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Story Development Ideas
By
Patricia Fripp CSP, CPAE
You have read, or heard me say, stories make a speech or sales
presentation more interesting, memorable and 'visual.' Remember,
your audience remembers what they 'see' in their minds more
than the words you use. In my sales training I recommend you
call your satisfied clients and interview them about their
experience of doing business with you.
Follow this formula:
- Situation - the problem they had before you did business
together
- Solution - what product, service or advice did you give
that solved that problem
- Success - how has their condition changed...in their words.
To customize your talks interview 'heroes' from your company
if you are delivering an internal presentation, or from your
client's 'heroes' if they hired you to speak. When you interview
your 'hero' start at the beginning of the incident they are
telling you about. Get as many details as you need to make
the story interesting. As Alfred Hitchcock said, "Movies are
like life with all the dull parts left out." Also, use as
many of their words as possible. For example, when I was interviewing
Nancy Albertson from Sprint about her simple idea that made
Sprint $13 million dollars at the time I interviewed, my first
question was "What is your title?" She replied, "I'm just
a secretary. I guess you call me a big gal with big ideas."
That is colorful dialogue...and she said it. That was a good
start. Her story was brilliant. In the retelling is came alive
as her actual conversation was used throughout. Don't report
on the conversation, repeat the actual words.
As screen writer Robert McKee says, "Stories are the creative
conversion of life itself into a more powerful, clearer, more
meaningful experience. They are the currency of human contact."
You will enjoy this next example from my friend Ann Wylie's
writing newsletter...
Find
the defining moment, the New York Times way.
When Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Carlie LeDuff had
to take his turn writing profiles about 9-11 victims for
the New York Times, he used an interesting interviewing
technique.
He'd call a member of the victim's family and ask for
the most defining moment in the person's life. Then he'd
say, I'll call back in half an hour to give you time to
think about it.
The results: mini-profiles that went beyond the conventional
data of a person's life.
"I was very aware that these profiles were the last thing
-- they were for history," LeDuff says. "I didn't want
to write, 'He was a dog person.'" |
With a little work your stories will go down in history as
far as your audience's are concerned. Thanks Ann. If you want
a sample of her newsletter write to Ann Wylie, Ann@WylieComm.com.
Mention you read about Ann Wylie on Fripp.com.
(472 words)
Patricia Fripp CSP, CPAE is a San Francisco-based executive
speech coach and award-winnning professional
speaker. She is the author of Get
What You Want!, Make
It, So You Don't Have to Fake It!, and Past-President
of the National
Speakers Association.
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