- Perhaps you've had the experience of attending a seminar or a lecture, and maybe it was a little boring. Your attention sort of drifted off, and then suddenly the speaker said, "I want to tell you a story about that." It pulls your attention in right? There's something about stories that capture our imagination. That's exactly why your small business needs a company story. It serves several purposes, first of all it helps build your brand. The company story is a bit of the lore the history of how you started things, and people want to know about that.
Second, it helps create advertising. You can put the company story on your website, you can add it to brochures, you can really use it anywhere where you're interacting with customers. Also, it will help with recruiting. Employees want to be a part of a company that's interesting, that has a history, so you can use the company story to attract them, to tell them a little bit more about your business. Finally, the company story helps create culture. After you hire employees, and while they're working for you the story becomes a part of the identity of your business, it becomes a powerful training tool.
In fact, new employees for Disney, the first thing that they do is learn about the story of Walt Disney. Now, there's no set structure to a company story, but here are a few guidelines. First of all, I recommend that you keep it short, usually four paragraphs or less. The shorter it is the easier it is for people to read and remember. Second, try to put as much emotion as possible into your company story. Think and feel about how you felt during the experiences of growing your business.
The more emotion in the story, the more people will connect with it. Third, try to use vivid images as much as possible. The more imagery you put in the more easy it is for people to imagine the experience, so rather than saying, "I drove a car," say, "I drove my pink Cadillac that was rusty," those kinds of images really pop in people's minds. Now, how to begin writing your company story, here are some questions to help you with that process. I recommend that as you listen to these questions, perhaps you pause this video, and write down your answers to what I'm asking you.
First of all, where were you when you started the business? What was going on in your life? What happened that cause you to say, "Now's the time for me to be a business owner?" What problems did you see needed solving, and that your business could solve for others? What challenges did you face along the way of being an entrepreneur? Do you have a customer story, an experience where a customer was so thrilled with their experience that they had to tell you about it? How about an employee story, something where they did something excellent for your customers? Or, perhaps you have an experience where you gave customer service above and beyond what was expected.
Write down your notes to these questions, and that becomes a starting point for your company story. Also you can find great examples of real company stories online just do a search for company story and see what comes up, odds are you'll find things that inspire your imagination. When you have a company story it becomes a powerful tool to build your small business brand.
Author
Updated
3/31/2015Released
4/15/2014Skill Level Intermediate
Duration
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with Todd Dewett7h 50m Intermediate
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Introduction
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Welcome48s
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1. Finding Your Most Valuable Customers
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2. Setting Fees and Prices
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3. Solving Problems
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4. Working with Family and Friends
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Managing family and friends2m 59s
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5. Creating a Business Plan
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6. Starting a Hobby Business
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7. Discovering Your Most Valuable Service or Product
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8. Bootstrapping Your Business
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9. Creating Culture
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Building company values2m 34s
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10. Getting Organized
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Managing your time4m 45s
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11. Marketing with Social Media
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Deciding on your channels3m 11s
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12. Business Entities and Compensation
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13. Small Business Accounting
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14. Finding Your Marketing Message
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Refining your message4m 56s
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15. Documenting Business Systems
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16. Balancing Work and Life
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17. Increasing Sales in Your Business
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Developing your sales system3m 15s
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18. Testing Whether You Have an Idea or a Business
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19. Hiring Service Providers
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Selecting and hiring vendors2m 51s
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20. Hiring Employees
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Crafting a job and pay range3m 58s
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Interviewing candidates7m 25s
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21. Motivating Employees
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Developing people and paths4m 24s
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22. Seeking Capital
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Crafting your pitch5m 40s
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23. Working With Difficult Customers
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Working through complaints6m 11s
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24. Letting Employees Go
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Making a smooth transition5m 58s
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25. Generating New Sales Leads
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26. Maintaining Focus as a Business Owner
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Avoiding opportunity traps5m 26s
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27. Thinking Like An Entrepreneur
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Getting rich your own way4m 16s
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28. Dealing with Competition in Business
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29. Avoiding Blind Spots
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30. Creating a Customer Experience
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31. Networking for Small Business
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32. Building Accountability into your Small Business Culture
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33. Dealing with Business Failures
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34. Improving Sales Systems
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35. Giving Back
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36. Setting Goals for Small Business
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Measuring your success3m 31s
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37. Channeling Your Motivation
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Why you deserve success3m 8s
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38. Building a Small Business Exit Strategy
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Exit strategy options5m 7s
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39. Building Customer Loyalty
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The role of customer loyalty3m 47s
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40. Building Employee Loyalty
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41. Structuring a Small Business
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42. Branding Your Small Business
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Crafting your company story3m 39s
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43. Dispelling Big-Business Illusions
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44. Understanding if Entrepreneurship Is Right for You
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45. Managing Remote Employees
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Leading from a distance3m 11s
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46. Crowdfunding Your Business
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Understanding crowdfunding3m 29s
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47. Cultivating Entrepreneurial Curiosity
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48. Growing into a Mature Business
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Putting it all together5m 50s
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Video: Crafting your company story