It’s easy to get caught up with the terms: brand story, company profile, about us, etc. However, they all include one thing–the story of who you are, what you do, and why you do it. Simple enough! But don’t feel like you’re alone when it comes to writing your story down. Writer’s block is a real thing, and it is more common than you might think.

Webster’s dictionary defines writer’s block as “a psychological inhibition preventing a writer from proceeding with a piece,” and how it manifests itself is different for every individual. Study after study, researchers have observed that writer’s block typically occurs for three reasons.

Fear

It can be a daunting task to write your company’s story down on paper rather than it stored away in your mind. The fear of putting pen to paper, or in most cases typing text to page, the fear of having people hear your story, the fear of public perception, and the fear of truly committing to the words you write is a common reason for writer’s block.

Perfectionism

Wanting everything to be perfect before sharing your story out into the world can be a perfect excuse for not publishing your company story. However, it’s an excuse at its core. Being paralyzed by perfection will never get you to where you want to go.

External Criticism

Wanting to be a part of something and accepted by a community is common no matter what you are trying to do. Reflect on affirmations, the values, and the vision you’ve set out for your company before you begin writing to boost your self-esteem. This also helps remind yourself that you’re doing a good job!

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A fourth reason we are going to add is not knowing where to start. That’s where this blog post comes in. Let’s get started with a simple outline to a traditional company story.

1. What have you created your company to do? And how are you doing it?
   
2. By doing the above, what value do you bring to your customer?
   
3. What is your vision? Your company’s mission and values?
   
4. Tell us about your company history. When did you start; where; by who?
   
5. What’s next? Give your reader/user/customer a place to go–a call to action.

By filling in the answers to these five sections, your company story will begin to form. From there, tweak and adjust by following your brand guidelines that determine your brand voice, messaging, and more.

Why create a company story?

Creating a company story may seem like a task that you can put on the back burner until you “find time” or get to the next step in growing your business. But as soon as you can communicate your organization’s mission, vision, and value–the quicker you will begin creating a strong reputation, stand out from competitors, and build a customer base to support your passion.

Additionally, having a company story drafted and published will typically give you an advantage over those who do not when applying for grants, pitching to investors, or asking for independent financial support.

How to make your story stand out

Now that you have the basics for creating your company’s brand story–spice it up! There are tons of examples showing how other companies (large and small) have shared their brand story. Sometimes it’s broken up in chunks on an “About Us” page; sometimes it’s a part of the company’s homepage copy. No matter what your brand guidelines say, there is inspiration waiting for you within the rabbit holes of the internet.

Although you are sure to create something amazing from the get go, here are a few tips to help make your story stand out from the rest.

1. Use facts and statistics to back up your claims. This shows that you aren’t over-inflating your abilities.
   
2. Tell readers what they want to/need to know about how your company is helping them and why you are doing what you do.
   
3. This follows along the lines of #2, but the next tip is to allow a peek into the production–a behind-the-scenes, raw story that will resonate with your customers and strike some emotion.
   
4. Include a photo of you/your team! This can be headshots, candid in-action photos, or even connect it to your instagram or add a gallery to the web page to have an element of personal interest in your story (connecting the name to the face).
   
5. Be you! A company profile does not need to be technical terms, big words, and a copy & paste biography that could translate to any business. Add your personal flair through terms and phrases you commonly use, and even punctuation.

Creating your brand story can be a daunting task–but it’s worth it.

Do you need help getting started or not sure if it is following the brand you’ve created? Contact us! We’re happy to walk alongside you as you craft your story.