Attention, Communication and the Science of Selling

Hey all,

I don’t know who’s been talking about this old newsletter but we’ve had a nice influx of new folk this week. Hello to you all. We’re Storythings. We help good people tell important stories that get attention. We help them with their strategy, content format development or content production. We make videos, podcasts, animation, and more. We also have two other newsletters, and . Sign up. You might like them.

Last week we held our first Proper Fancy event. It's like a team show-and-tell for people who don't have a team. It was fun. And lovely to meet some of you. Come and join us for the next one on Thursday 25 May 1pm (BST). Leave your details here and we’ll send you a Zoom link.

That’s it from us for this week. Have another brilliant holiday weekend to all our UK readers.

Hugh

Jobs To Be Done: The Real Science of Selling (7 min read)

There Are Three Types of Written Content That Get Attention (4 min read)

Where Do Ideas Come From (5 min watch)

Three Rules For Communicating Ideas So Everyone Understands (5 min read)

Help Build the World’s Largest Dataset of Hands (4 min read)

Steve Jobs Emails Bill Gates (2 min read)

Science Fiction Movie Logos (5 min read)

Some Things I Think (List)

How Much Does An Animation Cost (3 min read)

The New York Times Connected Objects Ads (1 min read)

How can we help you?

Storythings is a strategy and production company based in Brighton, London, Bristol, Berlin, and Ibiza. We'd love to help you with some creative and bold ideas. Here are 3 reasons to get in touch. 

1. Audience Strategy - Do you struggle to understand constantly changing audience behaviours, and what strategies you need to reach them?2. Content Format Development - Do you want to develop and test content formats that give you a direct relationship with your audience? (e.g. newsletters, podcasts, publications, or video series).3. Production - Do you need help creating and running an existing or new content format, and growing loyal audiences around them?We do other things too. We're very friendly and always enjoy meeting people, so get in touch. 

Jobs To Be Done: The Real Science of SellingThis is a fantastic story about how McDonald’s increased milkshake sales by 400% by understanding the job a milkshake was doing in people’s lives. It’s a great framework for thinking about how to best serve your audience or customers and why we at Storythings think less about ‘who’ and more about ‘why’ when we develop content ideas for clients. (7 min read)

There Are Three Types of Written Content That Get AttentionOne is much better at getting and holding onto people’s attention than the others. (3 min read)

Where Do Ideas Come FromThis gorgeous short video popped back into my stream recently. Worth a watch or sharing with your team if generating ideas is part of what you do. (5 min watch)Three Rules For Communicating Ideas So Everyone UnderstandsWhether you are a public speaker or having a heart-to-heart, it can be challenging to express your thoughts clearly. Actor and science communicator Alan Alda recommends three rules for effective and empathic communication.(5 min read)

Help Build the World’s Largest Dataset of HandsOne thing we know about AI image generation is that hands are difficult. Give A Hand is a fantastic initiative by the American Society for Deaf Children which aims to build the world’s largest dataset of hands. This dataset will enable AI to recognise and interpret the full spectrum of sign language. You can take part really easily by simply allowing the browser to take a photo of your hand. (4 min read)

Steve Jobs Emails Bill GatesRegular readers will know that I love the Internal Tech Emails substack. Admittedly, the voyeuristic nature is hugely appealing, as is the gossip. But there are also lessons to be learned from these once-private communications. Here, Steve Jobs approaches Bill Gates and attempts to bring to an end a potentially explosive dirty tricks campaign by a Microsoft team. (2 min read)

Science Fiction Movie LogosA lovely bit of design inspiration from the world of science fiction.(5 min read)

Some Things I ThinkA good list of things worth thinking about. I particularly liked “People like you more when you are working towards something, not when you have it,” “Logic doesn’t persuade people. Clarity, storytelling, and appealing to self-interest do” and “A good bet in economics: the past wasn’t as good as you remember, the present isn’t as bad as you think, and the future will be better than you anticipate.” (List)How Much Does An Animation CostWe get asked this a lot. As the piece points out, the price is usually somewhere between $0 and $180m, which is how much Pixar spent creating WALL-E. If you are thinking of getting an animation, this guide is full of really useful things to think about. (3 min read)

The New York Times Connected Objects AdsWe’ve been a big fan of the Times ads for a while. They’re short, beautiful, attention-grabbing, and always have something interesting to say in a smart way. This current collection replicates the experience of falling down content rabbit holes.(1 min read)

We hope you've enjoyed this week's newsletter. I'm sure some of your friends would love to read it. Sharing it would be really appreciated. If you've received this from a friend, you can subscribe below and get it direct to your inbox every Friday.

Thanks for reading. We’ll see you all next week.

Hugh, Matt, Anjali and the whole team at Storythings.