Why do thousands of people line up outside department stores waiting for the doors to open on Boxing Day? The stock is the same as it was two days before, after all— what’s changed is the story the buyer gets to tell himself.

You are in the story selling business, as much as you are in the product selling business.
We all are, no matter how much we resist admitting it.
It’s as important to understand your customer’s narrative, as it is to communicate your advantages.

Start here.

Who exactly do you want your story to matter to, could you pick him out in a crowd?
What story are you asking him to believe about your product?
What actions are you taking to make that story resonate with him?

The product is always just part of the story.

Image by Anthony Abbott.