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storytelling

A clever tactic for any project is to engage audiences with stories that captivate, pursuade and inspire action by blending data, emotion and structure. If you cant win people with data or logic tell them a fairytale instead.

Here is a number of techniques you can consider:

Technique 1: the hero’s story arc

Tell a story in an arc:

  • Status quo:
    • Describe the initial challenge.
    • Highlight the paint points and inefficiencies.
  • Tell the story of what triggered the arc of change:
    • Outline why the status quo needs to be disrupted.
  • Struggles:
    • Share real obstacles (e.g. messy data, people challenges, problems) to add authenticity.
    • Make it relatable.
  • Frame the breakthrough point:
    • Precisely outline the moment of success and the tangible outcomes.
    • Outline them transparently to the audience.
  • Speak to continuity:
    • Talk about how things are different now.

Technique 2: Match emotion with data

Combine hard evidence with human connection in the way you word things. Here’s some examples:

  • Lets say you have a quantifiable metric:
    • e.g. “The business Reduced churn by 15% and saved $50K annually.”
  • You could add to that with a short story:
    • e.g. ‘limiting churn by 15%’ - has given my weekends back!

See how it humanises the number (?). You frame it as a win for a human.

The other trick is to turn an efficiency stat - at the aggregage into something at the Micro. E.g. Instead of ‘we cut processing time by 92%’ you say, the work effort has gone from 2 hrs a day to 20 minutes.

A human centred way of looking at it.

Technique 3 - Tailor for format

Adapt your story to the medium without losing its core.

Format
Structure
Tips
Blog Post
Hook → Challenge → Solution → Impact → CTA
Open with a bold stat or question; keep paragraphs short with short sentances.
Slides
Intro → Problem → Journey → Results → Next Steps OR use the minto formula → Answer → Rationale → Evidence → Re-inforcement
Use 1 idea per slide; prioritise visuals over text.
Video
Teaser → Context → Struggle → Win → Call to Act
Grab attention in 3 seconds; mix narration with visuals.
X Thread
Hook → 4–6 key points → CTA
Use numbered tweets, emojis, and line breaks for clarity.

(CTA = Call to action)

Technique 4: Writing a magnetic hook

Stackable instant attention examples

  • Frame the content as a surprise:
    • “We ran the numbers through AI, and we found 1M in AI almost instantly! It was shockingly effective. ”
  • Frame it as a relatability comment:
    • “Have you ever spent hours cleaning data?”
    • “We have too! That’s why we created X product”
  • The promise hook promise:
    • “In less than 5 minutes I’ll have you up and running. ”

Try it in the wild. Watch the response. If it doesn’t spur action, try again. It’ll be obvious.

Technique 5: The empathy hook

Make your audience feel the story.

  • Humanise the characters:
    • “Meet Alex, a data analyst drowning in spreadsheets…”
  • Paint the scene:
    • “His desk: coffee-stained notes, endless Excel tabs, clock ticking.”
  • Tap emotions:
    • Show the frustration, hope, or joy. E.g., “Alex grinned as the AI nailed the forecast.”

Sensory words rule in this space, add one or two mixed with some emotion, and click. The reader can ‘see it’ and that creates the connection.

Conclusion:

Impactful storytelling merges data driven proof with emotional resonance, structured for your audience’s preferred format.

Use it to turn AI case studies, demos, or updates into stories that stick and spur action.