See Carol’s bio, photo, and Part 1 of this Q&A, Part 2, and Part 3.

Q&A with Carol Mon (Question 4):

Q: One of the seminars you present is Tell Tales, Make Sales. How did you come to discover that storytelling is effective in sales? Do you have a story of a client that improved sales through storytelling?

A: Sadly, I stumbled upon this class. I belong to a Toastmasters group, and at the time there were several sales people also in the group. Knowing that I was a storyteller, one of them casually mentioned that he uses stories all the time in his sales process but that he didn’t feel he got all he could from the delivery. That got me thinking that maybe I had learned some techniques that sales people could benefit from. For one of the projects in the Toastmasters curriculum I put together a workshop for sales people. After receiving some good critique and glowing feedback for the presentation I developed it a bit more for the general sales population and started shopping it around. 

I had one client who actually told stories fairly well but tended to go on too long and include far too much detail. After we spoke he trimmed the story to the essentials and noticed more people seemed to listen far more intently. We also talked about the need to listen to the customer’s story first so that the sales story chosen fits the need. I don’t have any figures of improved sales, but the sales person is far more confident when he tells his sales story. 

See Carol’s bio, photo, and Part 1 of this Q&A and Part 2.

Q&A with Carol Mon (Question 3):

Q: How important is it to you and your work to function within the framework of a particular definition of “story?” (i.e., What is a story?) What definition do you espouse?

A: When I first got involved with storytelling I wrote “Storytelling in its simplest form is merely a relaying of events; in its art form, it is a mystical journey the teller and listener take together.” Both parts of storytelling have a place in our world. I still like the statement for how I believe it covers the different types of tales and would like to build on it by saying that I do not espouse one definition of story; one size does not fit all. Professional storytellers do not put much stock in anecdotes as stories and yet in the business world, anecdotes are powerful, easy ways to communicate. There are a few commonalities between all forms of story and those probably are what should be used to define story. Whether it is a one-liner, epic, ballad, poem, movie, anecdote, or fairy tale, all good stories evoke some kind of emotion and cause a connection between the teller and listener. Let’s not complicate it with pedantic definitions of opening, conflicts, resolutions, and character development. Many non-professional storytellers feel they should not use stories in their communications because their “stories” do not follow a strict form. A looser definition encourages more people to consciously use stories strengthening their messages. 

See Carol’s bio, photo, and Part 1 of this Q&A.

Q&A with Carol Mon (Question 2):

Q: The storytelling movement seems to be growing explosively. Why now? What is it about this moment in human history and culture that makes storytelling so resonant with so many people right now? 

A: Humans have always used story to communicate, even when it was not recognized as “storytelling.” Before the explosion of the written word there was the oral tradition. History, culture, ethics, morals and traditions were all passed along through stories. It feels like we got lazy when books became so readily available and then music, movies and TV all conveying stories in different formats. As we got busier we lost patience to sit and listen and yet we humans all crave to have our story heard. Since the explosion of digital media people are finding it easy to write or record their stories for their descendants and by all accounts many are taking advantage of the technology. 

Digital technology might be one answer as to why an explosion of storytelling now but I believe there are several contributing factors to the renaissance. I don’t believe we humans ever stopped telling stories; we just didn’t always call it that. Marketers are now calling it storytelling and demonstrating how powerful a story is to making a message memorable. Since so many people don’t feel heard the venues extended by companies to let customers tell their stories are growing in popularity. Customers feel a bit of celebrity and mostly they feel heard. 

The development of technologies like PowerPoint also has inadvertently pushed the effort to bring back more stories. What seemed like a great communication tool has been overused and abused. Audiences are lulled to sleep with dull slide after slide or dazzled with the technology and miss the point of the presentation. Experienced presenters are finding that the good old story is still the best way to get the message out. 

Families are spread across the country; we communicate via email, text messaging, and quick hellos as we pass in halls, shops or even the home because of busy schedules. All very impersonal, yet as humans we crave and according to some studies, thrive on contact and interaction with others. Stories connect us and ground us. As we grow apart with over-scheduling and technology choices we also seek out ways to connect resulting in the explosion of the storytelling movement.

What a delight to present the 17th in my Q&A series with story practitioners. This one is with Carol Mon, with whom I became familiar through the Golden Fleece group. See her bio below. Her Q&A will appear over the next five days.

