{"id":16277,"date":"2017-05-08T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-05-08T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.causevox.com\/?p=16277"},"modified":"2024-05-08T22:09:32","modified_gmt":"2024-05-08T22:09:32","slug":"tell-stories-connect-move-inspire-everyone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/blog\/tell-stories-connect-move-inspire-everyone\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Tell Stories That Connect, Move, &#038; Inspire"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Have you ever noticed that a great story can pull you in, regardless of the specifics? A well-told story about a tax audit (the movie\u00a0<em>Stranger\u00a0than\u00a0Fiction<\/em>) is just as compelling as one about post-WWI expats witnessing bullfights in Spain (<em>The Sun Also Rises<\/em>).\u00a0The most powerful\u00a0stories\u00a0appeal to universal human needs, drives, emotions, and experiences.\u00a0We all relate to the desire for freedom,\u00a0recognition, connection, and\u00a0love.<\/p>\n<p>If you are trying to\u00a0rally people\u00a0around your cause, you need to\u00a0tell\u00a0your story along the\u00a0lines of these universal human tropes, instead of focusing too narrowly on the particulars of your issue.<\/p>\n<p>This can seem daunting, so we\u00a0created this guide to help you tell stories with themes that appeal to everyone, not just to expand your appeal, but also to engage with your audience\u2019s emotions.<\/p>\n<p>To illustrate, we will\u00a0be referring to some of the most moving ads used to sell some of the most\u00a0mundane, boring products out there, answering the question:\u00a0How does a company that sells household goods make itself relevant to the Olympics so that it can capitalize on\u00a0this high-profile\u00a0event?<\/p>\n<p>Proctor and Gamble released several TV commercials that did this brilliantly by telling a simple, exquisitely mundane story:\u00a0literally the day-to-day drudgery that moms go through raising their kids.<\/p>\n<p>Using Proctor &amp; Gamble\u2019s innovative\u00a0\u201cThank You, Mom,\u201d\u00a0ad campaign, which made household goods appeal to everyone on a level reserved for political\u00a0conventions\u00a0and sports matches, this guide will break down the elements of an emotional message.\u00a0We\u2019ll then show you how you can apply those elements in your own fundraising efforts.<\/p>\n<p>Take a minute to\u00a0watch the ad from the 2012 Summer Olympics. Have some Kleenex handy. You\u2019re going to need them.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BnBvlz8EaZ0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>After watching these ads, I forwarded them to my own mom, just to say thank you, so even though I\u2019m not P&amp;G\u2019s target consumer, they reached one through me.<\/p>\n<h2>A Universal Message<\/h2>\n<p>What makes the P&amp;G videos so effective is that they are universal. Even if you\u2019re not a mother, you had a mother, and you know that there\u2019s a lot of work that goes into raising kids. We all have memories of scraped knees, early-morning wake-ups,\u00a0comfort foods mom made when we had a bad day, trips to the doctor, and coming out of practice\u00a0or class\u00a0to our waiting moms.<\/p>\n<p>So when P&amp;G shows us\u00a0images\u00a0of mothers with their kids in these very situations, all we need are short clips\u2014touchstones\u2014to\u00a0trigger these memories in ourselves, and then we\u2019re\u00a0reliving them ourselves.<\/p>\n<p>The video universalizes the message even more by featuring clips of mothers from all over the world. Rather than alienating specific segments, it serves to show that we\u2019re all the same, actually increasing the sense of solidarity and connection.<\/p>\n<h3>Put It Into Practice<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Look for universals: What about your story is something anyone can relate to?<\/li>\n<li>Look for the key points of that message: Instead of trying to convey the entire story, focus on a few key moments or pieces that can serve as reminder of the whole experience.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For example, if your nonprofit finds shelters for disabled animals, highlight the love that all pet owners feel for their animals and the shared experiences. You can certainly put some focus on the unique challenges of raising a dog with three legs or a blind cat, but remember to point out how the essentials are all the same.\u00a0Some key scenes: the first time you bring a pet home; getting up at night to care for a scared puppy; finally giving in and letting it sleep in the bed with you; the first time she gets a trick right; the time she comforted you when you had a rough day.<\/p>\n<h2>Let The Scenes Speak For Themselves<\/h2>\n<p>One thing you\u2019ll notice about the P&amp;G\u00a0ad\u00a0is that there are practically no words. We get a few murmured lines, but they are less informative and more illustrative.