The success of your strategy relies on delivery by people who are already telling -- and believing -- stories about your brand and position. Do you know what they are? An excerpt from Storyworks: How Stories Can Advance Your Business Cause and Career.

1. mind
THE GAP
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2. AN EXCERPT FROM:
H O W S TO R I E S C A N A D VA N C E YO U R B U S I N E S S , C A U S E A N D C A R E E R .
SHARLENE SONES
W W W. B R A N D S TO R I A .CO M
COPYRIGHT 2012 BY SHARLENE SONES/BRANDSTORIA PRESS

3. YOUR BRAND STORY IS NOT DEFINED BY YOU ALONE:
IT’S ALSO SHAPED
BY THE PERCEPTIONS
AND VIEWPOINT OF
Others
E M P LOY E E S S TA K E H O L D E R S
CUSTOMERS PROSPECTS
INFLUENCERS INVESTORS
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4. DEFINED &
DELIVERED
BY THE PEOPLE WHO WORK FOR AND WITH YOU,
I N W H AT C A N B E O R S E E M L I K E I R R AT I O N A L G LO R Y
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5. THEIR
STORIES
Are
YOUR
REALITY
“ W E D O N ’ T H AV E T H E R E S O U R C E S ”
“OUR BUDGET ISN’T BIG ENOUGH TO WIN”
“THE COMPETITION IS JUST TOO STRONG”
“ L E A D E R S H I P D O E S N ’ T R E A L LY WA N T T O C H A N G E ”
“THERE IS NO CLEAR PLAN FOR GROWTH”
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6. ARE THEY ALIGNED TO
YOU R S T R AT E GY ?
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7. T O S TAY O N T R A C K :
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8. The Story Gap
THE
DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN
YOUR DESIRED STORY
and
T H E O N E ( S ) R E A L LY
BEING TOLD
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9. FA I L U R E
TO MIND THE GAP CAN HAVE
SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES.
FOR YOUR BRAND,
A POTENTIALLY FATAL FLAW
SIMILAR TO THE DANGER LURKING FROM A
FA I LU R E TO M I N D T H E G A P O N LO N D O N ’ S T U B E ,
S T E P P I N G S A F E LY O V E R T H E G A P B E T W E E N T R A I N
A N D P L AT F O R M
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10. S T R AT E G I S T, L E A D E R , P R OT E C TO R
OF BRAND & BUSINESS
YOUR JOB:
Relentessly
FIND AND WORK TO
CLOSE THE GAPS
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11. THE STORY GAP Revealed:
W H AT D O E S C A D I L L A C S TA N D F O R ?
CAD 4 LIFE
5 DIFFERENT PEOPLE RESPOND WITH 5 DIFFERENT ANSWERS:
A M Y G R A N D PA R E N T S ’ C A R
B G A S G U Z Z L E R C E LV I S
D B I G , F L OAT I NG B OAT-L I K E R I D E
EHIP-HOP URBAN
W H AT C A D I L L A C S AY S :
T H E N E W S TA N DA R D O F T H E WO R L D
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12. BE HONEST AND ASK YOURSELF:
W H AT D O YO U
R E A L LY WA N T
FROM THE PEOPLE
WHO INFLUENCE
Your Success?
“ B U Y- I N ” O R “ O N - B O A R D I N G ” I S M O R E A B O U T
WA N T I N G P E O P L E TO J U S T AG R E E W I T H YO U .
WHEN YOU ASK FOR FEEDBACK DO YOU
R E A L LY, R E A L LY WA N T I T ?
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13. I F YO U WA N T TO I N F LU E N C E T H E M
T O B U Y, F O L L O W O R B E L I E V E
CONSIDER
Their S T O R Y
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14. C U LT U R E E AT S S T R AT E G Y
FOR
B R E A K-
FA S T -PETER DRUCKER
C U LT U R E
TRI-
UMPHS
VISION
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-PHIL COOKE

