STORYTELLING’S POWER OF PERSUASION

TO GET CONSUMERS TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE SERVICES AND PRODUCTS YOU OFFER, TELL THEM A STORY

Jennifer Kirby, senior editor

YOU TOILED over stacks of thick textbooks on gross anatomy, refraction and ocular disease, spent countless hours spinning phoropter dials and learning the nuances of spectacle and contact lens prescriptions. Negative bank accounts, Ramen Noodles, all-night study sessions and forgoing visits with family and friends became routine. Sure, it was tough. But you knew it would all be worth it because you were going to give the gift of sight as an optometrist.

Fast-forward, and competitors, including big box and online optical retailers, optical chains and other practices can take a huge component of that gift of sight you sacrificed and worked so hard to provide.

But, this is not the end of your story. In fact, it’s just the beginning. You can reclaim and build your optical sales, attract and retain prospective consumers and instill patient compliance to your prescriptions if you and your staff start telling your own narratives to patients. The reason: Stories can persuade.

STORYTELLING’S LINK TO PERSUASION

Unlike facts, stories can create an emotional response in the receiver. This is important because research shows that 80% of purchasing decisions are made with emotion. In addition, because stories can elicit emotions, they are more memorable than facts and figures, helping to increase the likelihood of a sale. Further, those who hear stories vs. facts remember the stories 22 times more often, research reveals.

“Most of the cognitive research done over the last 20 years shows that humans make subconscious, emotional, often irrational decisions in one part of the brain, and then justify them logically in another place in the brain,” explains Paul Smith, author of “Lead with a Story: A Guide to Crafting Business Narratives That Captivate, Convince, and Inspire.” “So, if you want to influence people’s decisions — in other words, sell them something or be a leader — you need to influence them emotionally. Stories can do this.”

What’s more, Paul Zak, Ph.D., a founding director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies and Professor of Economics, Psychology and Management at Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, Calif., and colleagues discovered neurological proof that stories can elicit an emotional response in the audience. First, he and colleagues discovered that stories produce oxytocin, “the trust hormone,” in those who receive them. Next, Dr. Zak and his fellow researchers determined that oxytocin enhances empathy, and empathy persuades.

Specifically, in a study they conducted, subjects were assigned to watch one of two videos, rate their feelings after viewing and invited to donate their participation fee to a video-related charity. In one video, a father and his cancer-stricken son spend the day at the zoo. In the other, the father divulges his feelings about the likelihood his son will die. Oxytocin levels were measured in each of the subjects before and after the videos. The results: Those who watched the first video had oxytocin level decreases, while those who viewed the second video had 157% oxytocin level increases. Further, the oxytocin level changes predicted the subjects’ empathy levels when they rated their feelings, and those who donated the most to a cancer charity had the highest oxytocin levels post video. (See “More Proof,” page 14.)

“What we’ve found is that once we see that personal resonance in the brain, there is very likely to be an action following that story,” Dr. Zak explains.

PERSUASIVE STORY COMPONENTS

So, what does a story need in order for it to be persuasive? The answer is that it must incite “transportation into a narrative world.” This phrase, coined by psychologists Melanie C. Green and Timothy C. Brock, describes that moment you become immersed in a story. J.R.R. Tolkien, lauded author of “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, called this “the enchanted state.” Some story receivers become so immersed, that they experience physical reactions, such as crying, to a narrative. The five components that create this “transportation” say those interviewed:

1. Realism. In a study called “Narrative Persuasion in Legal Settings: What’s the Story?” psychologist Philip J. Mazzocco and Dr. Green say realism is important because familiarity is required to transport the receiver into the story.

“If your story isn’t coming from a place of real sincerity, your audience is likely to reject it, and the message is likely to backfire, resulting in consumers thinking you only care about making a profit,” explains Jonathan Gottschall, author of “The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human” and an English professor at Washington & Jefferson College, in Washington, Pa.

2. A relatable protagonist/goal/barrier. This is so the receiver sees him or herself in the story and, therefore, wants to find out how to handle the barrier presented in the story, which is a call to action, Mr. Smith explains.

In addition, story receivers who have prior knowledge or experience with a story vs. those who don’t tend to have greater immersion in the story. And, when a first-person story describes a character the listener can relate to, he or she takes on the identity of the character and changes his or her behavior as a result, research shows.

“I’m guessing most optometrists have some amazing stories of patients who came in with vision problems, traumas and eye diseases, and through hard work and training, they were able to help these patients achieve much better lives,” explains Dr. Zak. “Those are the stories we find interesting because we can see ourselves in them.”

3. Organization. It must have a beginning, middle and end, or you’ll confuse the receiver, preventing him or her from being transported into the story, say Drs. Green and Mazzocco.

4. A strong delivery. You, your tech and/or your optician, marketing materials, video, etc., must be dramatic and describe the events and people in a way that makes an impact on the receiver, say Drs. Green and Mazzocco.

“Usually when we talk about stories, a strong delivery means a high-quality story — one that has characters the audience can relate to, a coherent plot and is well-written or well-told,” explains Dr. Green. “It is also helpful to have a good interpersonal storytelling style, which might refer to how expressive a person’s voice is and their ability to create appropriate pacing when telling the story.”

Two ways to sabotage a strong delivery: (1) apologizing or asking permission to tell a story and (2) using non-verbal cues that oppose the story, says Mr. Smith.