Bio of Carol Mon from her Web site:

Bio: Carol spent 13 years in human resources and payroll and another five in radio and TV before finding her passion for storytelling. She draws on these experiences to help others create and tell the right story. Since beginning her career as a professional storyteller/speaker in January 2000 she has told a wide variety of stories to a wide variety of audiences and has delivered dozens of workshops on the power of story in communications.

Q: If you could share just one piece of advice or wisdom about story/storytelling/narrative with readers, what would it be?

A: A big mistake that I see many novices make is to write out their story and then try to tell it by reading. For the most part, the way we are taught to write is very different from the way we speak; therefore, the stories don’t flow. Complex sentence structure, multi-syllabic vocabulary, in-depth descriptions, and emotive words are all part of what we might include in a written story that may not be necessary in an oral presentation. 

When listening, people don’t have the luxury of going back to re-read a complex sentence or to savor the beauty of the sentence as they would if they were reading it. Yes, using elegant sentence structure can make the story come alive but too much in an oral presentation may tax the listener. The same is true with “big words” in an oral presentation. This is more from the presenter’s standpoint; too many multi-syllabic words in a row will slow the pace of the story and won’t always roll off the tongue easily. Some less commonly used words will add sophistication to the story — used sparingly is best. An oral presentation filled with many unusual vocabulary words will leave the listener translating definitions in his head, leaving little time for the imagination to develop pictures of the story. In written form, the reader is able to slow down when necessary, but in the oral form, the listener is forced along at the speed of the teller or risks being lost.

Part of the beauty of oral storytelling is the listener participates in the building of the story by using her imagination to fill in the full picture based on the description given by the teller. And part of the beauty of the written story is full descriptive scenes. Emotive words also are used very differently in the written form and in then oral form. When speaking, gestures, facial expressions and vocal changes all demonstrate emotions and different speakers. These must be translated into words to express what is going on in text form. Many of us are probably aware of the old saw, it’s not what you say but how you say it. Taking a dialog and copying it on paper can be flat; words might be needed to communicate the true meaning of what is being said. i.e., “Look! a fire” can be followed with, “how beautiful; let’s sit around it and toast marshmallows, or quick call 911. 

And finally, for the storyteller who may not be a talented writer, telling the story orally can help in the writing process. Numerous tellings can be compared to several written drafts without the labor of writing and editing. Telling a story over and over will help get the emotion and feel for the story so that when you attempt to write it many of the bugs will be worked out and can make the conversion to a written form much easier. Writing stories and telling stories are both satisfying experiences but take slightly different talents.  

It’s a great privilege to present the 16th in my series of Q&A interviews with story practitioners. I first met Sharon Benjamin in … ahem … the ladies room of the S. Dillon Ripley Center at the Smithsonian in 2005. I was eager to meet her because she and I both earned our PhDs from Union Institute & University. It was through Sharon’s contribution to a Union online discussion group that I first learned of the Smithsonian Storytelling Weekend and the wonderful Washington, DC, Golden Fleece group that has done so much to nurture my storytelling passion. I owe her a lot. See Sharon’s bio below next to her photo.

From the Web site of her consulting firm, Alchemy:
Alchemy principal Sharon Benjamin has built her consulting practice on the foundation of her deep experience leading and working for nonprofits as both a staff person and volunteer. Benjamin has raised more than $75 million for nonprofits since 1980.

Between 1985 and 1989, she was the Vice President for Development and Finance at the Environmental Policy Institute (EPI). When she arrived, this $1 million organization had a bank loan of $450,000 to cover operating losses, and was holding another $500,000 in soft debt (monies owed to staff and creditors). When she left at the end of 1989, EPI had an operating budget of $3.8 million, no debts and a reserve fund of $500,000.

In January 1990, she joined the staff of the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). Her task was to create a foundation giving program. Within 16 months foundation support for UCS had increased from $250,000 to $1.4 million.

At Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC), Benjamin oversaw a 10-person Marketing Department. During her 3.5-year tenure at RTC, organizational revenues increased by an average of 18 percent per year, to a record budget of $5.2 million. Membership increased by a yearly average of 15 percent, to an all-time high of 71,000 individuals. During this time RTC sold over 50,000 copies of organizational publications.

