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The Secret to Building a Sales Narrative That Wins
Published 11 months ago • 3 min read
Issue #73
"Yippee-kay-yay, mf" is not a great value statement
The Secret to Building a Sales Narrative That Wins
If you want to build a story for every C suite stakeholder, not just the Bruce Willis fans, then I have advice for you:
Enough with the movie nonsense.
Crafting a sales story isn’t about following a template created for fairy stories or blockbuster films.
If anyone had presented to me like we were in “Die Hard” when I was buying for a private hospital system, I would have thrown them off Nakatomi Plaza myself.
I wanted syringes, not a screenplay...
The scripts that matter are the ones that decision makers follow, the unconscious rules that guide their choices.
Not Pixar.
These scripts are shaped by what excites them, what aligns with their values, what makes logical sense. Even they don’t really understand what is in their script, but they know when something goes against it.
If you want to move forward in a complex sale, you use a narrative structure that mirrors the decision making process.
Let me say that again - you sell the way they buy. This has precisely nothing to do with how the movie industry entertains people.
Sell the way they buy, not how Hollywood entertains you
That makes as much sense as using the marketing methods of the Mafia to sell insurance (okay, bad example).
Whilst you can never know the detail of their buying triggers, there is a foolproof arc to it:
1. Start with Energy: Build Momentum
We don’t make decisions in a vacuum. The best sales stories ignite energy by painting a vivid picture of what’s possible.
Think big.
Share a story of transformation, a similar company that turned a challenge into an opportunity. Use the language of your customer, metaphors they will understand and ask powerful “What if” questions:
- “What if you could reduce customer churn by 30% in six months?”
- “Imagine a future where your team spends half the time managing X and twice the time driving Y.”
Energy leads to curiosity.
Curiosity sparks conversations.
At this stage, your job is to create excitement, possibility.
You won't build trust if you push it too hard, btw
2. Align with Values: Build Trust
Once energy is flowing, the next stage of their script is: “Does this fit who we are?” Is it in line with their character, the DNA of the company.
This is where decision makers instinctively test your solution against their organisation’s values, culture, and legacy.
You need to actively show alignment:
- Reference their mission, vision, or goals.
- Respect their history, position yourself as evolution.
- Talk about impact beyond profit, on employees, customers, and community.
Trust is built when your solution enhances their identity. This can be tricky because growth inevitably leads to something being sacrificed along the way.
3. Provide Logic: Build Certainty
Excitement and trust open the door.
Logic closes the deal.
This is where you arm decision makers with the data to justify the choice to themselves, their peers, and the board.
If they are not thinking this then you have a problem
Your story must address the numbers:
- What’s the ROI?
- How does this reduce risks or optimise processes?
- What metrics will prove success over time?
At this stage, precision matters.
You can throw in a bit of urgency, there are usually one or two people who want to wait. There is always a reason to wait, so you always need a reason not to.
Make your case watertight with hard evidence, strong implementation case studies, and clear outcomes.
Why This Works
When you create energy, you get attention.
When you align with values, you gain trust.
When you justify with logic, you secure buy-in.
It’s not about manipulating the buyer, it’s about leading them through their natural process for making decisions.
What You Actually Do (WYAD)
The next time you sit down to write a sales pitch,
Don’t just list benefits. Build a narrative:
1. Start with energy.
2. Align with values.
3. Justify with logic.
Sales don’t happen because you have the best product. They happen because you tell the best story.
But that is a business story with numbers, not a rom-com.
What’s the most compelling sales story you’ve ever told?
Here's a guide to the C suite, so you can get a head start with creating your pitches. Click the picture to see a carousel I did all about it:
Join 1,850+ professionals and transform your B2B sales results. Learn to sell the way big companies buy. Get insights delivered every Sunday - read in minutes, use forever.
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