<\/p>\n<p>What makes the\u00a0ad\u00a0really powerful is that actions are allowed to speak. We don\u2019t need to be told what\u2019s going on, how the characters feel, or what the\u00a0significance is. We see the moms doing dishes, dropping kids off, driving them around, and we know that the message is, \u201cMoms work hard, and they do it all for love.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>P&amp;G\u00a0saves\u00a0its\u00a0pitch for the end, and\u00a0doesn\u2019t overtly\u00a0ask for anything. They simply say that they are there to support moms, who are the real heroes of this story.<\/p>\n<h3>Put It Into Practice<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Avoid too much explanation.\u00a0Remember\u00a0Wall-E, where the first act of the movie has no words at\u00a0all?\u00a0If you have to explain a lot for the audience to understand what\u2019s happening, consider reworking how you tell the story.<\/li>\n<li>Keep your message tight. Don\u2019t try to cover every aspect of the story. Have a specific message and focus on getting it across.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Make The Audience The Hero<\/h2>\n<p>We used to be bombarded with advertising that sought to make us feel inadequate. The product was there to rescue us from the (invented) troubles of our lives. Below is an extreme example, suggesting that failing to store-test fresh coffee is a serious problem that can have severe consequences and that the product is the buyer\u2019s savior.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16351\" src=\"https:\/\/causevox.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/ad-example.jpg\" alt=\"Bad ad example\" width=\"905\" height=\"800\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Not very inspiring.<\/p>\n<p>If anything, you might buy out of fear, but you\u2019re not going to support the company because they just made you feel bad about yourself\u00a0and got you worrying about something you probably didn\u2019t even think about before.<\/p>\n<p>In nonprofits, this is done by showing pictures of misery and suffering with the message, implied or stated, that you should be doing something about it and that your\u00a0only excuses are laziness or callousness.\u00a0\u201cIn the time it takes you to brush your teeth, 150 acres of rainforest\u00a0are\u00a0destroyed.\u201d The point is to make you feel guilty, and by telling you that, they\u2019re basically creating a new worry in your day.<\/p>\n<p>What P&amp;G did that was so genius was\u00a0take\u00a0a back seat to the story. Even more innovative, they took the Olympics and made it a story about moms, their target audience, rather than the athletes we usually focus on. They made their audience the heroes, not only of the day-to-day work of raising a kid, but of the entire Olympic games.\u00a0Their message was, \u201cMoms: you are already awesome. You rock all by yourselves. And we\u2019re here to help you be great.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>If P&amp;G made sports equipment, like Nike does, then the hero would have been the athlete, and the story would be one of independent motivation and self-sufficiency. But athletes don\u2019t buy paper towels and dish soap. Moms do.<\/p>\n<p>Check out our other post on using the\u00a0Hero\u2019s Journey\u00a0to make your audience the hero of their own story.<\/p>\n<h3>Put It Into Practice<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Make\u00a0your story about your donors or your beneficiaries.<\/li>\n<li>Cast yourself as\u00a0their supporter or their sponsor.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For example, highlight how amazing great pet owners are. Or, make the pets themselves the heroes (they\u2019re not the donors, but people still relate strongly to heroic animals and want to help them). Your message could\u00a0essentially\u00a0be, \u201cYou\u2019ve got a big heart. We can help you make a difference in a pet\u2019s life,\u201d not, \u201cWe save amazing animals.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Create Common Purpose<\/h2>\n<p>Watching the \u201cThank You Mom\u201d ads,\u00a0P&amp;G sends the message that it has a shared mission with that of its donors: to raise families.\u00a0The company isn\u2019t really trying to get moms on board with its mission. It\u2019s doing the opposite, showing that it is on board with moms\u2019 mission.<\/p>\n<p>Ideally, your donors have something they already care about and you have a particular take on meeting that need. The \u201cWhat\u201d is already shared. It\u2019s the unique \u201cHow\u201d that you bring to the table that you add to the conversation.<\/p>\n<h3>Put It Into Practice<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Find a way to show the audience you are on their team. One great way to do this is to show donors doing what they consider important while receiving support from your organization. This works well with testimonial-style videos.