Systems thinking for customer stories : Want to land best-in-class stories at scale? Systems thinking helps.
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Excellent or meh, every brand has customer stories. Trouble is, most stories lack scale because they don’t begin with the end in mind. They deliver opportunistically and piece-by-piece rather than strategically and start-to-finish.
This is a post about stories but systems thinking sounds so left brain. What gives?
Effective storytelling is a right brain act that benefits from left brain structure. Lacking structure, a story will wander and leave audiences wishing they could turn back time. Similarly, a shortage of systems thinking will limit the reach of evidence (a.k.a. stories) that can win more business.
You want customer stories to land, expand, and drive results, not ship then drift aimlessly. Think right and left brain: creativity and structure: better together.
Connect your brand strategy to customer experiences to story production and distribution. Connect them like they’re supposed to work together and fix them where they don’t. Then you’ll have a system. With any luck and a little skill, the system will reward you. It will turn your stories into competitive currency by making your one plus one - your stories and how you land them - greater than two.
Observation
Systems thinking requires energy because collaboration and connections require energy. I’ve worked with teams where bringing it was a way of life. We worked holistically and outperformed. It wasn’t magic. It also wasn’t easy and didn’t happen overnight. I’ve also worked with teams that collapsed under disjointed processes and struggled to deliver. The standout difference between the two: commitment.
Implementing a system
Get prepared for storytelling greatness with the following questions. I recommend revisiting them on a semi-annual basis.
What are your goals and how do they support your business? Be specific. For example, if you’re driving demand, then how many and which types of stories will you need and over what period of time?
What do you have resources and expertise to deliver and why? Can creative or production partners help?
Who are your target audiences, why are they important, and what are they seeking from your brand?
Are you in a complex domain where long-form stories are needed, or does short-form rule the day? How do you know?
Do you need video stories, written stories, or both? Where’s the awareness, interest, and conversion value in each? What are the differences in production costs and time?
How many channels are you operating in? Why? To what extent does each channel require unique skills?
Who are your reviewers and contributors and editors? Are they prepared for the volume and variety of stories your team aims to produce?
How do you connect with your customers on a personal level and how can you make them want to work with you?
What are your sources of funding? How many stories do you have time and budget to tell?
What tech do you need to organize, prioritize, produce, store, and distribute your work?
What processes have worked for you in the past? Which are worth repeating and which should be relegated to the dustbin?
What’s on your performance dashboard and is everyone moving in lock step?
…and more. In short, lay it all on the table and record your answers. Then share your answers with your org. By soliciting feedback, you’ll invite others to participate and help your system scale.
Here’s a graphic
It’s one of hundreds on the topic of systems thinking. Mine centers on the essentials for delivering customer stories at scale. With a few modifications, I can insert brand stories or product stories and many others. I can also dive into each individual category and generate layer after layer of detail and use systems thinking as a cross-team collaboration principle.
I’ve chosen a honeycomb because honeycombs are the most scientifically efficient packing shape. (Source: the internet)
I realize the font is bee-level. Hopefully you can magnify as needed. Key takeaway: execute holistically and harvest the benefits.
Start-to-finish
Systems thinking is about leveraging creativity not limiting it. It’s not easy but with some critical thinking and commitment, it doesn’t need to be hard.
It’s how to give stories the airtime and reach they deserve.
It applies to companies of all sizes.
If you don’t showcase your customers, who will?
Gotta buzz. (Yeah.) Back soon.