What Salespople Can Learn About Storytelling From Pixar

I’m obsessed with prolific people and teams. Those that consistently pump out top-level work at insane frequency and consistency across any domain. Think Dolly Parton writing Jolene and I Will Always Love You on the same day, just two of over 3,000 songs written during her career. Lionel Messi and C. Ronaldo redefining the heights of what we thought was possible in football and then maintaining that level for well over a decade. The Curies, Newtons, Einsteins, Edisons of scientific fields. Stephen King.

I pondered on companies that have done the same in my lifetime. Apple at its creative peak under Jobs and Ive launching the iPod, iMac, iPhone, and iPad was the first that came to mind. I struggled with others. There must be plenty out there, but the fact I struggled demonstrates how hard it is for businesses to have extensive purple patches.

The only other one I could think of is Pixar. Between 1995 and 2010, they released Toy Story (8.3 IMDb), A Bug’s Life (7.2), Toy Story 2 (7.9), Monsters Inc (8), Finding Nemo (8.1), The Incredibles (8), Cars (7.1), Ratatouille (8), WALL-E (8.4), Up (8.2), and Toy Story 3 (8.4). An undeniable hot streak of critical and commercial success, anchored in the art of storytelling. Then they made Cars 2, but the less said about that the better.

Pixar’s ability to tell great stories is rooted in their deep understanding of human emotions, motivations, and psychology. Those skills are also invaluable to salespeople and marketers too. No matter what line of business you’re in, the best story usually wins. Not tall tales that deceive the customer by embellishing features and glossing over flaws, but stories about a product or brand that connect on a deep, emotional level with other people. It’s about uncovering fundamental truths about the world with the people you’re pitching to.

So how can we add some of Pixar’s magic to our own work? Fortunately for us Emma Coats, former Pixar story artist, tweeted out ’22 Rules for Storytelling’ back in 2011. I’ve shared the full list at the end, but here are most impactful to help build compelling brand and product stories.

“Simplify. Focus. Combine characters. Hop over detours. You’ll feel like you’re losing valuable stuff but it sets you free.”

It’s easy to get caught up in reeling off features and benefits. You think that each additional feature is another reason for the customer to buy, but all you’re doing is clouding your own key messaging that meets the customer’s need and muddling up your story arc. Think about the messages you want a potential customer to takeaway, and stay laser-focused on reinforcing those messages. Strip away everything else.

Your customer will be better for it, and thus you will be too.

“Come up with your ending before you figure out your middle. Seriously. Endings are hard, get yours working up front.”

Start with the outcome you want, and make your way backward to plot your story. Empathise with the prospect to map their likely emotional journey against your narrative. Throw in obstacles and tidbits about how you overcame them.

Like any good story, you want them to root for the hero — you — against the problem you’ve articulated.

“Pull apart the stories you like. What you like in them is a part of you; you’ve got to recognize it before you can use it.”

Akin to ‘good artists copy, great artists steal’ the internet is awash with leaked pitch decks from companies that have spent millions in crafting their story. Find ones you like, analyse why you like them, and use their techniques in your own story.

Here’s an example that I’ve ‘borrowed’ the structure of many a time.

“Discount the 1st thing that comes to mind. And the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th — get the obvious out of the way. Surprise yourself.”

The difference here between you and Pixar is that you likely already know your story, inside out. It’s obvious to you, but that doesn’t mean it’s the way that resonates most with customers. The best thing you can do is hold conversations with customers and listen to how they speak about your product.

Customers can often articulate why they love your brand or product far better than you yourself can.

“Give your characters opinions. Passive/malleable might seem likable to you as you write, but it’s poison to the audience.”

Don’t sit on the fence. Have an opinion — on the market, on the world — and have conviction in it. You may be scared to alienate customers who have an opposing opinion, but you’ll strike a chord with those who share your beliefs and build a better relationship with your customers because of it. If you have an opinion on the way the world could be better for others, you have a responsibility as a business of influence to advocate for it.

Personally, I believe customers deserve to know the beliefs they’re supporting by choosing to spend their money with a business.

“What are the stakes? Give us reason to root for the character. What happens if they don’t succeed? Stack the odds against.”

Perhaps most importantly, you need your listener to be invested in the outcome of the story; to care about what happens to the protagonist and world you’ve created. The best stories are remembered long after their telling. By the end, you want to have clearly outlined a compelling positive vision if they choose to work with you, and the consequences of inaction. I’d steer clear of disparaging other alternatives for the buyer (such as working with competition).

Inaction, more specifically loss aversion, should be enough of a motivator if you’ve told an impactful story.

