For one sales professional, there’s one key ingredient to a successful sales demonstration: Storytelling. And, while many salespeople have been taught to sell benefits rather than features, they haven’t been taught how to do this in the form of a story. Sales Hacker contributor Andrew Mewborn wants to change that. He devotes an entire article to explaining why storytelling is vital to a demo and how reps can hone those skills. 

First, he explains just why telling a story can take a demo to the next level.

It helps make your product and pitch easier to remember. 

Buyers aren’t likely to remember a laundry list of features, but they will remember a story about how those features benefited someone. Rather than rattle of why your product or service is great, show the buyer by highlighting how it helped a current client. This will make you and what you’re selling much more memorable. 

You are more relatable.

By engaging the buyer with a story, you immediately become more approachable. You have the opportunity to showcase how much you care about your product or service, as well as highlight your own journey to your current role as a seller. “[Storytelling] establishes you as a real person, rather than some faceless charlatan who’s out to take their money, never to be heard from again,” Mewborn explains. 

It builds trust. 

People are more willing to buy from those whom they trust. And, storytelling can help you gain that trust. Mewborn cites research from Claremont Graduate University that revealed people are more willing to donate money after watching a video with a narrative. 

Once Mewborn tackles the why, he moves on to the how. Check out his entire article, which includes seven well-​defined steps to crafting the perfect story structure for a demo. He also includes tips to boost your story’s efficiency, including what length you should aim for and how to end each demo.