Commitment Summit · Dominican Republic
Story to Sell.
how to grow your business by telling a better story
A quick show of hands
Who here is a
salesperson?
Okay. Different question.
Who here has to sell
to keep the lights on?
that gap is what the next hour is about
Why we resist it
We've all been burned by bad salespeople.
So we swore we'd never be that person. And then we swung so far the other way that we started underselling things that actually work.
The reframe
Selling is
serving.
Read that again
If you have a product or service that will help someone, you are morally obligated to convince them to buy it!
you're leaving them stuck with the problem
What that looks like in your world
Underselling has a cost.
Home servicesThe Roofer
Who won't push for the full replacement leaves a family under a roof that is going to fail.
AccountingThe Accountant
Who won't pitch tax planning lets a client overpay the IRS every single year.
RecruitingThe Recruiter
Who soft-sells the retained search leaves a company limping along with an empty seat.
60-second exercise
Tell your neighbor about one person your business genuinely helped.
not a company. a person. what changed for them?
The clarity problem
Confused people don't buy.
The brain ignores anything that burns calories to understand. If your message makes people work, they simply move on.
Live teardown
Whose homepage are we fixing right now?
read your first sentence out loud. is it about you, or about them?
The one rule of story
Your customer is the hero.
You are the guide.
Luke had Yoda. Frodo had Gandalf. When your marketing makes you the hero, you're competing with your customer for the lead role. They will always cast themselves.
The full StoryBrand framework
Every great story runs on seven parts.
01A characterYour customer is the hero, not your brand.
02Has a problemExternal, internal, and philosophical.
03Meets a guideThat's you, with empathy and authority.
04Who gives them a planSimple steps that remove the risk of doing business with you.
05And calls them to actionHeroes don't act unless they're challenged to.
06That ends in successShow them the win.
07And helps them avoid failureName what's at stake if they do nothing.
that's the whole map. now let's compress it to three.
The framework
Every message that sells has three beats.
Problem
Start where your customer is stuck. Name the frustration, not just the situation.
Solution
Show up as the guide with empathy, authority, and a plan that fits on a napkin.
Outcome
Paint what life looks like after. Nobody boards a plane without a destination.
Beat 01 · Problem
A situation is not a story.
"You're sweating through dinner wondering if this repair guy is ripping you off."
The external problem gets attention. The internal one drives the purchase.
Beat 02 · Solution
The guide brings two things.
Empathy"We know what that feels like."
Prove you understand their problem before you pitch your product.
Authority"We've fixed 4,000 of these."
Give them a reason to trust you can actually do it.
The PlanThree steps. Max.
People don't buy the smartest option. They buy the one they can see themselves saying yes to.
Beat 03 · Outcome
Show them the after.
Cool house. No surprise invoice. Your number saved in their phone for next time. If you never show the destination, you're asking someone to board a plane without telling them where it lands.
Worksheet time
Write your three beats.
01One customerA specific person, real or typical. Name them.
02Their problemThe situation, and how it makes them feel.
03Your solutionEmpathy, authority, and a plan in three steps or fewer.
04The outcomeWhat life looks like after they say yes.
Now compress it
The one-liner.
Most type of person struggle with problem.
We solution so they can outcome.
What it sounds like
Roofing"Most homeowners dread calling a roofer because they're afraid of getting ripped off. We give a fixed, photo-documented quote in 24 hours so you know exactly what you're paying for and why."
Accounting"Most small business owners find out what they owe in April. We do tax planning all year so there are no surprises and no overpaying."
Stand up
Say your one-liner to two people in this room.
a one-liner that has never left your mouth is a slogan, not a tool
The content connection
Your one-liner is your content strategy.
Every post, every email, every video is one of your three beats told again. You're not creating content. You're retelling one clear story.
stop making it harder than it is
What to do Monday
Put it everywhere.
01Your websiteThe first sentence of your homepage headline.
02Your answerTo "so, what do you do?"
03Your proposalsTop of every estimate and pitch.
04Your teamYour best story dies if only the founder can tell it.
Tonight's hack-and-tell, handled
Let AI sharpen it tonight.
01Paste your three beatsProblem, solution, outcome. Straight off your worksheet.
02Ask for ten one-linersThe exact prompt is on your worksheet.
03Say the best one out loudYou pick. AI drafts, you decide.
25 years of doing this, one rule
Clarity beats clever.
If you have to choose between sounding impressive and being understood, be understood. Every time.
The commitment
Selling isn't something you do to people. Done right, it's something you do for them.
somebody is stuck with a problem you already know how to solve
The challenge
Build a business that lasts.
and a life worth coming home to.
Your one-liner, three real conversations, seven days. Then go enjoy the people you brought with you. They're the reason this matters.
