Brand Storytelling: The Guide Protocol

THE BRUTAL REALITY: YOUR BRAND IS NARCISSISTIC

Look at your landing page. If it starts with "We were founded in..." or "Our mission is...", you are invisible.

The Conflict: Humans are biologically programmed to ignore information that doesn't help them survive. Your "history" helps no one.

The Truth: In every story, there is only room for ONE hero. If you try to be the hero, the customer is forced to be a spectator. Spectators don't buy.

The Fix: You must become the Guide. The customer is the Hero. You are just the one with the map and the lightsaber.

1. THE HERO SWAP (A/B)

Draw a line. On side A is your customer (The Hero). On side B is their problem (The Villain).

Your product is not the solution; it is the weapon the hero uses. Your job is to describe how the Hero wins the battle, not how great the weapon's factory is.

2. INTERNAL VS EXTERNAL CONFLICT

People buy solutions to external problems (broken car), but they make decisions based on internal problems (feeling like a failure).

Address the feeling, and the sale is 10x easier.

SMART WORDS

NARRATIVE TRANSPORT

The "trance" where a customer stops being critical because they are lost in your story.

THE GRUNT TEST

The "Caveman Rule." If a caveman looks at your site for 5 seconds, does he know exactly how you help him survive?

VALUE PROPOSITION

A single sentence that explains why your product isn't a waste of the customer's time.

TACTICAL DIRECTIVES

1. The Hero Check: Replace every "We" on your homepage with "You."

2. Identify the Villain: Define the one external problem you solve and the one internal feeling you fix.

3. The 3-Step Plan: Give the customer a visual 3-step map to success. Clarity wins over complexity.