The Story Spine

Having a narrative that explains who you are and your why is critical. Using Pixar’s ‘Story Spine’ is a great prompt to think about why you do what you do and why anyone else should care.

• Once upon a time there was ___. Introduce the characters and the setting. Depending on whether you’re crafting a B2C brand story or a B2B pitch, this is most likely to be the customer or the founder(s) respectively. Great stories always have a character to root for, and the character’s journey matters more than where they end up.
• Every day, ___. Here, you want to articulate the problem that you’re solving (without revealing the solution), and the frustrations it brings for your story protagonist.
• One day ___. This is the inflection point when everything changes. It might be the founding of the company, or the customer using your product. Here’s where you introduce your solution to the problem you articulated.
• Because of that, ___. What happened next? What benefits did the protagonist experience? These should connect to a deep-seeded human relation that is relatable for the listener — for example, the feelings of growth, belonging, safety are all felt universally — so try to elicit those for the biggest impact.
• Because of that, ___. How much does that mean to the protagonist or the world at large, why was it important?
• Until finally ___. Unlike a Pixar movie, which needs an ending, we can most likely skip this one when it comes to pitches. In business, your story arc is infinite and your work is never done.
• And ever since that day ____. Here you outline where you’re at and summarise your purpose — the reason you exist. At its most impactful, this will challenge a worldview and perceptions of reality.

Using the brand I currently work for, Intrepid Group, it might look a little something like this:

Once upon a time, travel was superficial. Travellers travelled to see, rather than to feel. Every day, tourists sat in hotels that all looked the same, no matter where they were in the world. They visited a place without ever really experiencing it, and the only people to benefit from tourism were the tourists themselves and a small number of wealthy hoteliers. They returned home with a tan, a few photos or souvenirs, and few lasting connections to a place or its people. Until one day, two backpackers bought a garbage truck and drove it across Africa with a dozen of their friends to explore new places, share stories with local people, try food they’d never had before, and learn about different cultures. Because of that, they realised that travel could be a transformational force for good in the world, driving positive impact for communities the world over. Because of that, they created Intrepid to promote sustainable, experience-rich travel and change the way people see the world. And ever since that day they’ve been enriching customers’ lives through travel and advocating for positive change throughout the industry and beyond, creating a lasting positive impact on the world around us.

Remember, the best story usually wins so take the time to purposefully craft yours with the same care as Pixar do. It’ll give you the best chance of your own happily ever after.

Pixar’s 22 Storytelling Rules

1. You admire a character for trying more than for their successes.
2. You gotta keep in mind what’s interesting to you as an audience, not what’s fun to do as a writer. They can be v. different.
3. Trying for theme is important, but you won’t see what the story is actually about til you’re at the end of it. Now rewrite.
4. Once upon a time there was ___. Every day, ___. One day ___. Because of that, ___. Because of that, ___. Until finally ___.
5. Simplify. Focus. Combine characters. Hop over detours. You’ll feel like you’re losing valuable stuff but it sets you free.
6. What is your character good at, comfortable with? Throw the polar opposite at them. Challenge them. How do they deal?
7. Come up with your ending before you figure out your middle. Seriously. Endings are hard, get yours working up front.
8. Finish your story, let go even if it’s not perfect. In an ideal world you have both, but move on. Do better next time.
9. When you’re stuck, make a list of what WOULDN’T happen next. Lots of times the material to get you unstuck will show up.
10. Pull apart the stories you like. What you like in them is a part of you; you’ve got to recognize it before you can use it.
11. Putting it on paper lets you start fixing it. If it stays in your head, a perfect idea, you’ll never share it with anyone.
12. Discount the 1st thing that comes to mind. And the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th — get the obvious out of the way. Surprise yourself.
13. Give your characters opinions. Passive/malleable might seem likable to you as you write, but it’s poison to the audience.
14. Why must you tell THIS story? What’s the belief burning within you that your story feeds off of? That’s the heart of it.
15. If you were your character, in this situation, how would you feel? Honesty lends credibility to unbelievable situations.
16. What are the stakes? Give us reason to root for the character. What happens if they don’t succeed? Stack the odds against.
17. No work is ever wasted. If it’s not working, let go and move on — it’ll come back around to be useful later.
18. You have to know yourself: the difference between doing your best & fussing. Story is testing, not refining.
19. Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating.
20. Exercise: take the building blocks of a movie you dislike. How d’you rearrange them into what you DO like?
21. You gotta identify with your situation/characters, can’t just write ‘cool’. What would make YOU act that way?
22. What’s the essence of your story? Most economical telling of it? If you know that, you can build out from there.