She has organized 35 major special events including the participation of Friends of the Earth in the Paul McCartney Concert Tour of 1989-90; film premieres; major donor trips and receptions; foundation and corporate briefings; and a bluegrass concert at the Lincoln Memorial. Read more here.

Q&A with Sharon Benjamin:

Q: What’s your favorite story about a transformation that came about through a story or storytelling act?

A: One of my favorite transformative moments — when story was key to transforming a group — came in a group of storytellers.

Golden Fleece, a DC-based group of people interested in narrative in organizational settings, used to meet once a month, for an in-person conversation about uses and applications of narrative - it was an interesting, interested group, and extremely diverse - held together almost solely by a topical interest in story. Many people in the group didn’t know (m)any others - there were times when it was clear that the group was having trouble navigating between its many roles — was it an “Association of Organizational Storytellers” a ‘community of storytellers” or all of these things at different times for different reasons……these were rich questions that many of us discussed, contemplated, and navigated………

Anyway, one night, Kelly Cresap, was facilitating and asked the group to think about a time when “they got unstuck” then tell that story (in triads) to one another. After a couple rounds of sharing, it was clear that something big was shifting in the group - Kelly closed the evening by having 3 or 4 people - chosen by the group (re)tell their story to the full group - and in the hush of the circle - looking around at the expectant, rapt faces of both the listeners and tellers, it became so clear that the shift in the group was enormous - from the professional body armor many of us came in wearing, to the emergence of wonder and heart. 

The whole session didn’t last more than three hours, and yet, hearing tales of derring do (of the heart, mind and body) in how people got themselves unstuck created a lovely spirit of recognition and learning and authentic camaraderie in that space. 

Q: If you could share just one piece of advice or wisdom about story/storytelling/narrative with readers, what would it be?

A: We have to do our own inner work with sufficient aerobic exertion that our own hearts are growing and deepening…because the danger in working with narrative is that we run the risk of, as David Whyte says “reenacting ourselves.” Telling stories in organizational settings (for transformation, change, learning, etc) requires some structure and has does have an inner logic — maybe I should say there are “liberating structures” to using narrative……….and knowing those requires practice and mindfulness - and in developing this mastery the risk is that we can become glib or rote - and the power of story - especially in organizational settings, is directly correlated with our ability to be vulnerable. 

So, doing our own inner work is a prerequisite - just as is practice in using of story forms and structure.

Q: Your web site states that the true mark of distinction of your consultancy is “its ability to understand and broker changes at multiple levels, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral in organizations.” To what extent and in what ways do you use storytelling in that process?

A: Stories end up connecting our external experience to our inner sense-making - so, during times of organizational change - which are usually high stress and full of ambiguity with diverse interpretations of what’s happening - stories can provide both opportunities for “norming” the group’s story and, at the same time, expanding the diversity of interpretation of external events - all at the same time.

A: Most of your experience is in nonprofits. What differences do you see in the ways nonprofits and for-profit organizations are or can be using storytelling?

A: Well, in the case of nonprofit organizations that have to raise money, I think there are fierce market forces that require [them] to be pretty good at telling stories that create a compelling vision of a better future……..if the organization can’t tell these kinds of compelling stories it eventually runs into problems raising money, so, I’d say that narrative competence is a basic prerequisite for organizational survival…….

On the other hand, in nonprofit organizations I’ve worked with, seem to have more trouble remembering to use story in-house with boards and staff. Maybe our mindfulness isn’t there, or maybe it’s not as comfortable - story does require a level of vulnerability that may feel riskier with close-in colleagues, rather than telling stories about our work and organizations to funders, donors and the public. 

Or maybe we just don’t spend as much time working on our internal use of story as we do telling stories outside the organization. 

Generally, compared to corporate or governmental organizations, I’d say many NPOs are advantaged when it comes to external storytelling but maybe a little behind in using story internally.

See Ardath’s bio, photo, and Part 1 of this Q&A, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.

Q&A with Ardath Albee (Question 7):

Q: Can you talk a bit about how story generates active relationships with customers?

A: People want to have relationships with people “like” them. To generate active relationships, stories must be told from an almost peer-to-peer perspective. That said, the other ingredient is value. Stories must first be relatable and then add value that’s relevant to the person you’re telling the story to.

This is the biggest argument for segmentation and getting to know your customers. People are interested in different aspects of the story based on their relationship to the subject matter. For example, a CIO will have different interests than a VP of Sales. Telling the same story to both of them is not likely to have the impact you want. You’ll either make your story so general it doesn’t interest either of them, or it will focus more heavily on the interests of one or the other.

