What's Your Story?

By Mitchell Harper

Introduction
 
I purchased a MacBook Pro this morning, and I'm using it to write this week's newsletter. I've finally given up on Microsoft and the instability of Windows XP in favor of OSX. The funny thing is, just one year ago I would've never have considered purchasing a Mac. In the last few months, however, I've grown fond of Apple and I think I know why...
 
It's because Apple have a good story to tell, and that story has subsequently lead me to Apple's doorstep, so to speak. As a consumer, I'm sure you have a strong affinity for at least a few brands. For me, it's Gillette razors and Nike running shoes amongst other things. I am loyal to these brands because they have great products and they also have great stories.
 
I'm not going to turn this newsletter into an ad for apple, but here's how Apple's story lead me to purchase a MacBook:

1. I read "iCon" - a biography on Apple co-founder Steve Jobs about a month ago. Steve is very design orientated as am I, and I saw similar traits in Steve that I see in myself including things such as holding usability above anything else when developing new products. Long story short, I was able to relate to Steve.
   
   
2. I started hearing good things about Mac's when I asked my friends and other people who own a Mac. This lead me to Apple's web site, where...
   
   
3. I spent several hours reading about the upcoming release of OSX Leopard. The usability and genius of simplicity was something that appealed to me.
   
   
4. Finally, a 600MB memory leak in Windows XP on my laptop at home pushed me over the edge. I'd already convinced myself that OSX was better than Windows XP, and so the decision was made.

The point I'm trying to get across is that Apple has a story and it appeals to me. If you're a business owner then it's important to have a story and a list of things your company stands for should be part of this story, so you too can relate to prospects and customers.

What's Our Story?

This got me thinking about our story, and how you as a customer or potential customer might see us "from the outside". For those who don't know, Interspire was started by Eddie and I because we were frustrated with the lack of affordable, usable web-based software available at the time (way back in 2003).

As time has progressed we've come to stand for usable, powerful and affordable PHP-driven software that allows web designers with clients and webmasters to easily edit their web site online. Or send a bunch of emails. Or setup an FAQ. Anyway, you get the idea (see our "About Us" page for more).
 
What's Your Story?
 
If we as people like to purchase products from companies with whom we relate, then wouldn't it also be fair to assume that people will buy more from you if you can give them a story or set of ideas to relate to?
 
So how would you go about putting your story together? I think the best way would be to simply write a list of bullet points that include any/all of the following:

• Why your company is different to your competitors. As an example, we take direct featured requests from our customers and add them into new product releases. You can see this in action in our current ArticleLive survey.
   
• What you stand for as a company. Will you put profit ahead of anything else, or are you more concerned about making every customer happy? Will you go out of your way to personally thank a customer for his/her business or will you get someone else to do it?
   
• How your company started. Are you one of two people who started your company from scratch in a garage? Did it start because you were fed up with your competitor's products? Whatever the reason, you can turn it into a compelling story.
   
• What you can offer your customers. How can your products help them become richer/smarter/faster/stronger/better? Written and video testimonials from some of your customers can help here.

Once you come up with a list, choose the most important points and turn them into a few pages of text that you can add to your web site Throw in a few photos, customer stories and even media releases and you're well on your way to telling your own compelling story.

One important thing to remember is to never, ever lie to your customers or prospects. Your number one asset as a business owner is the trust of your customers, because that can translate into loyalty which translates into an increased lifetime value for each customer that comes your way.