The Power of Analogies and Metaphors in Demos and Discovery – Part 6: Storytelling!

Ah, stories! 

 

The most effective communications leverage the power of stories. Archimedes noted:

 

“Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.”

 

One might observe that where facts are the world, and analogies and metaphors are the fulcrum, stories are indeed the lever!

 

If your demo or discovery conversation is like a sixty-floor high-rise building, facts occupy the lower floors, with respect to memory and retention. The view is blocked and limited by surrounding structures, and the air is full of dust from the adjacent streets. Analogies and metaphors find comfortable lodging in the middle levels, enjoying improved views and fresh air. Up top, effective stories reside in the penthouse suites, experiencing sweeping vistas and stimulating breezes!

 

Chip and Dan Heath identified and characterized the key principles of stories and storytelling in, “Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.” This terrific book should be required reading for anyone in a customer-facing role.

 

For a pragmatic guide on how to apply stories in your demos and discovery calls, see Chapter 14 in the Third Edition of Great Demo! and see the article on Effective Storytelling (links are in the Resources).

 

So far, we’ve explored examples and methods to generate, capture, and apply metaphors and analogies in our customer-facing interactions.

 

Next: What not to do!

 

 

Resources:

 

The Power of Analogies and Metaphors 

in Demos and Discovery Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5:

https://greatdemo.com/blog/ 

 

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die

https://tinyurl.com/24m4m5jm

 

Effective Storytelling in Discovery, Demos, and More

https://greatdemo.com/effective-storytelling-in-discovery-demos-and-more-a-never-stop-learning-article/

 

Examples of Metaphors:

https://blog.udemy.com/metaphor-list/ 

 

Examples of Analogies:

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/analogy 

 

Suspending Disbelief: A Collection of Sales, Presales, and Marketing Stories (and Lessons Learned)

https://tinyurl.com/yc7rsrmy 

 

Doing Discovery:

https://www.amazon.com/Doing-Discovery-Important-Enablement-Processes/dp/B0B8RJK4C2/

 

Great Demo! Third Edition:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9SNKC2Y/

 

Visual Aids and Props:

https://greatdemo.com/remarkable-demos-what-makes-a-demo-truly-memorable/