an "About". . .
Sage Software’s Clever Success-Story Marketing Campaign»
Sage Software’s "Sage 360" campaign is one of the most clever, comprehensive approaches to Success-Story MarketingTM I’ve ever seen. I devote several pages to the Sage 360 campaign in my. . .
SoftwareCEO.com Runs Excerpt – Getting Customers to Be Featured»
SoftwareCEO.com is the richest source I know of for advice for growing software companies. This week, Gordon Graham’s Tips and Tactics feature includes an excerpt from my book, "Stories That. . .
A CEO’s Storytelling Manifesto»
Storytelling has always been important to human society. From our earliest days, it’s how we learned and understood the world. Now, a CEO of a successful software company suggests that. . .
My Bumper Sticker Would Be…»
Where I live, in Boulder, CO, there’s a classic bumper sticker, “Keep Boulder Weird.” Austin, TX has it’s version as well. It’s a simple but powerful statement about preserving what. . .
CEO on Tour – Looking for Customer Success Stories»
I just saw an article on the Home Accents Today site about a unique marketing and customer loyalty strategy by a home furnishings manufacturer. The CEO of Guildmaster will spend. . .
Lessons from a Bad Case Study – #3 Ignoring the Audience»
How often do you see an email, piece of snail mail or ad that has nothing to do with you whatsoever? Every day, or maybe all day, every day, right?. . .
Lessons from a Bad Case Study – Making the Customer Look Bad»
Last week, we talked about how too much narrative derails a case study. That same bad case study also commits another serious offense – making the customer look bad. Sure,. . .
Lessons from a Bad Case Study – Too Much Narrative»
Ugh. I just came across a bad case study. On this day before Valentine’s Day, I would rather be sharing the love, but this case study provides too many learning. . .
Featuring Customers on Your Blog»
My friend and colleague Ray Gulick of Evolution Web Development ran a guest post from me today, “Nine Steps to Featuring Customer Successes on Your Business Blog.” Check it out. . .
The Audience That’s NOT Seeing Your Success Stories»
When a business creates a fresh customer success story, it’s eager to get it out in the public for all to see. The organization quickly loads it on the website. . .
The Success Story as Your “For Example”»
In conversation, most of us seem really good about giving examples. When you’re trying to make a point about something, you might throw in a “For example…” In sales and. . .
Googling Your Way to Better Customer Stories»
I recently realized that I use Google on just about every case study or success story I write. The search engine becomes my “man behind the curtain,” providing an answer. . .