15. TO KNOW PEOPLE
WE MUST KNOW
their story.
- DA N P. M C A DA M S
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16. STORIES CONSTITUTE
a uniquely powerful currency
I N H U M A N R E L AT I O N S H I P S .
- H OWA R D G A R D N E R
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17. To SUCCEED WE
SEEK relationship.
WA N T A J O B ?
E S TA B L I S H R E L AT I O N S H I P S I N
A NETWORK TO HELP YOU.
WA N T TO S E L L M O R E ?
C R E AT E R E L AT I O N S H I P S W I T H C U S TO M E R S
B Y C O N S I S T E N T LY D E L I V E R I N G O N Y O U R
P R O M I S E TO G A I N T R U S T.
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18. “OUR SUCCESS HAS
R E A L LY B E E N B A S E D O N
partnerships
FROM THE VERY
BEGINNING.”
- B I L L G AT E S
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19. W H AT ’ S T H E # 1 T R A I T T H AT H A S L E D TO YO U R S U C C E S S ?
“I Love People”
“ P H Y S I C A L AT H L E T I C A B I L I T Y
IS A DIME A DOZEN
BUT
R E L AT I O N S H I P S A R E
EVERYTHING”
- BILLIE JEAN KING TENNIS CHAMPION, ENTREPRENEUR
AND LEADER FOR SOCIAL CHANGE
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20. People WHO WILL
U N D E R S TA N D O U R
S I T U AT I O N S A N D
H E L P U S S O LV E O U R
PROBLEMS
H U M A N R E L AT I O N S H I P & I N T E R A C T I O N
C A N B R I N G VA L U E & M E A N I N G TO O U R L I V E S .
R E P R E S E N T I N G VA L U E C R E AT I O N AT I T S F I N E S T.
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21. YOUR GOAL
BUILD
TRUST
THROUGH
Relationship
WITH
PEOPLE
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22. BY FINDING COMMON BONDS AND
CONNECT-
ING THE
DOTS
A QUICK CONNECTION
B COMMONALITIES
C OPPORTUNITIES
D A FA S T T R AC K F O R W H Y YO U S H O U L D C A R E
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23. GIVING PEOPLE THE
OPPORTUNITY TO HIGHLIGHT
THEIR
OWN
Stories
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24. NOBODY CARES ABOUT YOUR
C O M PA N Y O R P R O D U C T.
THEY CARE ABOUT THEIR
OWN DREAMS AND GOALS.
Help them achieve
their aspirations
- HENRY FORD
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25. LEVERAGE THE POWER OF EVERYONE
AS A STORYTELLER AND POWERFUL
C ATA LY S T F O R Y O U R B R A N D S T O R Y.
STORY BASED
C A M PA I G N S
CA N I N T E G R AT E
FA M I L I A R C O N C E P T S
AND VEHICLES:
BLOGS VIDEO FORUMS EVENTS
A D V E R T I S I N G D I S P L AY S
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26. T H E VA L U E :
DELIVERING
Meaning
HELPING PEOPLE RISE ABOVE THE
M A R K E T C H A O S TO U N D E R S TA N D
T H E S T O R I E S AT P L AY A N D T H E I R
I M P L I C AT I O N S F O R B U S I N E S S .
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27. ENABLING:
M A R K E T I N G C A M PA I G N S
T H AT WO R K
EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP
IMPROVED NETWORKING
BETTER SEO
S T R AT E G I E S T H AT
LIVE AND SUCCEED
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28. Artfully
POSITIONING YOUR
BRAND FOR:
OPPORTUNITY
POTENTIAL
SUCCESS
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29. THE
AUTHENTICITY
OF OUR STORIES
PROVIDE THE
REAL-LIFE
PROOF AND
SUPPORT
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30. S O , I F Y O U R E A L LY WA N T M O R E T H A N A
MARKETING
SHOT IN
THE ARM
C O N S I D E R H O W Y O U A C T I V E LY
C U LT I VAT E , N U R T U R E A N D D E L I V E R
YOUR STORIES TO REINFORCE AND
S U S TA I N YO U R B R A N D
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31. MORE
MEANINGFUL THAN
A C A M PA I G N
C R E AT E , S U P P O R T A N D L I V E A
Storied Position
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32. S TA R T L E V E R A G I N G YO U R S TO R Y
Give
PEOPLE ANOTHER
REASON TO
Care.
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33. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sharlene Sones is a brand-building and marketing specialist that understands the power of a story
to sell your product, advance an idea, communicate your value and point the way toward potential.
As Founder of Brandstoria, Sharlene helps entrepreneurs and organizations tap into the heart of
their brand. Her approach is rooted in experience launching hundreds of products in sports and
entertainment, when she’d think about the strategy for a new product based on its fit with the
larger story people held about the brand. Today, she connects this storytelling perspective with
traditional branding practices that can surprise and delight in ways that matter.
Over the past decade, Sharlene’s worked with and consulted to a wide range of agencies,
organizations and global brands including Benetton Sportsystem, Spalding Sports Worldwide,
LPGA, Tiffany & Co, University of Pennsylvania, Sigma Designs, IMS Health, Forefront Records,
Barnes & Noble Collegiate, Womens Sports Foundation and more.
She’s a frequent presenter of workshops and keynotes at conferences including Jeff Pulver’s
BrandsConf, Reinvention Summit, and The Babson Forum on Entrepreneurship.
When she’s not working on someone else’s story – she’s living out her own in Pennsylvania’s
beautiful Lehigh Valley, or, as she refers to it, “the deep, deep, deep suburbs of NYC.” And while
she’s put aside a single-engine airplane in favor of a bicycle, you can find Sharlene using power
tools: creating something on a wood lathe (Bowl? Pen? Art?) or tackling a DIY home project.
Sharlene earned her graduate degree in organizational dynamics from the University of
Pennsylvania and holds a B.S. in management from Babson College, where she serves on the board
of the Babson Alumni Association.
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34. Thank You!
BRANDSTORIA.COM
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