#204 What is Business Storytelling? Defo Not Telling Tales!

”What is Business Storytelling?” you (kind of) asked.

I’ll answer your question and start with: It’s defo not about telling insignificant tales. 

Let me ask you this: Have you ever been so deep into your own zone that you forget what others actually hear when you talk?

Well, the other week, I was chatting with someone on LinkedIn. This person was complimenting one of my posts about business storytelling. But in their reply, they said something like,

“Thanks for reminding me to share more tales from our people!”

Tales?

That word hit me like an espresso shot: They think I’m talking about storytime.
Like bedtime stories. 

No wonder so many professionals brush storytelling off as fluff!
If that’s the mental picture I’ve painted, it’s no surprise people don’t take it seriously as a leadership, communication or branding tool.

Episode #204 What is Business Storytelling? Defo Not Telling Tales

Welcome back to Story-Driven Business podcast! I’m your host, Susanna Rantanen, known as the world’s leading modern employer branding expert and author.

This podcast is for growth, or growth-minded B2B founders, entrepreneurs, CEOs and other business leaders from HR to comms and marketing to sales who aspire to create better results, work in a purpose-driven environment and enjoy the fruits of their professional success in their personal lives.

So today, I want to reset the record and rewire your understanding providing you clear answer to what is business storytelling. Because when I talk about what is business storytelling, I’m not talking about tales. I’m talking about a powerful messaging formula that helps you win minds before you win actions.

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What Is Business Storytelling?

Let’s define the problem first.

This is a problem we all share in the business world: here’s a lot of noise.

Leaders and employees are equally overwhelmed. Customers and job seekers are more and more sceptical. And talent is scrolling past your recruitment posts like they’re spam.

The problem is, this constant noise means the old communication methods, the ones we are so used to, such as one way communication and campaigns, doesn’t seem to work anymore. 

Why?

Because we’ve entered a new era of attention and trust—the Information Era, as I define in my book Story-Driven Employer Branding about Matching Minds with Mission Through Business Storytelling.

In the information era, on stereoids, with AI now also in the picture, facts alone no longer move people. Logic doesn’t create change. And oh boy, are we requested and expected to change just all the time! And not just humans but our businesses are on a constant transition as the world around us moves very rapidly. 

Those who were already in the business life immediately after the financial crisis nearly 20 years ago can recognize the pattern:  yet again, we have no idea what the business world – or world as such, looks like next year, the year after or in 5 years. We are requested to adapt to whatever comes on our way. And that is very consuming on all of us.

Change is permanent, it seems. But it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Especially, if you can embrace the opportunities it brings along and become the guide your customers and employees want to lead the way.

When we understand that us humans are biologically wired to seek safety and predictability. Change—especially in work environments—can feel like a threat to our sense of control, competence, and belonging.

In business life, this manifests as:

• Attachment to routines and “the way we do things”
• Fear of failure or being exposed as inadequate in the new system
• Scepticism about leadership’s motives (“What’s the real reason we’re doing this?”)
• Emotional fatigue from constant transformation and buzzwordy initiatives

Even the most ambitious professionals can resist change, not because they’re lazy or cynical, but because change means uncertainty, and uncertainty means risk.

Even the most ambitious professionals can resist change, not because they’re lazy or cynical, but because change means uncertainty, and uncertainty means risk.

As a leader, you are in a position that calls for risk busting and business storytelling is probably the best tool for that. Especially, when you apply the over 2500 year old, scientifically-proven story formula.

Actually whatever role and responsibility you have, think about the people you need to convince every day.

They can be existing customers, prospects, job seekers, your team members, the leadership team.. you name it. 

You can probably immediately recognize challenges you have convincing them with something that you see important. Whatever that topic is, idea or task or goal, or need or request that your immediate stakeholders are afraid to commit to or accept just like that. That change requires extra energy and we’re just not sure if that’s worth the risk and worth the input, the extra input.

What helps humans embrace change in business?

Emotion, meaning, and story are hugely influential in convincing others and converting their minds and actions to something they are otherwise sceptical, fearful or just not believing in.

I’m going to share 5 things that help us humans, regardless of our roles or experience embrace change in business. 

(1) Applying Business Storytelling to help make the change meaningful

Change shouldn’t feel like a corporate imposition—it should feel like a hero’s journey. When leaders frame change as a mission that connects to purpose (“We’re doing this to stay relevant, serve better, and lead our industry”), people are more likely to get on board emotionally.

(2) Visible leadership vulnerability

When leaders admit they’re also learning, adjusting, and figuring things out—employees stop seeing the change as a top-down order and start experiencing it as a shared adventure when we figure it out together and they can actually contribute to figuring it out. It makes it so much more meaningful for them. This builds psychological safety and documenting it as content makes it wonderful internal communication and external employer and business branding collateral!

(3) Micro-wins that build trust

Instead of preaching the big picture, show small, tangible results. Humans trust outcomes over promises. So if you’re only talking about  the goals and the mission in the big picture, itmfeels like you’re not achieving anything. So you want to communicate and celebrate the milestones because those are tangible, those are understandable. This is what we’ve achieved. Reminding people of where we are, what we’ve achieved already works so much better than grand overhauls.

(4) Make it feel like progress, not punishment

If people associate change with more workload, confusion, or chaos, they’ll resist. It’s natural. So would you. But if it looks like personal growth, increased mastery, career development opportunity, or fewer frustrations, they’ll lean in.

