Words matter.

To be more specific, our choice of words goes a long way in determining the perception of others (just ask Netflix).

This concept beautifully comes to life in the video, “The Power of Words.”

Andrea Gardner, who heads the online marketing firm Purplefeather based in London, created the video.

Her sense of storytelling immediately comes through in the “About” section on the firm’s website:

I was working for a large newspaper group and contemplating a complete career change in the year 2000 when I decided to test this ‘law of attraction’ that I’d been reading about. So I visualised the most improbable item I could think of - a purple feather - and set the challenge that if it showed up in my life within a week, I would start my own copywriting business.

Exactly a week later, just as I’d dismissed it all as new age bunkum, I looked across the room to see the exact replica of the purple feather I’d visualised, balanced on the windowsill! After I started breathing again …

Andrea was good enough to answer a few questions on storytelling and “The Power of Words” video.

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Q: I really enjoyed the “Why Purplefeather?” section on your website. Did you find it difficult to share such a personal story? Did you have any concerns about potential clients who shy away from the metaphysical?

A: Thanks and yes it took a lot of mmm-ing and ahh-ing before reaching the conclusion that if I wanted to create a business that was in alignment with my personal values where we operate honestly, honourably and effectively, I was going to have to “walk my talk’. Many people have commented favourably on this page and it doesn’t seem to have deterred clients from more traditional commercial backgrounds.

Q: How do you get your clients to buy into a storytelling approach to communications? Or is it a self-selecting process in which prospects who already believe in storytelling gravitate to Purplefeather?

A: The ‘Power of Words’ video is also used as our commercial pitch so once people have seen that they are more curious about our approach. We encourage clients to turn their marketing process inside out and focus on why they’re in business and how that inspires the way they are making a difference rather than looking at their products/services and USPs. It’s more of a values-driven approach and helps them distil their unique message more effectively.

Q: Tell me a little about the genesis for the “Power of Words” video. Was this a story that had been percolating in your mind for some time? Did you storyboard the video?

A: ‘The Power of Words’ was not our original idea; it has been around for many years in various forms. We’ve always credited Alonso Alverez Barreda who created ‘The Story of a Sign’ on which it was based, however we were very conscious that it could be dramatically shortened and repurposed for the web. We originally intended to use it to promote my book ‘Change Your Words, Change Your World’ - which is entirely original and will be published in April 2012 - but when we trialled it at a business presentation, every one of the delegates had an emotional reaction and we recognised it conveyed Purplefeather’s values perfectly.

Note: You can see Mr Barreda’s “The Story of a Sign” which won at the NFB Online Competition at Cannes 2008, below.

Q: Did you know the video was powerful and would touch people before it went live?

A: Yes. However we were very surprised and delighted by the response because it sat for just over a year on YouTube without very many views.

Q: What do you say to prospects who come to you asking for a video that will generate 10 million views on YouTube?

A: I don’t believe anyone has the ultimate solution when it comes to viral marketing because much depends on the timeliness of the message and we’re all still on a learning curve. However there are some tips which can help create the conditions where uptake is more likely. Namely:

• Keep it short. Under 2 minutes if possible.
• Every scene/word has to earn its living online. Edit hard!
• Appeal to people’s emotions - humour and conscience work well. Emotive music helps too.
• For an international audience keep verbal communication to a minimum. 

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Thank you, Andrea.

We’ll be looking for your book in 2012.

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Given the journalistic hoopla triggered by Facebook’s PR campaign against Google, one would think national security is at stake.

The Wall Street Journal ran the story on the B section cover above the fold with the headline:

“Facebook Hired Firm to Target Google”

Really?

This constitutes a surprise worthy of 30-point type?

Here’s a “news alert.”

Companies strive to deposition their competitors on a daily basis. I suspect when Piggly Wiggly launched its breakthrough concept of a self-serve grocery store, the competition chirped publicly and privately about issues with PW’s concept (think about the germs, now you’ve got to do the work, etc.).

You don’t think Oracle on occasion shares unflattering things about Microsoft and vice versa.

The Mercury News splashed the headline on page one:

“Facebook Waged Stealth PR War on Google”

Stealth?

I don’t think so.

Stealth is Gordon Liddy organizing a band of yahoos to follow Nixon from rally to rally.

Look, the PR agency behind the Facebook campaign, Burson Marsteller, definitely made a mistake by not being transparent and sharing the name of the client.

But here’s the part no one is talking about.

