I was recently invited to talk about how we, as business owners, integrate our story into our marketing.

But how do we build relationships with customers, how do we stand out from the crowd, how do we make ourselves different based on our story? I think there's really two stories here that we need to be thinking about.

There's our story and how we weave that into our marketing, but I want to talk about the story of your customers. What is the story that your customers are telling you themselves, because that's so important when we're marketing too. There's always two people in this relationship. There's us and we're out there and we're saying, "Here I am. I can help you solve whatever conflict you've got, come and buy my stuff," but your customers are telling themselves a story as well. What we need to do, as business owners, is weave yourself into that story and help your customers to see that you can get them where they want to go.

Really start thinking about the customers that you've already worked with, the questions that they ask you, who they are when they show up, what they tell you that they want. What are their hopes and dreams? What does success look like to them? Where do they want to go? It is super important.

What's the thing that's stopping them getting where they want to go? Whether that's finding a new job, getting a haircut, getting their car serviced, building their business. There's always some kind of conflict, so what's the conflict that's stopping your customers get what they want to get. You need to know that story.

But what we really want to know is who do they want to be and where do they want to be after they've bought your stuff?

That's how you can start motivating them to use you as the person who can get them over where they want to go. Really start thinking about what's the story they're telling themselves, who do they want to be, and where do they want to go, because we all buy things based on emotions. We all buy things based on the stories that we're telling ourselves about who we are and where we want to be.

This is why people buy Audis over Skodas - they do exactly the same thing, but the Audi purchaser is telling themselves a story, their story, about the type of person they are when they go and buy the Audi. The same for Skoda, the same thing, the same for pair of shoes. What story is your customers themselves about when they buy your products or a product like yours?

It’s about your story and how you weave that in, and then there's their story. The more you know about that story, and the more you know about what motivates them, and the more you know about where they want to be, who they want to be and how your products can help them get there and get over that conflict, whatever it is, the better your marketing is going to be, the better your messaging is going to be, the better your strategy is going to be.

Remember, two stories: there's yours and there's your customers.

I’d suggest sitting down, get a pen and paper and start mapping out the story your customers are telling you about themselves? What is the story they're telling themselves about themselves? Are they happy? Are they sad? Are they hopeful? Are the inspirational? What is it they want? How do they feel? Where do they want to go?

If you can get that right, you're onto a winner.

Did you check out my recent blog on Why Generosity is Good for Your Business? Check it out here.