Why your business needs a story

Monday
5:37 PM
PST
Halloween night

Believe it or not, the secret to creating great word of mouth is all about story telling. If people are not talking about you in the marketplace, in your town, in your city, in your community, it’s because of one little thing. You have not given them a story, which is worth sharing. Wow, what do you think about that? I don't know what to tell you. But today, I am going to recommend you change that!

With hundreds of millions of people connected on social networking sites, it has never been easier for your patients to share how great you are with their friends and family. Now don't get me wrong. I do NOT like FACEBOOK. But if you're on it, use it to your advantage in the right positive way.

All YOU need to do is give your patients a story worth sharing and make it easy to share. That's it. And... if you're stuck right now, I'm going to help you with the right story.

Winning stories

When someone has spent a week or two being wowed at a Disney resort, they have a story to share, which they tell to anyone who will listen. When someone has bought a product from the Apple Store, the people serving them are tasked with the job of ensuring the buying experience is worth talking about. And your business should be NO different. You want them to have a WOW experience no matter what it takes.

The companies with the best stories get the most word of mouth publicity, because people love to share their experiences.

Losing stories

So, the losing stories that spread, are the ones worth repeating. This is true of negative stories too. If a service provider in your town has a habit of under delivering on their promises, the story spreads. That includes any doctor. Bad experience = bad story. Disgruntled former patients will often feel the need to share their disappointment with their friends. I always tell people, you PISS me off and I'll tell at least 12 people, minimum. This is especially the case, if their experience of a provider is so poor, that they believe it will stop others from using that provider and suffering the same experience.

I remember just this year I went to a restaurant and they gave BAD service. Treated me poorly so I wrote the home office. I got a call from the manager, who wasn't there at the time, the general manager and some FREE tickets for a meal. I never used them but that just goes to show you that I tell anyone that will LISTEN.

Fake stories

A Chinese restaurant close to where I live was the victim of a fake story and now faces going out of business. Someone decided to start a rumor, which spread on Facebook and resulted in the restaurant losing a lot of money. The story was short and had a twist at the end, which caused it to spread into the national press.

The fact it was fake - didn’t stop it spreading, because people tend not to fact check, before sharing stories. Even one as unlikely as a lady going to the restaurant, who gets taken to hospital because of pain in her throat, which was caused by a microchip lodged in her throat that had been in the Chinese food she had eaten. The twist in the story, is that the microchip gets scanned and turns out to belong to… a missing greyhound dog! According to this report in the national press, the restaurant is now facing bankruptcy.

Your stories

So, what good wholesome stories do you have, which your patients can share? What have you done for your patients, which is so jaw-dropping awesome that they feel compelled to tell everyone they know? You see, it’s not enough to “just” provide a great service. It's really not. People expect great service, each and every time they walk in the office. Offering a great service may be enough to retain their custom, but it takes something extra, to get them talking about you. There is a minor difference, but it's a huge difference to your bottomline.

What was the last experience to impress you so much, that you had to share it with your friends? Please share your experiences and show your patients the kind of thing that gets people talking!

I know this is not a big thing, but it's the little 1%'ers that can get you the 110%.
Just keep hitting the smaller ones, until they add up to the big one.

Think about it.

Dr. Carney