When we go to a movie, we judge it by how well the actors and cinematography tell the story. We lose ourselves in the story as we cheer the hero on to success. We laugh, and maybe if you’re like me, you cry a bit too. My favorite s usually includes a real-life underdog who is a bit scrappy, hard-working and knows what he or she wants to achieve. They dream big. They inspire others to dream big and I leave feeling a little bit more motivated to make a positive difference in the world. On the other hand, there are movies that put me to sleep or leave me wishing I had not wasted my time. Those are to be avoided.

Movies are a lot like businesses. Some are exciting and fall in love with their product and everything about the way they do business. Others simply don’t stand out. They are the “sleepers”. Others don’t seem to know themselves very well, so they bounce all over the place, like a kid in a bouncy house. Those don’t usually last long. Statistically, small businesses have a high rate of failure in the first 5 years of business. There are many reasons – funding, lack of planning, the market, etc. But there are 3 things anyone can do to make your business successful – understand WHY, the WHO and the HOW.

The ones who do succeed, really know WHY they are in business. They know what they have to offer and how that sets them apart from the competition. They are passionate about their product or service and want everyone to know about it and how it can change their lives. But they also aren’t blind to their weaknesses. They are looking at their business, product, or service as a consumer, client, or competitor would. This helps them see opportunities that others might miss. (If they are in business solely to make money, it will not be enough motivation to surmount the challenges of owning a business and customers will feel “sold to”.)

As an entrepreneur it’s a challenge doing EVERYTHING that needs to be done – there simply aren’t enough hours in the day to do it all without burning out, so it’s important to have good supporting “actors”. The ones who will help make your dream happen and will help tell your story. WHO will tell your story? Will it be you? Will you be the “face” of your business or will it be someone behind the scenes, who knows your story almost as well as you? 

A movie producers’ responsibility is to tell the story in a compelling way that will reach the most people, with the most impact. Some movies launch with limited showings, others in small niche theaters, and the well-known ones launch all over. Audiences tell (show) with their wallets whether they were impressed or underwhelmed with the “end product” and the stakeholders nervously wait for the box office opening weekend results. This is a moment of truth. Once the movie is out, it is out. There’s no way to go back and tweak it here and there to make the audience like it more. Fortunately, for the entrepreneur, this is not the case! There are many options for getting the story of your business out – social, email campaigns and traditional and HOW the story is shared can be adjusted based on the feedback from the analytics. 

Here at Noyze Marketing, not only do we love movies, we constantly check the numbers – whether that’s following sales, return on ad spend, or engagement. We test how our client’s message is being received and work to overcome any challenges. We strive to share our client’s story in a cohesive way across all channels. We are a company who is passionate about making your company grow. Your success is our success – we are invested in YOU!

Everyone has a story. What’s yours?