edgar & the story behind the story
DESCRIPTION
This is the keynote I gave at the international conference on HCI in Maribor, Slovenia in June 2013. It was about the power of stories and about how to use them to establish better connection with your users/clients. The second part was about our project Edgar, that is empowering craftsmen and SMEs by giving them a tool to create visually compelling stories.TRANSCRIPT
edgar& the story behind the story
as told by Damjan Obal
Hello, I’m Damjan
I will tell you the story about:
1. What makes a story
2. Hero’s journey
3. The power of stories
4. Stories for business & you
5. Edgar, the storyteller
6. Take away
Stories are not for children-only!No, really.
Storytelling 101
Five elements of a story: setting, plot, characters, conflict and theme
Photo by: http://www.flickr.com/photos/madelynnholmes/
Setting: Cottage in the woods...
Plot: Hansel & Gretel have outwit the evil witch
Characters: Hansel, Gretel, the Witch
Conflict: Good vs. Evil
Theme: Famine, outwitting the enemy
Photo by: http://www.flickr.com/photos/madelynnholmes/
What really matters:
storyteller, content and audience
Content. Is king.
Photo by: http://ingridsnotes.wordpress.com
moral
The audience
Photo by: http://www.flickr.com/photos/seandreilinger/
Storyteller: my mom
Content: the scary story about the evil witch.
If you don’t behave the witch will eat you alive!
So, don’t be greedy, Damjan!
Audience: mini-me
Photo by: http://www.flickr.com/photos/madelynnholmes/
Photo by: http://www.manmoth.co.uk
http://images5.fanpop.com
http://images5.fanpop.com
Frodo is a nobody...
Frodo gets a quest
He meets a mentor (Gandalf) + secret stash
He gets companions
He faces powerful enemies
He gets stronger
He finishes the quest - saves the Middle Earth
... Frodo is a hero
The power of stories
Stories boost imagination & creativity
Stories for businesses & you
“We’ve gone from being exposed to about 500 brand messages a day back in the 1970s to as many as 5000 a day today.”
#Yankelovich Consumer Research
Stories differentiate you from others & create added value &
build engagement with your users
People have a basic need for storytelling. Good brands & products address it.
www.edgartells.me / @edgartells
storytelling tool empowering craftsmen
the problem
Drago the small craftsman
VS.
the solution
“About.me meets Tumblr for craftsmen“ #AngelHack jury
Edgar helps SMEs and craftsmen that are not as internet-oriented, to create visual storylines of their products and engage with customers.
why now?
“Craftsman on the rise“ #Wired #Guardian
“Microbrewers and Craft Beer Makers Raising Millions and Millions of Dollars“#247WallSt.com
why now?
800.000 craftsman, artists, makers
42 million unique visitors/month
15 million products
Curated catalog Sales up by nearly 300%
in 2013
Won the AngelHack Berlin, accepted in the Accelerator in SF, invited to the TechCrunch Disrupt and… saved a couple of cheerleaders
(the last one is a lie).
Now, forget about edgar and remember:
Tell the story
Offer an adventure to your users
Offer rewards for succeeding + failing
Tell the users the story about your values
Your product as a story character (the more tech you are, the greater the need!)
www.edgartells.me / @edgartells
[email protected] / @damjanobal