• By michelle
• In Copywriting

Marketing Content: The Importance of Setting the Scene

 

Hello and welcome to tonight’s improv show!

Tonight our players (what we call our “actors” in the improv world) will be performing a monoscene, one of our very favorite long-form improv formats.

For approximately 30 minutes, our players will come and go and live in a scene together that takes place all in one location.

By the end of the 30 minutes. you will have experienced a show that has never been seen before and that will never be seen again.

But before the magic can happen, we must give the players an opportunity to set the scene.

This is an incredibly important step in giving the players a slight understanding of the environment they will be “living” in.

At the end of setting the scene, they will have the information needed to make educated choices about how they interact in the environment they created.

There are no props or sets in an improv theater.

So without establishing information such as…

• We’re standing by an Olympic-sized pool.

• We’re in an old attic that smells like my grandfather.

• Or…There’s a brand-new blue sofa in the corner with a plastic covering on it.

…the scene can become very confusing to both the audience and the players.

So without further ado, I ask you to please silence your cell phones, sit back, relax, and pay carefully attention to the scene that is about to be set up.

Enjoy the show!

Ok, so by this point you’re probably reading this thinking, “What wrong link did I click that brought me to this crazy article about improv shows? This isn’t relevant to me. I shouldn’t be here.”

Oh, but that’s where you’re wrong.

Believe it or not, there are many things that improv theater and being a business owner have in common.

And today we are going to lift the curtain on the stage of content marketing and discuss the importance of setting the scene with your content.

Keep reading to discover the importance of setting the scene for your prospect with the marketing content you create.

Share the Hidden Details with Your Prospect

People can be, well for a lack of a better word…dense.

It’s common for people to reach for the product with the pretty packaging, instead of the product right next to it that truly meets their needs.

It’s human nature.

People are going to choose the product or service that appears better, prettier, and more powerful in their eyes.

The problem is that when a product/service is chosen based on looks, instead of capability, it doesn’t always meet the need of the person purchasing it.

Think of it in these terms…

You can put an underwear model on stage, and he will be fun to look at for a few minutes.

But as time passes, the excitement goes away. Sooner or later, he’s just a guy in his undies standing on stage.

And unless he knows a few good jokes, or is secretly planning to whisk you away on a private jet to a secluded island in paradise, he’s not really worth a whole lot just standing there.

But what if you placed a group of people on stage?

One of those people might be a comedian, one a great storyteller, and one an amazing musician.

Now you’ve got what you need for an exciting show that’s worth the cover cost!

All of these people make up important details of the show. They are all different, but necessary.

These are your product feature and benefits.

You’ve got to highlight all of these elements and explain why they make your product or service better than anyone else’s.

The reason: People can’t always see the features and benefit that you know your product contains when they first look at it.

They have to be told these features and benefits exist.

Much like an improv audience needs to be told certain things (a door, a pool, a fuzzy shag carpet) exist in a scene.

[It took a few minutes to come full circle with this whole “improv metaphor,” but we got there.]

The point is that if prospects don’t know what makes your product the best on the market and how it will make their lives better, they won’t be able to make an educated shopping decision.

And without that knowledge, chances are they are going to reach for the product wrapped in the sparkly rainbow packaging, instead of the product that’s actually going to fulfill their needs.

Craft Content That Is Memorable

It’s never a good moment in improv when you set up a scene, place a giant wardrobe in the center of the stage, and then your scene partner forgets you put it there and walks right through it.

Ok, maybe it is slightly comical…but it does cause problems.

To solve that problem, improv players are trained to create memorable objects on the stage before the scene begins.

Instead of just a wardrobe, it might be a giant wardrobe that is painted purple and has a secret back door entrance and handles that resemble unicorn heads.

A bit odd, yes, but chances are they players not going to forget about it.

When you set your content marketing “stage,” it’s important to remember that detail is key.

Make your content less boring by adding in all the fun details. Highlight the features and benefits of your product that you don’t want your audience to forget.

Tell a funny story, use a fear-based marketing tactic, sing a song, or do a dance.

(We personally recommend the electric slide…everyone remembers that one!) It’s up to you to make sure your prospect doesn’t walk through the wardrobe you set up in the middle of the room.

Speak to Your Audience

There’s no doubt that you know how important it is to understand your customer demographics.

But once you have defined your audience, are you creating content that speaks directly to them?

Part of setting the scene in improv is understanding whom you’re talking to in the environment you’ve created.

It’s all about listening to your audience and understanding where they come from.

One of your scene partners may have established that the monoscene you’re living in takes place at a dental office.

And you know that your audience today is from the Baptist church downtown.

Knowing this you might make the decision to place a poster on the wall of the dental practice that reads, “Crown Him with many crowns.”

It’s clever. It’s memorable. It brings a tiny bit of religion into the scene that might speak to the audience.

If your marketing strategy doesn’t produce content that is relevant to your prospects, there’s no reason they should pay attention to it.

Every time you set the scene with your content, be sure that it speaks to your ideal audience.

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