Story Structures That Sell
Story Structures That Sell. If your brand feels fuzzy to you, it’s fog to your audience. Let’s make it obvious and repeatable.
Positioning is the place you occupy in the buyer’s mind relative to alternatives.
Steps
- Define the audience and their stakes — Name who loses what if nothing changes; real stakes sharpen choices.
- Document decisions in one page — People use what they can read in two minutes.
- Design constraints before concepts — Constraints produce coherence; they are not creative jail.
- List three proof points — Social, data, demos. Proof turns belief into trust.
Why this matters: Name who loses what if nothing changes; real stakes sharpen choices. In branding, consistency is a function of decisions captured and reused.
Why this matters: People use what they can read in two minutes. In branding, consistency is a function of decisions captured and reused.
Why this matters: Constraints produce coherence; they are not creative jail. In branding, consistency is a function of decisions captured and reused.
Why this matters: Social, data, demos. Proof turns belief into trust. In branding, consistency is a function of decisions captured and reused.
Toolkit
- Voice ladder — From formal to playful with examples for each channel.
- Palette tokens — CSS variables / design tokens for color and spacing across apps.
- Positioning line — For [audience] who struggle with [problem], we deliver [outcome], proven by [proof].
- Messaging blocks — Headline • subhead • bullets • CTA mapped to page sections.
How to use it: From formal to playful with examples for each channel. Save the final in a shared doc; link from tickets so execution matches intent.
How to use it: CSS variables / design tokens for color and spacing across apps. Save the final in a shared doc; link from tickets so execution matches intent.
How to use it: For [audience] who struggle with [problem], we deliver [outcome], proven by [proof]. Save the final in a shared doc; link from tickets so execution matches intent.
How to use it: Headline • subhead • bullets • CTA mapped to page sections. Save the final in a shared doc; link from tickets so execution matches intent.
Example
A fintech tightened palette tokens and shipping velocity rose because designers stopped re‑deciding shades.
Common Pitfalls & Fixes
- Feature soup — Group features by outcomes buyers feel; features support, outcomes sell.
- Logo first — Write positioning before pixels; a logo is a receipt for choices.
- Guides nobody reads — One page first. Depth later. Adoption beats length.
Related Articles
- Case Studies with a Plot — Playbook #2
- Taglines: Short, Sharp, True — Case Files #2
- Type Pairing That Works Everywhere — Playbook #2
- Category Design for Mortals
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