insights! episode #9: stories vs. numbers and facts

Today it's about the last, the eighth part of the differences that define the GAFAs at the strategic level: telling visionary stories, visionary storytelling.

All these companies tell a story, for different reasons.

Either to position the brand strategy, to be likeable, but ultimately to have a common thread. These stories are hugely important, because that's what we remember.

Especially in discussions, notice or can tell well when people keep coming with ideas they can back with a story, believe them much more readily.

It funny, because actually data much more important, so statistics on something. But if we can bring story to it, that move us. And this storytelling that what so special. There coach for storytelling, you now smile when I say name, that Will Smith. Will Smith can book as coach to learn telling visionary stories. Actually totally clear, he not just actor, he also producer and director.

Who's better placed to do that than someone from exactly this field?

Building these stories is essential, namely to combine the following:

In part one we had the topic of which level – head, heart, gut and genitals – I want to address, and stories are of course hugely important there. One of the perfect storytellers of our time, in my view, is Elon Musk. I'm not a Tesla fan, I find the marketing too over the top, maybe that's very German of me. But ultimately, he tells a magnificent story.

He manages not just to transport cars, but luxury good, because ultimately Model S and Model X especially are luxury goods. And way he manages to say on website, yes, this is Model M3, four full seats, or Model S, five full seats, or Model X with five full seats.

Hey, I also have five full seats in the Q7, I have it in a Ford Explorer, I also have seven there, or in a Land Rover Discovery.

Actually nothing special, but it's built up accordingly. Also the Model S variants that are now new, the Plaid, over 1000 hp. Germans very often compare horsepower figures with each other. 1000 hp in a Tesla here means the short-term availability of peak output compared to a petrol car. He manages to convey these stories much, much better to the outside world.

That's also called autopilot, though it really isn't one, and autonomous driving, but it's still only semi-autonomous.

We tend to call it ACC or similarly with another acronym, framed very technically, to say, ok, partially autonomous driving. But Tesla are very, very good at that with these stories. And he then naturally combines that with products that now exist in America, not just the Superchargers, but now also roof tiles that generate electricity.

You feed power generated on your roof into your vehicle, and with that you also achieve the vertical integration you're driving forward. That's a topic we already touched on beforehand. And he builds this whole story really, really coherently. That's why, in today's world, it's totally important to invest in this story. But what does that mean for you as an entrepreneur? Yes, you need content, you need the holistic story. And you need people who think in terms of user experience and customer experience. That means not just making something look nice, no, it means taking the overall picture and designing the customer's entire experience. These are professions and subject areas you should look at closely for your business.

How can you combine your entire customer experience with this story, so that this experience is tangible at every touchpoint?

That's the eighth of eight differences the GAFAs make to become so big.

Great that you listened to it all, looking forward to bringing you new topics next week.