When you share your story with your audience? This is what really happens.

3 mins read .......

Yesterday I was having a conversation with a colleague Monica Guy, Houston Area Realtor and one of the things we talked about was - sharing our mistakes and failures when writing for our readers.

A lot of you might disagree with me, admitting that you made a mistake is not something we all like to do.

But you see, this is one of the best ways to build a relationship with your audience and get them to relate with you.

When I started sharing my story with you, you felt you knew me.

When I told you how I moved to the Republic of Benin as an orphaned single mom with nothing, the challenges I faced trying to survive, cater to my baby and siblings and how I was able to build a life for myself, you could relate because you might have experienced a similar thing.

You were inspired and wanted to know how I did it.

Then I shared some of the things I did, what worked and what didn’t. Doing this inspired you to take a stand because now you know that “You too can BuildRegardless of your challenges and make an impact in the world”

It helped you decide to build for yourselves and you begin to say things like:

“lf Vanessa could survive in a foreign country and build a life for herself, I can do the same too. I will buildregardless of my own challenges, my own mistakes, and my fears. I will stand and keep pushing even when I feel weak.”

You could relate because I wasn’t making the story only about me, I was also telling a part of your own story, something you are currently experiencing, have experienced in the past or a future you desired for yourself too.

When you share your story, your failures, and mistakes with your audience, this is what really happens...

1. You show them that you are also human, that you’ve gone through the same challenges they are currently experiencing and that you survived it.
2. You invite your readers into the story because it’s also something that they are experiencing or have experienced.
3. You inspire them and stand as a guide to help them make better decisions for themselves.
4. They begin to engage with you on a deeper level because your content is real and provides value to them.

When you share your victories alone, most of your audience, especially those who are still struggling begin to feel inadequate and unable to relate to what you have experienced.

They feel that the level of success you have achieved is out of their reach and eventually begin to withdraw and disconnect.

You surely don’t want this, especially if you are trying to build and grow an audience of people who will be loyal to your brand.

One thing is sharing your stories, another thing is knowing what stories to share and how to share it so you don’t come off as just bragging. I will cover this in another post.

Before then I would like to know this... "Do you also share some of your personal stories with your audience?

This article was originally posted on Medium --> https://medium.com/@vmbamarah/when-you-share-your-story-with-your-audience-this-is-what-really-happens-ab8c15037d7e