True Story: How to Combine Story and Action to Transform Your Business
By: Ty Montague

Head: (4 out of 5)
Heart: (4 out of 5)
Leadership Applicability: (5 out of 5)

From cars to designer handbags, our purchases as consumers go beyond mere functionality – they reveal a story we want to tell about who we are, or who we want to become.  This is our metastory.  Every individual has one, and so do companies.

Companies with a clearly defined metastory have a powerful business tool for communicating to consumers what their product means and how it advances the consumer metastory.  A metastory informs current and future business actions and makes your brand more meaningful and useful to your customers.  It is so powerful, it can lead to a successful product launch and drive business growth.  Any company that fails to connect their brand to a consumer’s personal metastory will not succeed.

The author, Ty Montague, former Co-President and Chief Creative Officer at JWT North America, argues in a world saturated with products and services, the most successful businesses today are storydoers – creating products and services that are manifestations of a meaningful  story, told through action, not advertising.  Storydoing companies convey authenticity, creating a pull dynamic in the market that reaps many benefits, including greater pricing power, talent attraction and employee retention.

This book lays out a practical framework and process for uncovering and understanding the authentic story of your business.  Peppered with real examples of storydoing companies, you will learn how other companies are telling their stories with little media expenditure.  You will also learn the foundation of storydoing, including:

• The four truths to get a comprehensive understanding of your company’s authentic metastory
• How to develop an action plan

Executives who wish to take positive action to quickly advance the meaning of their brand in the minds of consumers will want to read this book.  Buy it now.