Walking the Talk

One of my favorite emails that I receive is from an old friend from Chicago’s South Side, Debbie Shames who runs Eloqui, a presentation and communication training company, which sends out an email once a week titled “Eloqui Tip of the Week.”

In the world of corporate communications we strive to be great storytellers of our mission, vision and successes to help create a positive culture.

For this week, the tip is “Storydoing.” According to a recent HBR article, Good Companies Are Storytellers. Great Companies are Storydoers. The major companies that were listed as storydoers, and not just tellers, included Starbucks, IBM, Target, Walt Disney, American Express, Jet Blue, and Apple. A storydoer can be described as a company that successfully operates on elevated ambition and making people lives and the world better a better place to live. Storydoing drives tangible action, including product development, social corporate responsibility, sustainability, HR policies, and fair compensation.

When a company focuses on giving back and taking action, there are definite benefits that come with it. The results of storydoing are 70% higher numbers in social media mentions, reduced media expenditures, revenue growth of 10 vs. 6% and increased share price compared to companies whom only just storytell. Companies that can walk the talk and put their message into action have a greater chance for success. Make sure everyone in the company lives by and can articulate the same message, and behaves accordingly. Turn your stories into a reality.