Made To Stick
By Kyle on October 28th, 2011
Most companies want a video that people watch, share with friends and are influenced to take action by.
It is impossible to guarantee the creation of a video that will incorporate all these things, but there are key steps that can be taken, in the creation of video, that will make success more likely.
When we sat down and tried to outline the key components of a good video everything related back to this book:
After analyzing 100’s of “sticky” ideas, the authors of Made to Stick concluded the same 6 principles applied. Below they are summarized with a combination of our thoughts and theirs:
Principle 1: Simplicity
A successful defense lawyer says, “If you argue ten points, even if each point is a good point, when they get back to the jury room they won’t remember anything.”
We must create stories that are both simple and profound. Showcasing 10 features doesn’t intrigue your viewers to take action, it just confuses and bores them. In fact no one cares about the features in your product; they care about the problem and pain points you solve.
Principle 2: Unexpectedness
We need to violate people’s expectations. We use surprise - an emotion whose function is to increase alertness and cause focus - to grab people’s attention. Humour is one of the best ways to do this and crucial to creating a good Simple Story Video.
Principle 3: Concreteness
How do we make our ideas clear? We must explain our ideas in terms of human actions, in terms of sensory information. This is where so much business communication goes awry. Mission statements, synergies, strategies, visions—they are often ambiguous to the point of being meaningless. Naturally sticky ideas are full of concrete images—ice filled bathtubs, apples with razors—because our brains are wired to remember concrete data. Speaking concretely and showcasing concrete images is the only way to ensure that our idea will mean the same thing to everyone in our audience. Combining graphics and words together solidifies the concrete nature of our videos.
Principle 4: Credibility
Sticky ideas and stories have to carry their own credentials. Tell a story that allows people to validate a need based on real life use cases. When Ronald Reagan battled Jimmy Carter during the 1980 US presidential debate he could have cited innumerable statistics demonstrating the sluggishness of the economy. Instead, he asked a simple question that allowed voters to test for themselves: “Before you vote, ask yourself if you are better off today than you were four years ago”. A video needs to put the viewer in a position to validate a concept based on personal experience which creates real credibility.
Principle 5: Emotions
How do we get people to care about our ideas? We make them feel something. Relating to your viewer and connecting with their emotions will create intrigue and loyalty beyond any feature within your product.
Principle 6: Stories
How do we get people to act on our ideas? We tell stories. We tell use cases, we get people to relate and understand from their own experiences… We showcase through the use of a story how a company or product will solve a viewers problem and improve their life.
Utilizing these principles is easy. Convincing clients to adopt these principles is not.
In order for companies like ours to produce videos that incorporate these principles; clients need to:
- understand and agree with each principle and understand how they relate to their video
- trust our story telling and video expertise
- provide us with the autonomy to create something amazing
Reading this blog is a prerequisite for our clients. It ensures we aren’t forced to create boring, ineffective video. You love the features your product has to offer, but your viewers love the problem you solve and we want to tell that story.
If we follow the principles of “Make it Stick”, we can tell a story through video that converts viewers to watch, share and take a desired action, which is the ultimate goal.
