Creative Non-Fiction for Your Business Blog

 

When I was a kid, I spent hours and hours filling notebooks with stories. I remember writing tales about Robin Hood and stories that felt like Anne of Green Gables meets Little House on the Prairie. When I was a teenager, I discovered vampires and wrote a pretty epic, and pretty awful, vampire novel that clocked in at over 300 handwritten pages. That notebook was lost long ago, but I kind of wish I still had it.

How does being a lifelong fiction writer help me when I’m creating business-related content for my clients? I like to use something called creative non-fiction. I craft a narrative where my clients are the protagonists and I use their voice to guide the words onto the page.

Is creative non-fiction good for your business? Here are a few things to consider.

 

Know Your Why

Simon Sinek said, “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.” There is always competition for what you do, so how do you stand out from the crowd? You do it by engaging potential customers in the way they want to be engaged. Your why matches up to someone else’s story, and that is a powerful tool. When you use storytelling on your blog, you engage those feelings of familiarity, trust, and interest.

 

Make it Personal

Customers don’t always want to buy products or services from impersonal corporations. Apple became successful, in part, because Steve Jobs was the face of the company. When you have a blog on your business website, you position yourself as a subject matter expert. And when you use storytelling to engage readers on your blog, you're not only a thought leader but also a three-dimensional person.

 

Make it Fun

People like to enjoy what they’re reading. And most of us learn more when we’re actively excited about the thing we’re learning. This is true with your blog, too. For example, imagine you sell handmade pottery. Your work is gorgeous and everyone who’s bought it loves it. How do you reach the people who aren’t already customers? Writing a funny story about your biggest pottery fail can be a good place to start. It's relatable, engaging, and readers will laugh along. They’ll see the person behind the product.

 

Encourage Readers to Come Back

Creative non-fiction also encourages people to come back and read more. And the more they come back, the more likely they will buy something. Take, for example, The Bloggess. Her story about Beyonce the Metal Chicken is laugh-out-loud hilarious. That’s creative non-fiction. And through her blog, she began a charity, wrote books, and started a small business. Bloggess readers are very loyal.

I know what you’re thinking. “I’m not a writer. I have no idea how to do creative non-fiction for my blog.” Don’t worry. By partnering with a professional writer who loves the art of crafting a story, you can engage readers on your blog, too.

Email me to learn more.