Until  Christopher Soghoian posted his exchange with the BM rep on the Internet and Daily Beast blogger Dan Lyons connected the dots, how many journalists used the information from BM to write stories.

Without the context of knowing who was footing the bill for BM’s work.

But I don’t think we’ll be reading stories about irresponsible journalism.

Laziness doesn’t make good copy.

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This should have been the title for my session on corporate blogging at SoCon11 on Saturday.

 

That’s the greatest frustration for bloggers.

 

Forget getting people to care and engage.

 

The question on everyone’s mind:

 

How do I simply attract a meaningful audience?

 

Here’s the deck that framed the SoCon11 session on blogging.

 

 

The words “Content Is Not King” triggered an audible gasp from session participants.

 

Once folks refilled their lungs, we had a good discussion on what it means to create “compelling content” that stands out from the noise.

 

One final point that I think is fresh -

 

Check out the following screen scrapes from two of EMC’s blogs.

 

Whoever is leading EMC’s blogging charge gets it.

 

Chuck’s Blog:

 

Chuck’s Blog reflects the standard corporate ID.

 

Natalie’s Corner:

 

But rather than force Natalie Corridan Gregg to conform to the corporate “look and feel” guidelines, her blog enjoys appropriate design latitude for the topic of work-life balance.

 

Yet, Natalie’s blog is still highlighted on the EMC community page (hangs off its own URL as opposed to the EMC domain).

 

Very smart.

 

It’s a perfect example of how technical companies can show their humanity.

 

P.S. A colleague who works at EMC shared with me that part of the company’s “secret sauce” lies in decentralizing blogging in the spirit of authenticity. While it’s been a team effort, Jamie Pappas has been instrumental in forging the company’s Web 2.0 mentality.

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I’m referring to the “About” section of a blog.

Think about this for a moment.

What type of visitor is going to click for more information about your company’s blog?

Right.

First-time visitors.

This is the property’s big moment to make a positive first impression.

Yet, most company blogs simply push out the company line.

There’s no warmth, much less storytelling.

Rather than bash the guilty, I want to highlight an example (was going to say “terrific example,” but there was Mr. McCall Smith whispering in my ear) of a company that gets this piece right, Southwest Airlines.

The About section for Southwest’s blog kicks off with storytelling techniques at their best:

Southwest’s Cofounders got together in 1967 to discuss their idea for a new airline that would bring the Freedom to Fly to America, and when Rollin King finished sketching out the idea on a cocktail napkin, Herb Kelleher told him, “Rollin, you’re crazy. Let’s do it!”

How can you not like a company with a business model that fits on a cocktail napkin? Might be a Texas thing since Compaq had similar cocktail-napkin roots; albeit, without the same staying power.

Certainly, Southwest’s quasi-wacky culture provides more latitude than, say, a software company specializing in business rules management.

But the idea of being conversational and showing your humanity has relevance to all companies.

Next, Southwest articulates the reason for the blog:

Our goal with the new Nuts About Southwest remains to give our visitors the opportunity to take a look inside Southwest Airlines and to interact with us.

They want you to get to know Southwest, the first step toward trusting the airline with your business.

The close reiterates the interact-with-us message.

Even the disclaimer is used to reaffirm Southwest’s customer-centric mentality.

Even though Nuts About Southwest is moderated, we pledge to present opposing viewpoints as we have done since our blog first went “live” several years ago, and we will strive to keep posts interesting, diverse, and multi-sided.

In preparation for my session on corporate blogging at SoCon11, I captured several About sections that run the gambit from the good, the bad and the unattractive.

I plan to package these in a post down the road.

In the meantime, if you’ve come across a blog’s About section that caused a strong reaction in either direction, I’d welcome hearing about it.

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I got the SlideShare religion back in June.

The medium allows you to craft a story that the audience can consume in a few minutes. Plus, you gain another digital touch point that easily integrates into your overall social media strategy.

We’ve used SlideShare as a tool to evangelize the power of storytelling in the deck “Aligning PR with Storytelling for the Happily Ever After.”

Now, we’re taking a different approach with the platform, translating the blog post “10 Ways Communicators Must Evolve: 4 Perspectives on 4 Communication Issues” into “SlideSharese.” 

Does this deck reflect the true essence of storytelling?

It certainly isn’t Hemingway or even Elmore Leonard.

But by applying storytelling techniques - contrast, the unexpected, a pinch of levity, etc. - to a visual depiction of the content, we’ve created a business story with an entertainment dimension.

That’s the direction we’re taking our clients as well.

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