26 Nov Emotional Storytelling: A Tool for Selling Property

We associate storytelling with children, the thing your Mom or Dad did to lull you to sleep. And yet, as humans, we have used storytelling as the means to communicate for millennia. Just how do you suppose all those superstitions and old wives’ tales made it to the 21st century?

This sounds all very quaint but what does storytelling have to do with selling a property?

The World Has Changed

Here’s the thing: the world has changed massively over the years. The society we live in today is very different to the society of a decade ago, a century ago and more.

But, there are elements that remain:

• We feel the same emotions, such as sadness, excitement and grief

• Even in the age of technology, face-to-face conversations and connections are still valuable

• Human beings still store information in the same way – in our memories

For a real estate business, this is important information. Buying a property is an emotional decision. You show buyers a property that ticks all the boxes, it has everything that they have asked for but, they don’t fall in love with it. And yet, you show them another, and it has that ‘special something’.

Storytelling taps into the emotions too and. When done right, it can be a beneficial tool. If you are not sure how to do it, here’s a bulletproof formula.

The Storytelling Formula

Screenwriters, scriptwriters and copywriters will tell you that there is a formula to writing a story or script. It needs to take viewers or readers on a journey and deep within the emotions and words, hides a formula.

Create a story using this five-step process, with examples included. In this case, we have used a fictional family, Bob and Mary and their three children.

1. Identity – The position that the client is in at present

Bob and Mary are struggling for space in the family home. The boys are sharing a bedroom which leads to arguments. They feel on ‘top of each other’.

2. Turn against the status quo – What did they want to change or prioritize to make the situation better?

After tripping over more toys and fighting for space, Bob and Mary decide they need more space, inside and out. But you don’t want the hassle of building an extension and so, they scour the property market for the ideal property.

3. Struggle – Why did they struggle to make the change?

But there was nothing that they liked. Properties were either dull and boring or out of their price range. And they would have to sell their home too. It all started to feel like too much hassle. Maybe staying where they are is the better option?

4. Insight – What changed their view?

Bob and Mary used your online video tours and, along with high-quality photographs and detailed description, they sorted the good from the bad, creating a shortlist of properties – and all from the comfort of their own home. It saved them time too as they didn’t need to view properties that really weren’t suitable.

5. Resolution – what was the outcome?

With little fuss, their current place sold, and their new home was bought. And now, the whole family is enjoying more space in the home and garden.

Easily Remembered

Stories are easily remembered, especially key players like your real estate business. You were able to offer the solutions to ‘Bob and Mary’ that took the hassle out of selling and buying. Your service was exceptional and as a result, ‘Bob and Mary’ will relate this story on your behalf.

But there are some storytelling ‘rules’…

· Stories must be true or based on true stories and people – and this is where your happy clients come in. Ask their permission to use their story whilst they are riding the crest of a wave. Use it on your website, on your About us page or as a blog entry. Or base it on previous clients, taking out all traces of their identity. But there is no denying the power of a true story of real people.

· Use photos – it reinforces the positive emotions of the story, a happy family, smiling outside their new home.

· Make it relatable – there are thousands of people out there, all struggling for space in their homes or with another issue that a move to a new property would solve. Make sure you make the ‘turn against the status quo’ and the ‘struggle’ as relatable as possible to the customer you are targeting e.g. a property that is too big for a retired couple, a family home too small, the need to leave the city behind and enjoy country life and so on.

Real-life stories are an important tool in your marketing kit. Backed by high-quality custom videos, photos and detailed descriptions, they will set your real estate business apart from all others.