Interview with David Riemer

In this episode Fredrik chats with David Riemer, tech and ad executive, and marketer. He is the author of ‘Get Your Startup Story Straight ; The Definitive Storytelling Framework For Innovators And Entrepreneurs.’ He guides people to create the narrative of their startup, sharing their beginning motivations, their aims and values to create understanding between themselves and their target audience.    KEY TAKEAWAYS David has always been a narrative storyteller, has experience in journalism, and so has turned this skill towards startup business. Thinking in terms of a narrative, shifts the focus and viewpoint on the project. Stories have a structure. Overlay a classic story structure onto your innovation story and understand the motivations of your customer, the protagonist, and how your product or service is going to solve their problem.  One of the best ways to be successful as a business is to make a meaningful connection with your customer and understand them on a human level.  When you are telling a story, part of the narrative is conveyed by your facial expressions. Bear this in mind in zoom meetings and FaceTime. Show your expressions.  Include a human factor in your story that anybody can connect with no matter what your product is.  BEST MOMENTS   ‘I have seen this incredible thing happen when I talk to a founder about their project, and we talk about it in the context of a story. Who is the protagonist in your story? And they’ll say, “I am, I built this thing”. No, the protagonist in a product story is not you, it’s the customer.’ ‘You have to know who the protagonist is, you have to know what their motivations are and you have to have some insights into what’s motivating them. You have to understand the conflict in the story. You have to understand how their life will be better if they use your product.’ ‘People don’t care about what you say but they do care about the way you make than feel.’ ‘Why is he getting excited about this point? He’s waving his hands around. We all have to do that in a way that’s natural to us, but our bodies are part of the instrument we use as a storyteller, and our faces.’   ABOUT THE GUEST   David is a long-time tech executive and marketer. He led the ad agency J. Walter Thompson in San Francisco, held senior marketing roles at two start-ups and was VP Marketing at Yahoo! (during their heyday). David now runs Box Out Industries where he works with entrepreneurs, product managers and marketers to develop and convey their product stories. He also started Spiral Staircase Productions to collaborate with artists and is currently developing two original musicals. David teaches at Berkeley-Haas Business School and works with several accelerators throughout the Bay Area.   GUEST RESOURCES   Www.DavidRiemer.com ABOUT THE HOSTS   Serial entrepreneurs Fredrik, Charlie and Ivan Sandvall love sharing ideas and interviewing world-class entrepreneurs and influences. Invest In You is about investments, entrepreneurs, personal development and doing fun things. They hope to ensure you to take action, helping others and yourself, plus enjoying the journey we call life.   CONTACT METHOD Fredrik Sandvall www.fredriksandvall.com www.linkedin.com/in/sandvall/ https://www.facebook.com/FredrikinLondon/   Charlie’s Youtube Channel:   https://youtube.com/c/Sandvall