Financial Storytelling 101

The purpose of this blog is to serve as a repository of ideas about communicating to the financial community. In this series I hope to discuss why this is a unique community that requires specific techniques to communicate successfully.

While the term "storytelling" may seem trite in describing what others refer to as "strategic communications," it is the most appropriate term for what one needs to do to connect with the audience. Too often investor communications use "biz-speak," which obscures the main messages and ruins retention. Stories have a clear message, they have a structure, they have elements that engage us while they inform. Humans have a primal response to stories and as much as we are able to inform using storytelling techniques the more successful our communications efforts will become.

Much of what I hope to present here will be informed from my own experience as a communications professional. I have worked in the field for many years and from a few different perspectives - including working as a graphic designer, multimedia producer, copywriter, speechwriter, consultant and presentation trainer - on the corporate side as well as in agencies. For the past 14 years I have focused on financial communications - assisting companies to speak with investors. I specialize in a particularly demanding investor communications function - the IPO Roadshow. An IPO roadshow is a seminal event for most companies where they meet with potential investors in a series of live events to raise money to achieve a listing on a public exchange. Success here entails presenting a compelling message in a confident manner.

In my next post, I'll describe how the financial community is different from others we may target and some common communication mistakes.