<\/li>\n<li>When you can\u2019t show the donors doing what they care about because it\u2019s too specialized (medical treatment for example), you can still include them by showing the how the results of your work support what they consider important.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Pet owners and those who want to help disabled pets want to make sure all pets have a chance for love. You can show them talking with one of your representatives to meet their next pet. If you provide medical support as well, you can show them with their pet at the vet. Another option would be to show one of your team members caring for a disabled pet, introducing it to the new owner, and then a scene of the owner and the pet enjoying a hike or a play session.<\/p>\n<h2>Listen First<\/h2>\n<p>It may sound trivial, but it\u2019s essential that you understand what\u2019s important to your audience. You work for a nonprofit, so it should be fairly obvious what\u2019s important in terms of causes, but you need to also understand what kinds of messages resonate with your audience.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Are they flinty, pragmatic types\u00a0who scoff at emotional messages, or do they focus on human connection?<\/li>\n<li>Do they need to see what\u2019s in it for them to help, or are they motivated by selflessly helping others?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Do your research by listening in on the social media channels that your audience frequents. If you use Twitter (which you should), set up lists and search filters to check out what content is being talked about and shared by the people you want support from.<\/p>\n<p>P&amp;G knew their audience: most of their customers are mothers providing for their families. What do mothers care about most? The success of their children. So the story P&amp;G told was one about mothers supporting their kids to become successful, feeling proud of those kids, and getting the one thing every mother wants more than anything else in the world: their kids to say thank you.<\/p>\n<h3>Put It Into Practice<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>What does your audience want? What motivates them, and how does that tie into the cause you are promoting?<\/li>\n<li>How do they like to see themselves? Do your donors want to feel like they are helping others succeed, or do they want the feeling of doing work directly? Do they want to belong or lead?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>To return one last time to our hypothetical disabled animal placement nonprofit, pet owners want to provide a loving environment for their animals to be happy. They want to play with their dogs and cats and snuggle up with them at the end of a long day. Tell a story showing that, and promising that you can help pet owners\u00a0with exceptionally big hearts\u00a0make that happen for an affectionate pet, and you\u2019ve got a winner.<\/p>\n<h2>Summary<\/h2>\n<p>Some stories just get the information across, and some do it with a bit of emotional impact. The best stories, however, connect to our humanity. They speak to us in a way that is inspiring without being preachy. In fact, the best stories don\u2019t say much at all. Instead, they are told in a way that lets the events speak for themselves. They connect with the unspoken ties that make us human and help us relate to one another, no matter what community we are a part of.<\/p>\n<p>If you can tell your story in that way, anyone who sees it will relate with the heroes, whether they themselves are part of that group or not.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s one more tear-jerker to leave you with. See if you can identify the elements I mentioned above in this P&amp;G ad\u00a0from Sochi 2014\u2019s winter Olympics\u00a0(okay, the overstuffed baby\u00a0on ice skates\u00a0was\u00a0a\u00a0wise choice, too).<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1SwFso7NeuA\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Have you ever noticed that a great story can pull you in, regardless of the specifics? A well-told story about a tax audit (the movie\u00a0Stranger\u00a0than\u00a0Fiction) is just as compelling as one about post-WWI expats witnessing bullfights in Spain (The Sun Also Rises).\u00a0The most powerful\u00a0stories\u00a0appeal to universal human needs, drives, emotions, and experiences.\u00a0We all relate to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":50747,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/HGG-Child-600x400.jpg","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/HGG-Child-600x600.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Gia Chow","author_link":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/author\/gia\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16277"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16277\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50747"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.causevox.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}