Die Convensis GmbH fördert die Mitarbeiter:innen mit regelmäßigen Weiterbildungsangeboten – zum Beispiel mit dem von Convensis-COO Susanne Hencke angestoßenen E-Learning-Programm. Es wurde eigens für die Bedürfnisse des Convensis-Teams entwickelt und kommt vor allem beim Onboarding neuer Mitarbeiter:innen und bei der Ausbildung der Trainees zum Einsatz.

Zudem finden für alle Mitarbeiter:innen von internen und externen Experten geleitete, regelmäßige Workshops und Seminare statt. Darunter fällt auch das Programm „Business English“, das Valentin King aus dem Team Advisors organisiert. Er lebte 11 Jahre in New Jersey, nachdem er im Alter von neun Jahren mit seiner Familie in die USA ausgewandert war. Im amerikanischen Schulsystem konnte er seine Englischkenntnisse von Grund auf aufbauen und perfektionieren. Für sein Studium kam er zurück nach Deutschland, ist jedoch regelmäßig in den Staaten zu Besuch bei seiner Familie. Inzwischen macht er sich seine bilinguale Kindheit bei Convensis zunutze und steht sowohl mit deutschsprachigen als auch englischsprachigen Kund:innen auf dem internationalen Markt in Kontakt. Heute geht es weiter mit der Lektion Nr. 6 „Storytelling“.

In der letzten Lektion haben wir gelernt, wie wir die Zukunftsform nutzen, um Pläne zu organisieren. In Lektion Nr. 6 lernen wir verschiedene Arten des „Storytellings“ und deren Anwendung kennen.

Grundlegendes und Kreativität

“Show. Don’t tell.”

Humans love stories. Stories are particularly well received by the human brain because they contain a large number of contact points with already existing memory content. When we write texts, we can either tell them what is going on, or we can show them. Here is an example when describing a pizza:

“The Pizza came fresh out of the oven, and Tim was hungry.”

or

“His nose tingled with excitement as the plate arrived at his table. The smell of molten Mozzarella cheese, fresh tomatoes and aromatic basil dominated his olfactory sensors and set off fireworks in his brain. Tim could barely wait to quench his hunger with the crunchy Scotto’s Pizza that just landed in front of his eyes.”

Which version piques your interest more?

Your Own Story – The Pixar Model

Pixar attempts to create central protagonists in their movies that an audience can empathize with. In order to do this, their story consists of three things:

  1. A want (from the protagonist)
  2. A hurdle to getting what is wanted
  3. An emotional arc in which something is learned which helps the protagonist grow. Through this growth and learning, they get what they want.

Here an example of a Pixar story using this technique:

  • “Once upon a time there was…” – a couple that liked exploration and adventure.
  • “Every day, they…” – would try to save up money in order to go on their own adventures.
  • “Until one day…” – the woman got sick and passed away.
  • “Because of that…” – the man grew cautious and grumpy.
  • “Because of that…” – he wanted to fly away in his house and go on his own adventure.
  • “Because of that…” – he accidentally took a young Boy Scout with him into the skies.
  • “Because of that…” – he was forced to spend his trip with an annoying little child that asked too many questions.
  • “Until finally…” – he realized the ultimate adventures in life come from the moments you share with those you care for most.

Can you guess what movie it is? Hint: It involves balloons.

Corporate Storytelling – AIDA Model

A popular storytelling model used by corporations is the AIDA Model, with each letter of the acronym describing a different piece of the storytelling puzzle.

Attention: In corporate storytelling, this usually refers to a headline or title. It is meant to hook the reader and give them a reason to read on. This is where some resort to click bait, although this isn’t necessary if done correctly.

Interest: Here you aim to lead your reader further into the jungle. Speak to your audience about their problem. If the audience feels the product has no meaning to them, whatever comes next won’t register no matter how good it is.

Desire: It’s one thing to spark interest, and another to create desire. Though they may be similar, desire focuses on why the customer absolutely needs to buy your product and only your product to satisfy its desires. Offer your target audience a solution to their problem; show them you understand their pain.

Action: Give your audience one concrete thing they can do to solve their problem. If you’re selling a project, this will most likely be a call to action to buy your product.