Additionally, it’s important to remember that to remain relevant your stories must evolve over time. Just as versions of fairytales have been updated to resonate in today’s world, your stories must do so. Changes happen fast, priorities are shuffled with the latest quarterly results, so you must pay attention and continuously adjust and tune your stories to build engagement with existing and potential customers.

See Ardath’s bio, photo, and Part 1 of this Q&A, Part 2, and Part 3.

Q&A with Ardath Albee (Question 6):

Q: How did you discover that story-based marketing tools, such as B2B Website Stories and Email Story Campaigns were effective?

A: Trial and error. What I learned was that the better I knew my audience, the more relevant my stories were for them. I started seeing response rates climb and stay high. And I started seeing more people “raise their hands” to learn more. The best way to monitor online stories is with analytics and watching the ways your stories influence the behavior of your audience in relation to the outcome you wanted.

When I first started using stories for websites and emails, it was like pulling teeth to get companies to give up their staunch focus on products and “feeds and speeds.” (I do a lot of work with technology companies.) Then commoditization happened on a larger scale and companies started learning that their customers could buy a similar product from a number of vendors. They also found that exposing how they add value to their products became an important differentiator. That shift requires an entirely different story.

Companies will adopt stories a bit at a time. The best way I’ve found is to get them to try one campaign, prove the concept and then expand. “Story” is hard to sell because it conjures up memories of the Three Little Bears, Wuthering Heights or a personal anecdote. The fiction writer in me can relate, but essentially story is really about engaging your audience, regardless of format.

See Ardath’s bio, photo, and Part 1 of this Q&A and Part 2.

Q&A with Ardath Albee (Questions 4 and 5):

Q: The culture is abuzz about Web 2.0 and social media. To what extent do you participate in social media (such as through LinkedIn, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Second Life, blogs, etc.)?

A: I participate in LinkedIn, Twitter and write a blog. I also spend time reading other blogs and comment when I can. I’ve met some great people and spent time doing some great brainstorming via email from people I’ve met through my blog and by commenting on others. I answer questions on LinkedIn when I can and browse answers to questions that interest me.

Q: To what extent and in what ways do you feel these venues are storytelling media?

A: I think a lot of blogs are storytelling venues. I also think a lot of them are thinly veiled sales/marketing content vehicles. The difference is in the personal tone and style of the author(s) and their intent/focus for the blog.

When a blog post is written in a way that gives you a glimpse of the person behind it, someone whom you can relate to, the engagement is higher. Whether it’s because they agree or disagree doesn’t matter. Although lots of people try to avoid controversy. I know I’ve written some posts where I took a stand I knew would be in conflict, hit publish, and then worried that I’d upset someone. Turns out that those posts are the most fun and the ones people respond to and talk about on their own blogs.

Best of all, blogs allow people to voice opinions, extend other ideas and express themselves. And, in a world that’s increasingly putting distance between people by becoming more virtual, it’s important to build a new social structure to maintain a level of involvement that helps you feel a part of it.

There are a lot of different ways to tell stories. Every impression you make online tells a story. Whether it’s a picture, an article, a video or the comments made linking to someone else’s “story.” All those interactions become a cumulative representation of your (or your company’s) story.

LinkedIn is a bit harder to define. You can have a profile and never do another thing. Or you can answer questions and search for and add connections at dizzying speeds. The question I have about those who add anyone and everyone to their contact lists is — what’s the value? Is it like being the most popular kid in school, or do you really know and maintain relationships with all those people?

That said, I’ve also met and done business with connections made on LinkedIn. As in all things, I think it’s in how you use them. How you choose to present your profile is currently the biggest story you tell on LinkedIn. How you answer questions is giving that a run for its money, in my opinion. For example - Your profile may look great, but if your extended story is displayed through argumentative answers to questions, without substantiation for your opinions, I’m going to think twice about wanting to do business with you.

Twitter is still up in the air for me. I love the shortness of 140 characters, but I haven’t quite figured out the value of knowing what people are doing all the time.

I also think there’s a lot of storytelling going on in the ways customers review and rate products, like electronics or books. From a B2B perspective, think user/customer forums. You can learn a lot about what resonates and what doesn’t. And, if you look closely, you can learn a lot about the people posting the comments. It’s a great view into how well the story of a company plays with its customers.

