Telling Stories in a Virtual World

Historically, stories were told by old men with long beards sitting in a town square for anyone who would listen, although picture less Gandalf and more that guy you gave pocket change in Times Square. They were great orators, but that wasn’t their ultimate goal. You see, knowledge had to be passed by word of mouth because of illiteracy. So many of the storytellers didn’t know how to write in order to record the stories, and many people couldn’t read anyway. And if that wasn’t enough of a reason for the continuation of oratory storytelling, it was rare if people could afford books even if the stories had been recorded.

Books belonged to the rich, as did the stories.

If a city was large enough, perhaps there was a drama troupe to help tell the stories. They told of the comings and goings of the royals, politicians, great soldiers and people of notoriety, although it was more like watching an off-off-Broadway theater combination platter of the Evening News, Entertainment Tonight and Game Of Thrones, as opposed to a nice dramatization of David Sedaris’s Me Talk Pretty One Day.

Storytelling evolved significantly thanks to mass production of books and much more advanced education practices. Then, of course, came radio, television then the internet. And in 2021, we’re advanced enough in our communications that I’m currently sitting at a desk in my house, quarantined because of a global pandemic, working via the internet and mass communication devices with a production team for a week long event with 1,600 participants from around the world. For many of us, this is not “new”, it’s been happening for years.

But for those who missed it, the era of Virtual Storytelling has arrived.

But what’s missing? Oh, right. The audience.

“Huh? But there are people here!”

Attendance ≠ Audience

An old man telling stories to a crowd that isn’t paying attention is perceived as just a crazy dude gibbering aimlessly. The same is true in virtual events. You may have a physical attendance mandated by a job or school, but do you have an audience?

That depends on the intent of those gathered.

If the people in the crowd aren’t interested in what you’re saying, no matter the medium or platform, they aren’t going to have the intent of paying attention. So as storytellers, producers, speakers, presenters and leaders, we have to do our part to create intent. Schools are doing everything they can to keep the their Pupil’s attention. Companies are desperate to “maintain messaging and engagement” with their workers. How’s that happening?

Expert Storytelling and Engagement Tools.

Your story is what’s going to connect with your audience. This is where you create intent. In the beginning, you’ll most likely have the attention of your attendees. Challenge them to create their intent by asking them what they want to get out of being there. What goals are they working towards? How can this event help? Ask them to “listen for the gold”. You can remind people throughout the day about this “intent”. But this will only get you so far if your content is boring. Improve your content by asking the following questions. Is it genuine? Is it accurate? Is it relatable? Is it easy to understand? Does it speak to the people gathered? Does it inspire?

After your content and message are worked out, you can plan to use Engagement Tools make your event interactive. You can use the slides and overlays at the beginning of an event get people thinking about creating their intent for the event, much like the advertisements prior to a movie. Throughout the event, use chat features, quizzes, Q&As, polls, reactions, breakout rooms and in-room activities. These are all VERY helpful tools. They encourage people to pay attention by showing them different ways they can be a part of the action. If nothing else, it provides you a tool to use the “there will be a test” method of accountability.

In the end, there will be some who just don’t want to engage. That’s okay. It’s not up to you to make them learn or participate (thats for report cards and performance reviews). It IS up to you to make it the best experience it can be and set them up for success.