Stories Sell, Are You Making the Most of Yours?
Our doorbell rang unexpectedly this week.
There stood 4 smartly dressed strangers. One said in a thick French accent, “We are from Belgium.” I immediately knew why they were here.
In the Second World War soldiers from Belgium and Canada were stationed here for training and convalescence. A sort of before and after station. My unexpected visitors were two brothers, and their wives, whose father had spent time here.
I took them down to show them where the camp had been, explaining that the two fields used were still called the Front Camp and Back Camp. I showed them the ruins of the last remaining Nissen hut, still with the no smoking sign in French visible. I showed them the woods where the soldiers had carved their initials into the tree trunks, including some carvings with love hearts where local romance had blossomed.
I had connected them with a part of their father’s life and time fighting for his country. Their eyes welled up and mine began to as well. They gave me a huge Gallic kiss.
As well as helping my new friends find what they had been looking for, it got me thinking about heritage and stories that we can sometimes take for granted. I walk or drive past the ruins of the Nissen hut just about every day, it is simply part of the landscape here, crumbling slowly back into nature.
Think about the heritage and stories around your business and your life. How can you bring these more to the fore to explain or illustrate:
- What you do
- Why you started your business
- How you do things
- ….and importantly why you are different from the rest?