See Ardath’s bio, photo, and Part 1 of this Q&A.

Q&A with Ardath Albee (Question 3):

Q: The storytelling movement seems to be growing explosively. Why now? What is it about this moment in human history and culture that makes storytelling so resonant with so many people right now?

A: Well, that’s a great question. I think there are a number of influences, but mostly I think the reason is the control people are exercising over selecting what information they spend their time with. There are more choices than ever before, people are busier with limited time, so why would they choose to spend that time on things that don’t meet their needs?

The more personalized and relevant information is to the person presented with it, the more engagement is possible. Storytelling is in our genes. We tell ourselves stories every day to explain the world around us. We like to think we have control over our lives, our circumstances and our choices. The beauty of storytelling is that it allows us to put ourselves into the action. The more we can relate to a situation or character role, the more “real” that situation is to us, and so are the possibilities it offers.

Dry statistics, facts, product features, technical details, etc. don’t mean anything without context. Relevance directly correlates to the background information a person has available as recall. This is why change is so hard. If your audience can’t “picture” the new way, then it’s very hard to embrace. Businesses that can help people visualize the differences their products and solutions will make have a better chance at success.

To my way of thinking, visualization is storytelling.

What a thrill to present the 15th in my Q&A series with story practitioners, this one with Ardath Albee. I came across Ardath as part of my great interest in using storytelling in marketing (in part because any marketing use of storytelling also relates to marketing oneself in job searches and career.) I found Ardath especially warm and receptive to my blogging about her, her business, Marketing Interactions, and the wonderful ebook, Why Marketing Stories Have Catch, she offers for free download. See her bio below.

Bio of Ardath Albee from her blog: Ardath Albee spent over 15 years servicing the most demanding customers in the world - acting as a turn around specialist in hospitality service businesses, specifically within the resort industry. Ardath knowns that every day and every interaction is all about the customer. All the time. Making sure people are satisfied and happy isn’t always easy. But it’s extremely worthwhile.

When she transitioned into the technology industry in 2000, she was fascinated with the disconnects she noticed in B2B companies; specifically how their intentions didn’t always translate well within their marketing actions.

There is a huge disconnect between what companies intend and in their ability to translate those ideas into effective, ongoing, consistent marketing and sales initiatives.

As president of Einsof for more than seven years, she helped companies implement marketing and sales performance software, only to see them under-utilize the tools. Worse yet, companies were often unable to leverage the full capabilities of Einsof’s software because they either didn’t understand how to implement the changes in the status quo required and/or they didn’t devote resources to the content requirements that would best leverage the opportunities the software afforded.

She saw the need for marketing to be implemented as a strategy that reaches across the enterprise. She couldn’t justify the disconnect between marketing and sales. She saw opportunities for tools and approaches that, if used to their full potential, could have a dramatic impact on streamlining sales efforts while capitalizing on business results.

Ardath began to successfully implement her ideas with Einsof customers. Writing the Marketing Interactions blog involved Ardath in substantial customer conversations, deepening her knowledge of what companies can achieve while verifying many of her principles. Read more here.

Q: How did you initially become involved with story/storytelling/narrative?

A: I’ve always written stories — since 4th grade English class. I have a degree in English literature and use it every single day for business initiatives. I also write women’s fiction for fun, although I’ve come close to publication and pursue that possibility when time permits.

I initially became involved in verbal business storytelling when I was a turnaround specialist for the hospitality industry. Trust me, hotel guests and country club members could care one wit about your business. They only care about the quality of their experience with it.

When I transitioned to the technology industry in 2000, it was intuitive for me tap those insights to generate content marketing campaigns for software, as well as in building solid customer relationships.

Q: What attracted you to this field? What do you love about it?

A: As president of Einsof, I saw our customers buying software to empower online marketing and then be frustrated because they were struggling to get results. It wasn’t the software, it was the content they were putting into it. I began helping them get results by showing them how to refine the way they told their stories and knew that I’d found my professional passion.

I’m absolutely intrigued with the process of involving people in visualizing possibilities. After all, that’s what every company is selling. The more realistically a prospect can engage with a story — envisioning themselves playing a pivotal role — the more likely they are to reach out to that company to get the outcome they can “see.”