“When someone says, ‘Can I just tell a story? I promise, it’ll just take a minute,’ that tells the receiver that the story isn’t important or relevant,” he explains. “Also, if you’re telling a story about a consumer who was happy with your services, but you’ve got a scowl on your face, you send a conflicting message. A total of 70% of communication is non-verbal, so it will trump the words coming out of your mouth.”

5. Mesmerizing imagery. Use words that paint a mental picture for the receiver, say Drs. Green and Mazzocco. But, don’t overdo it by using “the most dazzling vocabulary you can find,” cautions Mr. Gottschall, as this can make you look like a know-it all and may stump the receiver.

Mark Hinton, CEO and president of eYeFacilitate, a North Carolina practice consultancy firm, and writer of a forthcoming book on scripting in story form, offers a tip: “When developing an engaging story within a Word doc, type the word you are thinking of and, with the cursor over that word, right click and choose “Synonym” in the drop down, and pick a more colorful or impactful word,” he explains. “It should be a word that is commonly used and may express more precisely what you are trying to convey; don’t be vague!”

NO TRUST, NO PERSUASION

A major caveat to persuasive storytelling: None of the five components will be effective without trust.

“Stories can convince a consumer to engage in a certain behavior, but they won’t solve the problem of the consumer going elsewhere for a service or product unless that consumer has a personal, trusting relationship with the story’s source,” explains Jennifer Edson Escalas, Ph.D., associate professor of marketing at Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management and an avid researcher on how consumers process stories. “For example, my doctor recently became a concierge doctor, and because I’ve been with her for 10 years, I’m willing to fork out the extra money to keep her as my doctor.”

Mr. Hinton agrees and says it’s crucial to “draw the ‘skeptic’ in by connecting first to establish trust.” He suggests using the consumer’s “preferred name” where possible as a starting point, as people love to hear their names.

Mr. Smith adds that you can instill trust by asking the consumer questions that determine his or her work and hobbies, the goal in seeing you and the barrier to that goal because you’re showing the consumer you genuinely care about him or her, which creates trust.

WHERE TO USE STORYTELLING

So, where should you use storytelling? Opportunities abound in the optometric office. In fact, you should use storytelling in any place you want to influence your consumer, says Mr. Smith.

“The reception room, the examination room and the optical are all ripe for storytelling,” he explains. “So, your story could be delivered face-to-face orally, via marketing materials, on a website, a TV commercial, on the radio or it could be on social media.”

Some examples:

• Reception room. Have a plaque or pamphlet that contains a story that illustrates who you are, what you stand for and how long you’ve been in business. A compelling foundation story trumps the usual, “We offer competitive pricing on our eye exams, contact lenses and glasses,” because, again, you’re creating an emotional response in the consumer.

In addition, consider placing one or more patient stories in the reception room about the benefit of a particular device, says Shaun Golemba, O.D., who practices in Port Alberni, B.C. and uses storytelling in his practice.

“The person who founded Optos, for example, created the device after his son’s retinal detachment was found too late, causing blindness in one eye,” he explains. “We have the company’s story laminated on an 8.5” x 11” frame in the reception room. After patients read it, they immediately ask me whether I’ve diagnosed anything, and I tell them that we do, indeed, find retinal problems.”

• Examination room. Use your mental database of stories to persuade patients of the importance of adhering to your prescribed management plans, be it follow-up visits, prescription medications or both, says Dr. Golemba.

“I tell early AMD patients about some of my end-stage AMD patients and how there is nothing more devastating than seeing somebody lose his ability to see faces and do a lot of his daily activities,” he explains. “This goes a long way in getting early AMD patients to comply with my prescriptions and follow-up appointments. In fact, I’ve had some patients whom I never thought would stop smoking, but have.”

• Optical. Have your opticians use past customer experiences to persuade patients regarding the best ophthalmic lenses and frames. For instance, if a child presents with broken frames, instead of an optician saying, “We have a sale on spring-hinged frames, and 80% of children who wear them don’t break their glasses,” have her tell a story about a similar patient who achieved success with spring-hinged glasses.

Action step. Using the five components of a persuasive story as your guide, have you and your staff write true stories that fit under the practice areas mentioned on pages 16 and 17, present them to each other, and rate them on a scale of 1-10 on the strength of each of the essential components in your stories. Then, use the input to polish them.

“I practice my story scripts with my spouse, and my staff and I try stories out on each other at our weekly staff meetings,” Dr. Golemba explains. “We all practice until it becomes second nature.”

Mile Brujic, O.D., of Bowling Green, Ohio, who also uses storytelling in his practice and has a very high capture rate in his optical, adds that making time to tell stories is important because they resonate with patients to the point at which they prompt patients to do what’s in their best interest, which translates to practice success. (See “Short, Yet Persuasive, Stories,” page 15.)

YOUR INNER TOLKIEN

Guess what? Anyone can be an effective storyteller.

“I’m convinced that storytelling is like any other skill; if you study it and practice it, you can get good at it,” Mr. Smith explains. “The biggest problem I see with most people in business is that they don’t realize that storytelling is a skill that they should learn, and they don’t know it’s something they can learn. Read a book on it, take a lesson from an expert, take a class on it, and then practice.” (See “How-To Books on Storytelling, page 16.”) OM