Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller (summary)

Building a StoryBrand Book Cover (Donald Miller)

2 critical mistakes brands make when they talk about their products and services:

1. Failing to focus on the aspects of their offer that will help people to survive and thrive

• You must position your product or service as something that fulfills any aspect of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs — survival, be accepted, achieve an aspirational identity, bond with a tribe. All other things are noise. Nobody cares.
• All great stories are about survival — either physical, emotional, relational or spiritual. A story about anything else won’t work to captivate an audience. Nobody’s interested. This means that if we position our products and services as anything but an aid in helping people survive, thrive, be accepted, find love, achieve an aspirational identity, or bond with a tribe, good luck selling anything to anybody.

2. Causing customers to use too much brain power to understand your offer (communication MUST be simple)

• Most marketing collateral does not work as they are too complicated. The brain doesn’t know how to process the information. The more simple and predictable the communication, the easier it is for the brain to digest. Story helps because it is a sense-making mechanism. Story formulas put everything in…