(5) Ask help from internal influencers, not just leaders

Peer-to-peer trust is often stronger than manager-employee trust. Change spreads when respected colleagues start saying, “This actually helped me.” That’s social proof at work. And storytelling is so great at documenting these experiences of individuals’ change journeys.

And yet, when I talk about business storytelling, what people think I mean is:

• Personal anecdotes
• Fluffy “humans of our company” blog posts
• Origin stories
• Or God forbid… cringey fake conversations in job ads 

But that’s not what business storytelling is about.

What Is Business Storytelling As A Framework?

Business storytelling is not a type of content. It’s not a video, for example.

It’s a messaging framework. It’s how you say the thing—so it actually sticks.

That’s where StoryBrand 7-part Framework (SP7) comes in.

Let me break it down and then show you how I adapt this for leadership and employer branding in my story-driven employer branding methodology.

SP7 – The 7 Elements of a Persuasive Story:

1. A Character – Your audience (employee, candidate, customer)
2. Has a Problem – They’re stuck, lacking clarity, or afraid of failing, or personal life demands a change that has turned into a problem requiring solving
3. And Meets a Guide – That’s you and your company. As a CEO or founder, you are the guide to your management team and staff. As HR you are the guide to all your business leaders. As a talent acquisition professional, you are the guide to job seekers and candidates. As the marketing manager, you are the guide to the business leads and sales people. As a sales people, you are the guide to your customers and so on.
4. Who Gives Them a Plan – Your process, career path, development plan, product, values, or culture
5. And Calls Them to Action – Apply, join, change, commit, believe
6. That Helps Them Avoid Failure – Losing time, status, energy or ending burned out.
7. And Ends in Success – Their desired outcome, belonging, growth, impact – on a personal level. Hence the better future. Even if they are your customers and using their employer’s money to buy your products. It’s still always a personal success you want paint them.

This is not fluff. This is a timeless persuasion structure used in films, ads, and world-class speeches—and when applied to your business messaging, it makes your audience say: ”This is about me. I want in.”

The Talent Journey Of The Information Era™ In Business Storytelling

In the Magnetic Employer Branding Method™, I applied Miller’s wonderful SP7 even further: especially for HR, internal communication, employer brand and recruitment marketing and leadership communication—by overlaying it with what I call: The Talent Journey of the Information Era™

This journey maps how people go from strangers to fully committed owners of your business idea—whether that’s joining your company, following your leadership, or choosing your product.

Here’s how it goes:

1. Winning Sustainable Attention – ”I’m starting to notice you (and your business) and your content and messages are making me curious.”
2. Growing Employer or Business Awareness – “I’ve heard of you. I recognize your name. I have a little bit of trust in you.” The more aware they become, the more the ’ideal audience’ is able to detect: “You seem relevant. I’m becoming interested to put some effort to learn more about you to consider if this could be for me.”
3. Building Brand Affinity – Trust starts to grow: “I believe what you’re saying.” Desire sets in: “I want in. I want to be seen as part of this. I want to belong to this tribe.”
4. Conversion – Commitment  to take action proposed: “I’ll take the next step.” Taking ownership: “This is mycause too. I want to advocate it and speak on it’s behalf. I want the status others attach in me when I publicly connect myself to this company/employer.”

At every step, the story must evolve:

• You start as a signal in the noise.
• Then become the voice of their challenge.
• Then the guide who helps them succeed.

That’s what makes business storytelling strategic communication.

So, to your question: What is business storytelling? It’s like building a staircase for the brain and the heart to climb together.

What Is Business Storytelling In Practice?

What is business storytelling in practice? Let me give you some real-world examples of how this works in daily business communication:

Internal Comms:

You’re rolling out a new values framework.
You could email bullet points.
Or:
You tell a story of what those values look like in action, featuring a couple of real employees and team leaders, framing them as the hero in a challenge—and how your culture guided them.

Employer Branding:

You want to stand out to tech candidates.
You could list benefits and ping-pong tables.
Or:
You show what impact your devs make through a project story that mirrors your candidate’s dreams.

Leadership Messaging:

You’re navigating a tough change.
You could speak in corporate jargon.
Or:
You tell a story of challenge, fear, unity, and hope—and invite your people to co-write the next chapter.

The Big, Bold Truth About Business Storytelling As We Approach 2026

Here’s the truth most leaders miss: The better your business storytelling, the less convincing you need to do because when you tell the right story, people… Well, it’s not really about the right story, but telling the story the right way.

Because when you tell the right story, people don’t just “get it.”
They see themselves in it.
They believe.
They act.

Business storytelling is not fluff.
It’s fuel.

I want you to see it as a bridge between your ideas and your audience’s action. It is what convinces your audience, makes them see themselves in the story and just excites them to take the action that you propose them.

And in this information-saturated, AI-turboed, meaning-hungry world…
You can’t afford to not use it.

I want to finish this episode to this quote: “The most powerful person in the room isn’t the one who talks the most—it’s the one whose idea becomes everyone else’s.”

If this episode changed how you think about business storytelling, share it with a colleague or your leadership team.

Tag me on LinkedIn or Instagram and tell me: what message do you need people to finally understand?

Ready to rework your employer brand, internal comms or leadership message into a Magnetic Story? Let’s talk!

Keep leading with story! Until next week!

Yours Truly

P.S. Did you listen to or watch last week’s episode, yet? It’s about becoming a story-driven business and why you should apply business storytelling across your business in your internal and external communication and messaging. Think of it equivalent to becoming ‘Lean’. A systematic approach aiming to optimize your leadership and business success and becoming the go-to-business and workplace for your target audiences.