Why the CEO of a marketing company argues that clear messaging helps small businesses grow quickly

After taking tens of thousands of businesses through the StoryBrand framework, though, I realised there was one element missing from the old BrandScript. I’ve added this element into the new BrandScript because I think it’s that important. In fact, this specific sound bite is so important that if you create only this one bit of copy I believe it will grow your business significantly. What is it? I call it the controlling idea. A good campaign begins and ends with a controlling idea.

I first heard the term controlling idea when I was researching how to write a screenplay and found the idea helpful, not just in writing stories but in writing books and, well, wireframing websites. A controlling idea answers the question: What is this story about? The controlling idea for Disney’s The Lion King, a retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet in many ways, might be: a young lion must gain the confidence necessary to confront his evil uncle, who murdered his father, so that he can take his rightful place as king of the jungle and return order and life to his homeland.

After a storyteller determines their controlling idea, they must submit all copy to that idea if the story...

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