Relationships, Storytelling, and a Fine Mezcal

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There’s just no substitute for seeing people in person.

Early in 2023, I spent three days in Phoenix at the B2B Marketing Exchange and had dozens of terrific conversations. I met attendees and potential customers of Agorapulse, I spoke with other vendors and speakers at the event. I hugged old friends like Lee Odden and Jay Baer.

Perhaps the best part – which was entirely unanticipated – was being able to spend so much time with our CMO at Agorapulse at the time, Darryl Praill. Darryl is extremely experienced with it comes to marketing, sales and revenue. Spending hours chatting with him was essentially a masterclass in driving business results.

From the very first evening in town, our conversations ranged from science fiction to sales & funnels, and everything in between. I’d already scoped out some nearby restaurants to try and knew that, since we were in the Southwest, I wanted to sample great Mexican cuisine and sip smoky mezcal.

Like the first time I ever tried mezcal in San Diego, a couple years ago.

I was in town for a marketing event then, too, and my wife was with me. That weekend was our 11th wedding anniversary, so she tagged along and when the event was over, we spent two days in town together.

We each planned one day and my day started with a romantic brunch cruise in the bay, followed by a fun walk through Balboa park. For that evening, I wanted an “experience” and turned to Yelp. It was Oct. 30th and Old Town San Diego was getting ready to celebrate Dia De Los Muertos, I saw that a restaurant and bar there was offering a Mezcal Tasting Experience and I thought that sounded amazing. I didn’t know what mezcal was but I assumed it was like TexMex, just a blend of Mexican and Californian cuisine.

Boy, was I wrong.

The Power of Storytelling in B2B Marketing: Establishing Thought Leadership

As a B2B influencer, it’s essential to understand the role that storytelling plays in establishing thought leadership and building trust with your target audience. Stories have the power to engage, inspire, and connect people in a way that data and facts cannot.

In B2B marketing, stories can be used to illustrate complex concepts, showcase the impact of your products or services, and highlight the unique value proposition of your brand. When done effectively, storytelling can help you stand out from the competition and establish your brand as a trusted leader in your industry.

To start incorporating storytelling into your B2B marketing strategy, consider the following tips:

Identify key storylines and themes that align with your brand and message.
Use case studies, customer testimonials, and personal anecdotes to bring your stories to life.
Make sure your stories are relevant and relatable to your target audience.
Use storytelling to highlight your brand’s values and mission.

So, embrace the power of storytelling in your B2B marketing efforts and start establishing yourself as a thought leader in your industry today!

ANOTHER EXAMPLE: The Story Of The Halfway House

Oh, about that mezcal…

When we got to that restaurant in San Diego we had a blast walking through the oldest cemetary in San Diego next door, all decked out for the holiday. But then we went inside and the host directed us into a closed-off bar sporting an entire wall of tequila. My heart dropped.

Not only was I not a tequila drinker, we were hungry and there to eat, not drink. I quickly ducked back out and made sure we could be seated in the restaurant after the tasting, then came back in to a smiling bartender.

She welcomed us and had us sit next to another couple. She then guided us through a series of samples of tequila and then mezcal, and it was amazing.

Mezcal is similar to tequila but it’s been stored underground and smoked, giving it a unique smoky, bar-b-que flavor that I immediately fell in love with. I’ve been ordering mezcal drinks ever since.

Just like that evening with Darryl, who has been my boss for a year now. We enjoyed delicious food and amazing drinks, and had a terrific conversation about life and work and more.

That evening set the tone and tenor for the rest of the week, and the face to face time will doubtless have a long-lasting, positive impact on our working relationship.

Just like this story has helped illustrate both the power of events and face-to-face time for relationships, and the way in which stories can be integrated into your content (and even the effectiveness of using open loops in your storytelling).