All the most popular B2B storytelling frameworks

One of the most frustrating challenges of growing a brand is struggling to connect with the people who may need your product or service. According to Donald Miller, the main problem is not what you're selling but what you're saying. According to Miller, people are drawn to the products and services they understand the fastest. 

The framework is deceptively simple, helping brands define their audience (The Character) and their key problem, how they might then come across the brand (The Guide), and how the brand might solve their problem (The Plan). It relies on a simple and clear Call to Action and always describes The Character and what success looks like—as well as what tragic outcomes might occur should they choose the wrong (not your brand's) solution.

Miller describes what he calls a StoryBrand Framework. This refers to the repackaging of storytelling conventions to enhance how you tell your brand's story. There are seven points to consider: 

1. Every story starts with a character who wants something.
2. A problem gets in the way of the character getting what they want.
3. The character encounters a guide who can help them overcome their problem and get what they want.
4. The guide gives the character a plan and - 
5. Calls them to action.
6. By taking that action, the character avoids failure and - 
7. Achieves success.
   
   

The key is remembering that your customer is the true hero of the story. Your brand is the guide, and you are there to help your customers achieve their goals and solve their problems. 

Emma Coates at Pixar came up with this story framework in a presentation she was giving about telling stories for Pixar. The Pixar framework is a great way to tell a story because it goes beyond the solution and into the impact to add unique value truly. This approach is built around the concept that stories that are memorable will travel further and inspire more significant action. It is based on the following steps:

1. Once upon a time…
2. Every day…
3. One day…
4. Because of that…
5. Because of that…
6. Until finally…

The best thing about the Pixar framework is its simplicity and adjustability, allowing you to take any story and expand its impact using this accessible format. The Pixar framework makes you go beyond the solution, or output, and into impact. It can be used easily in founding stories, explainer videos, and beyond.

German author Gustav Freytag studied the dramatic structure of popular plays in the 19th Century and came up with a model stuck around. The typical storytelling structure of the Freytag Pyramid centres around setting the stage (exposition), providing details that move the story forward (rising action), reaching the most significant point of the story (climax), explaining the aftermath (falling action), and making sense of it all (resolution).

Freytag's pyramid, as it's come to be known, highlighted seven parts he considered necessary to storytelling: exposition, inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution, and denouement:

1. Exposition — where the story sets the scene and the character's background.
2. Inciting incident — the character reacts to something that has happened and starts a chain reaction of events.
3. Rising action — a series of events to build up to the climax. There is often a problem the character tries to solve.
4. Climax — where the story reaches the point of greatest tension and gets turned around.
5. Falling action — action continues from the climax towards the point where the character shows how the events of the climax change them.
6. Resolution — the character solves the problem.
7. Dénouement — ending the story with a resolution, catastrophe or revelation.

This framework is used in countless brand videos, stories and social media. 

The three-act structure is perhaps the most common technique for plotting stories. Like The StoryBrand framework, the 3-act structure is about conflict resolution, but the template contains just three parts, often called the Setup, the Confrontation, and the Resolution. 

1. The Setup — is where all the major characters are introduced, the world they live in, and the conflict that will move the story forward.
2. The Confrontation  — presentation of a problem, you have to thoroughly understand what questions your audience wants to be answered
3. The Resolution — the problem presented in the first two acts is resolved to create a satisfying ending

Now just like in the frameworks discussed above the main character of your story is the hero. That way, your customer should immediately identify with your character and want to see what happens to them and how they prevail. We see the three-act structure used widely in short content like social media posts. 

One of the old tried and tested frameworks is Problem-Agitate-Solve. Sometimes called PAS, this one is known for its use in copywriting. During the three steps of the framework, you're laying out a problem that your target customer faces. Then you agitate the problem by digging deeper into it to make the customers feel the pain, even more, thirsting for relief from this pain. By following the framework, you'll be able to create content that resonates with your target audience, increases conversions, and builds your brand.

PAS works like this:

1. Problem — Identify the problem. This is what your customer's current state is. It is what they're experiencing and want to overcome.
2. Agitate — Show the audience that you understand what matters to them. Make the problem seem scarier and share the side effects of not solving that problem. 
3. Solve — Present the solution. Show the customer they need a solution like yours if they want to solve their problem. Give them the answer to their original question, will this solve my problem and get me to where I want to be?

The PAS framework is an easy way to write copy that sells. It's simple, easy to understand, and can be used everywhere. Problem-Agitate-Solve can be used in almost any piece of content — from landing pages, product pages, or CTA's to social media, cold emails and blog post introductions.

Another framework to try is Context, Action, and Results (CAR), a concept introduced by Paul Smith in 2012. CAR makes for a great, easy-to-use structure that can work for any narrative and is established in classic storytelling. 

1. Context — the context of your storyboard should highlight the hero. Focus on your customer and their current landscape, market, and challenges. Consider where they come from and where they are going. What transformation does the hero go through? What is the desired change? 
2. Action — go more in-depth into your hero's problem and what is a direct challenge that exists for your customer. Answer who is a guide in solving the problem? Of course, it's your product or service! But be careful – focus on the customer. Think about what plan can you provide your customer? Maybe there are specific steps that they need to take – spell those steps out.
3. Results — explain how the customer adapts to their situation and comes out on top. First is a call to action. Give them something they can do to take the next step on the journey with you. Every story is about transformation, so what happens if they don't transform and what happens if they do – what success can they achieve and what failure can they avoid?

CAR framework breaks down into these same three sections, representing a persona's chronological path of working with your business. The elements defined  can be used to create all kinds of marketing content – short form, long form, blog posts, videos, whitepapers, case studies, etc. Everything you produce will ultimately come back to the basic questions of: what does the customer want, what stands in their way, and how do they achieve it?