BUSINESS

  MARKETING

BECOME A STORYTELLER

USE STORIES TO RELATE TO PATIENTS AND DRIVE MORE SALES IN THE OPTICAL

STEVE VARGO, O.D., M.B.A.

TED TALKS are some of the most inspiring discussions you will ever hear. The speakers are powerful and captivating. They hook you from the start and keep you hanging on every word. The messages they deliver are very persuasive. Nearly all great TED Talks have one thing in common — they all contain stories.

In writing of his research into storytelling for the Harvard Business Review online, Prof. Paul J. Zack, president of Ofactor, a human resources company, concludes, “When you want to motivate, persuade or be remembered, start with a story of human struggle and eventual triumph.”

Here are some tips for becoming a master storyteller.

ASK QUESTIONS

Begin by asking questions. Get to know the patient on a personal level. Find out what his or her needs are — and then tell stories that relate to those needs. To be effective, your stories must be relevant to the listener.

ILLUSTRATE POSSIBILITIES

I recently visited a high-end shoe store shopping for running shoes. I could have easily balked at the higher prices and walked out, but after discussing my history of back problems with the salesman he relayed stories of customers with similar issues who have benefited from a specific type of shoe. He also shared his personal experience. I was sold!

COLLECT STORIES

When I was an optometry student doing a pediatric rotation, I examined a 9-year-old boy who had no vision in his left eye. His mother was unaware of this. It was only after a series of tests that we discovered an unexpected finding inside the vitreous: a BB. He incurred the injury during a BB gun fight with friends and was afraid to tell his mom. His mom was distraught when we told her that he would never have vision in this eye.

Isn’t that a more compelling story to encourage the use of protective eyewear than offering statistics on childhood eye injuries? Create an arsenal of stories like this to share with patients.

CHANGE ATTITUDES

Strategic storytelling has also been enlisted to change attitudes and behaviors. A study, published in Annals of Internal Medicine, found that storytelling may help convince individuals with hypertension to alter their behavior. Researchers for the study, “Culturally Appropriate Storytelling to Improve Blood Pressure: A Randomized Trial,” randomly assigned 299 hypertensive patients to receive either usual care or to view three videos that presented stories of real patients with hypertension. Among patients who had uncontrolled hypertension, those assigned to view the stories achieved better blood pressure control than those assigned to usual care.

DRIVE THE CHANGE

Data-driven information appeals to the logical side of our brain — the part that processes and tries to make sense out of the information we receive. However; sales isn’t just about informing, it’s about driving change — and we are much less likely to act on information alone.

Emotion is the driving force behind many of our actions. This is where the phrase, “people purchase on emotion; and then rationalize their purchase with logic” comes in. We need to address both sides, and stories are the portal to the emotional side of the brain. OM

DR. VARGO serves as Prima Eye Group’s vice president of Optometric Consulting. A published author and speaker with more than 15 years clinical experience, he is now a full-time consultant advising O.D.s in all areas of practice management and optometric office operations. To comment on this article, visit tinyurl.com/OMcomment.