STORYBRAND
Ask five people on your team to write down what your company does in two to three sentences. Then compare the answers.
I’ve done this with hundreds of companies. The answers are never the same. Sometimes they’re not even close.
When your own team can’t consistently describe what you do, your customers don’t stand a chance. And when customers are confused, they don’t buy.
This is what I call the Confusion Tax — the invisible cost you pay every time someone doesn’t understand your value:
Longer sales cycles. Wasted marketing spend. Losing deals to less qualified competitors. New hires who can’t explain what you do.
StoryBrand is a framework that eliminates the Confusion Tax. It gives your team one clear story to tell — and it works because it’s built on how people actually make decisions.
StoryBrand eliminates the Confusion Tax.
WES GAY · CERTIFIED STORYBRAND GUIDE
THE STORYBRAND FRAMEWORK
StoryBrand is built on the same storytelling principles Hollywood has used for decades. Here's what I've learned after using each element hundreds of times.
I.
Define what your customer wants. Not what you think they should want. A CEO doesn't want "enterprise software." She wants to stop losing deals.
II.
External problems get attention. Internal problems drive purchases. Philosophical problems create loyalty. The internal problem is the one that opens wallets.
III.
Guides do two things: express empathy and demonstrate authority. Most companies skip the empathy and lead with credentials. That's backwards.
IV.
A 3-step plan reduces confusion and builds trust. If your process has more than five steps, you're overcomplicating it.
V.
If you don't ask, they don't buy. Ever. One clear CTA. Say it multiple times. Make it impossible to miss.
VI.
Show the stakes — what happens if they don't act. Then show the destination: what life looks like after they work with you. Be specific.
VII.
What does life look like after they work with you? Be specific. "You'll feel great" doesn't cut it. "Your entire team will describe what you do in one sentence" does.
The framework answers the hardest question in marketing: what do we say?
THREE MISTAKES
StoryBrand works. But most companies that go through it don’t get the results they should. After working with close to 300 companies, I’ve seen the same three mistakes over and over.
Mistake 1: Treating it like a marketing project. StoryBrand is not a campaign. It’s a filter for every word your company says. If you only use it on your website and ignore your sales conversations, your proposals, and your internal language, you will leave most of the value on the table.
Mistake 2: Not using it enough. Most companies go through StoryBrand, update their website, and stop. But the framework should show up in every email, every pitch, every onboarding doc. The more places you use it, the more it compounds.
Mistake 3: Telling the wrong story. StoryBrand is about making the customer the hero. But most companies still default to talking about themselves — their history, their process, their awards. If the story is about you, it’s the wrong story.
If you avoid these three mistakes, StoryBrand will change your business. I’ve seen it happen hundreds of times.
— Wes
WES GAY · CERTIFIED STORYBRAND GUIDE
TWO WAYS TO IMPLEMENT
A full-day working session with your leadership team. We clarify your messaging, lock in your strategy, and build an execution roadmap.
By the end of the day, every person on your team will describe what you do the same way. No more confusion. This is my signature engagement, and it’s where most clients start.
A private StoryBrand workshop led by me for your team. This follows the official StoryBrand curriculum and gives your team a deep understanding of the framework.
Best for larger teams who want the full StoryBrand training experience, not just the output.
I've been a certified StoryBrand Guide since 2016. I was one of the first.
Since then, I've worked with nearly 300 brands across more than 120 industries and coached hundreds more at StoryBrand Live Workshops.
StoryBrand uses my story in their own marketing. When they want to show what's possible, they point to me.
I also run the StoryBrand Mastermind alongside Donald Miller.
When Donald Miller tells people who to call, he says my name.
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Go with Wes. He knows how to get a return on your investment.
DONALD MILLER
New York Times Bestselling Author
STORYBRAND
Schedule a call and I’ll help you figure out which path is right for your team.
