Talent Learning Journey Step №3: Ideation & Storytelling
By Johanna Weigl
Storytelling is a key aspect of human existence and covers more areas of our lives than we might initially expect! As convincing messages are also a crucial part of the ZOLLHOF Talent Program, an entire workshop is dedicated to presentation techniques that will allow you to unveil important insights with the wow-effect they deserve.
Following the stages of an original Talent Journey, our current blog series already took a deep dive into design thinking methods to gain customer & problem insights as well as stirred up our entrepreneurial side to discover our own purpose! Now it’s time to take the next step and discover how to spruce up gained information with humor, charisma and empathy to engage effectively with your audience! The good news: you already possess these natural talents, so why not make good use of them?
Workshop №3 Ideation & Storytelling
With the interim presentations ahead, the ideation phase is not only about prioritizing and organizing gained user insights but also about presenting them effectively to the respective corporate innovator whose challenge the talents are working on.
The essence of each presentation is about catching the audience within the first seconds and telling a consistent story to keep their attention up until the last one! Hence, the golden rule is to engage with the people you talk to! How can you entertain, impress and excite them?
8 Steps for Storytelling Pros!
Copycat best practices on storytelling techniques and never lose a single listener by applying the following eight useful tips!
- Step 1: Understand your audience: Who is pinning to your lips? Telepath yourself into the mind of your audience, discover their hidden pain points, identify their desires and establish a common ground with them. Having a precise understanding for your audience is the vital base of your storytelling journey!
- Step 2: Know your message: What is your core information? Deliver content in an understandable, interesting and memorable way to make it stick!
- Step 3: Know your customers: What customer problems and pain points did you discover in your research? Reveal key insights, resulting value propositions and explain why your audience should care. Expert tip: remember to focus on facts over opinions!
- Step 4: Ensure a good structure of your story: You know the game, each story has an intriguing beginning, an accelerating tension arc main part and a satisfying end! If you incorporate a logical storyline your listeners will lend you willingly an ear throughout your presentation! Plus: check out the concept of contrast to create drama with before vs. after effects!
- Step 5: Be authentic: Make it a real-life story! There is no need to enter high spheres of science fiction, rather be yourself, build up trust with your audience and tell a story people feel easy to relate to!
- Step 6: Be visual: Visual storytelling allows complex data to be broken down into smaller digestible and memorable chunks of information improving engagement and retention. So, dive into your toolbox of graphics, images, short videos or animated GIFs — the field of possibilities is huge, explore it for each presentation!
- Step 7: Sell your story, not your product: To transport information in a genuine manner you have to believe in your offering and the resulting benefit for your audience. Remember: “People don’t really buy a product, service, or idea. They buy the story that’s attached to it” — Michael Margolis, Founder & CEO of Get Storied
- Step 8: Exploit the power of action titles: Create action titles that support the golden thread of your message! Check out more information about how to get to the point with action titles!
Motivated to lift your presentation skills to the next level? Check out hot recommendations by our Talent Lead Max on Business Storytelling Tips and Whiteboard Exercises to master your pitch!
Storytelling techniques for a WOW-presentation!
Depending on the information you would like to convey to your audience, different storytelling concepts support your message! While the well-known “hero’s journey” is especially equipped to demonstrate the benefits of taking risk, the “sparklines” technique offers you the potential to truly inspire your audience.
Mountain, nested loops, false start or petal structure — Convey insights in a way that steals hearts and heads of your audience by applying classic storytelling techniques!
Mastering storytelling techniques is vital on both your personal and business level! Thus, focussing on acquiring skills to present compelling, engaging and visual stories is an investment, which undoubtedly will pay-off. Thrilled to boost your problem solving and storytelling skills in the Talent Program? Apply now!
Johanna is currently working in the area of Content and Performance Marketing at ZOLLHOF as well as finishing her Master’s degree in International Business Studies at FAU. Being a culture enthusiast majoring in Marketing and Innovation Management, she has been collecting practical experience in different countries around the globe.
