Aakash Kumar Aakash Kumar    June 23, 2019

Reflection - Storytelling

Context:  I am a content marketer and often take on freelance consulting projects to learn more about  different industries. Recently, as a part of one such project, I was asked to review and potentially  rewrite a case study for a tech company that creates business management software for activity- based organizations such as gyms, ballet studios and parks & recreation centers.     Challenge:  The case study was about how the company’s software had helped improve the day-to-day  operations of a local cheerleading gym thereby improving overall efficiencies, customer service and  coaching. The purpose of the case study was to help the tech company generate leads from the  market segment of gym owners and administrators. When I read the case study for the first time, I  was left with a vague sense of accomplishment and many unanswered questions. The way it was  written was all over the place as it tried to address too many concerns in a hurried fashion without  communicating the impact the tech company’s software solution had on the gym business.    Selection:  To tackle the rewriting challenge, I chose to use the storytelling tool. As we learned from Raymond Baird of Mars Inc. in week 2, “Storytelling is the difference between solving a problem and creating  a cause.” Stories are based on empathy and therefore are powerful tools to make any problem,  challenge or situation seem more relatable. The consumer is therefore more inclined to react to a  story than a presentation full of graphs and numbers.     Application:  Simon Sinek urges us to “start with the why” to inspire action. What this means is to get people to  do anything, we must get them to understand our purpose. When I began deconstructing the case I  was given, my first step was empathy mapping to answer the question, “who is reading this case and  why?” to put myself in the shoes of the consumer the case was trying to target. To better  understand the plight of gym owners and administrators, I asked myself questions such as “What are  the top issues faced by cheer gym owners?” and “What do the right tools look like to tackle these  issues?” among many others.  Once I had a clear understanding of the gym owners/administrators’ pain points, I was able to create  a flow for the story I was writing. This included identifying the key problem we wanted to tackle and  explicitly stating it in 1-2 lines to establish the purpose of this particular case study. Doing so also  helped me to choose which aspects of the software solution I would highlight in this case study.  Ultimately, I asked the client to identify the quantitative impact the solution had had on the gym  business in the form of time savings and return on investment.     Insight:  Any story is incomplete if it fails to answer the “so what” question. The stories that we find most  frustrating/dissatisfying are the ones that raise questions and fail to resolve them. I chose to address  the “so what” with a combination of qualitative and quantitative impact. To communicate  qualitative improvements, I leveraged testimonials from the gym owners, coaches and customers to  cover the different perspectives of various stakeholders. To communicate quantitative impact, I  created a simple, easy-to-understand infographic highlighting the top 3 metrics that gym owners  most cared about (return on investment, reduction in financial reporting errors and time savings).  The final step to get people to do something is to give them several opportunities to do it. I did this  by adding multiple calls-to-action in the case study that would allow the consumer to act on a desire  by either requesting a demo or scheduling a meeting or simply learning more about the tech  company and its solutions.

Aakash Kumar Aakash Kumar    June 23, 2019

Approach:  The transformation of the case study was very evident through the results it generated once it was  published. Not only did the case study surpass the company’s monthly lead generation average but  also helped the tech company improve visitors’ time spent on the website and reduced bounce  rates. Considering the success of the case study compared to others, the storytelling approach has  now been adopted by the company to create all of its case studies.

Using the design thinking methodology to adopt a more consumer focused approach meant  addressing the consumer’s concerns instead of trying to sell a solution. Incidentally, we were able to  sell the solution as a happy by-product of this approach!


Aakash Kumar Aakash Kumar June 23 , 2019 Reflection - Storytelling Context : I am a content marketer and often take on freelance consulting projects to learn more about different industries . Recently , as a part of one such project , I was asked to review and potentially rewrite a case study for a tech company that creates business management software for activity- based organizations such as gyms , ballet studios and parks & recreation centers . Challenge : The case study was about how the company ’s software had helped improve the day - to - day operations of a local cheerleading gym thereby improving overall efficiencies , customer service and coaching . The purpose of the case study was to help the tech company generate leads from the market segment of gym owners and administrators . When I read the case study for the first time , I was left with a vague sense of accomplishment and many unanswered questions . The way it was written was all over the place as it tried to address too many concerns in a hurried fashion without communicating the impact the tech company ’s software solution had on the gym business . Selection : To tackle the rewriting challenge , I chose to use the storytelling tool . As we learned from Raymond Baird of Mars Inc. in week 2 , “ Storytelling is the difference between solving a problem and creating a cause . ” Stories are based on empathy and therefore are powerful tools to make any problem , challenge or situation seem more relatable . The consumer is therefore more inclined to react to a story than a presentation full of graphs and numbers . Application : Simon Sinek urges us to “ start with the why ” to inspire action . What this means is to get people to do anything , we must get them to understand our purpose . When I began deconstructing the case I was given , my first step was empathy mapping to answer the question , “ who is reading this case and why ? ” to put myself in the shoes of the consumer the case was trying to target . To better understand the plight of gym owners and administrators , I asked myself questions such as “ What are the top issues faced by cheer gym owners ? ” and “ What do the right tools look like to tackle these issues ? ” among many others . Once I had a clear understanding of the gym owners / administrators ’ pain points , I was able to create a flow for the story I was writing . This included identifying the key problem we wanted to tackle and explicitly stating it in 1 - 2 lines to establish the purpose of this particular case study . Doing so also helped me to choose which aspects of the software solution I would highlight in this case study . Ultimately , I asked the client to identify the quantitative impact the solution had had on the gym business in the form of time savings and return on investment . Insight : Any story is incomplete if it fails to answer the “ so what ” question . The stories that we find most frustrating / dissatisfying are the ones that raise questions and fail to resolve them . I chose to address the “ so what ” with a combination of qualitative and quantitative impact . To communicate qualitative improvements , I leveraged testimonials from the gym owners , coaches and customers to cover the different perspectives of various stakeholders . To communicate quantitative impact , I created a simple , easy - to - understand infographic highlighting the top 3 metrics that gym owners most cared about ( return on investment , reduction in financial reporting errors and time savings ) . The final step to get people to do something is to give them several opportunities to do it . I did this by adding multiple calls - to - action in the case study that would allow the consumer to act on a desire by either requesting a demo or scheduling a meeting or simply learning more about the tech company and its solutions . Aakash Kumar Aakash Kumar June 23 , 2019 Approach : The transformation of the case study was very evident through the results it generated once it was published . Not only did the case study surpass the company ’s monthly lead generation average but also helped the tech company improve visitors ’ time spent on the website and reduced bounce rates . Considering the success of the case study compared to others , the storytelling approach has now been adopted by the company to create all of its case studies . Using the design thinking methodology to adopt a more consumer focused approach meant addressing the consumer ’s concerns instead of trying to sell a solution . Incidentally , we were able to sell the solution as a happy by - product of this approach !