Preaching About Retail Storytelling

My grandfather, Johnny Fleener, was a remarkable preacher.  Grandpa Fleener was known all around our Midwestern area as an energetic fire and brimstone preacher. I assure you that nobody fell asleep in the pew when Johnny was in the pulpit. I vividly remember him pounding on that pulpit and scaring the life out of me, and that was 40 years ago.

Like most preachers, Johnny was also a great storyteller.  He spoke in such vivid detail about Moses and the parting of the Red Sea that I was sure he must have been there.  I'd be thinking to myself, "How old is this man?"  And not only that, how was it that he seemed to have been present at every major event in the Bible?

Of course I knew that my grandfather had not actually been present for any of those biblical events but he sure had a way of transporting us there. A master storyteller, Johnny had a way of getting our attention, especially the children who seemed to hang on every word he said.

Johnny Fleener would have made one heck of a retail salesperson.  No, he wouldn't have told those tall tales about only one item being left in stock when there is a stack of them in the backroom (he was a preacher, after all) but I'm sure he would tell his customers stories to allow them make a purchase with confidence.

One his methods would have been to tell a potential buyer about a customer who is happy with her purchase.  But he wouldn't just say, "I have a customer who loves this widget."  He would relate in detail how the customer, using her first name of course, had recently come into the store with a big smile on her face wearing/using the widget. Johnny would probably go into great detail about how excited the customer was with the widget and how she had been recommending it to her family and friends.  He would probably even add that the customer was so thrilled with her widget she's probably recommending it to complete strangers. And I'm positive he would be creating another story as he walked the buyer to the register and asked her to come back and tell him how much she loves her widget, too.

Knowing my grandfather, I'm know he would have used storytelling in other ways.  He would probably create a new story with the buyer as the key character.  I'm positive he would help him picture where and how he would use his widget. This way, the buyer could try out the widget without even leaving the store.  I worked with a guy at Bose who was a master at this.  Not surprisingly, he sold circles around his colleagues.

I'm sure there are people who doubt the effectiveness of storytelling in retail.  I challenge them to try this exercise. Which is more effective in persuading you to try storytelling in retail, someone telling you, "Painting a visual picture of a happy customer is a great way to sell products," or me sharing of the story of my grandfather and how he would have used stories to sell more products?

Seems like a no-brainer to me. Then again, Johnny was my grandfather - so I know the impact of a good storyteller