Victor Gay Zaragoza (Barcelona, July 19, 1982) is a writer and trainer / consultant. When he was writing his first novel, he had the idea of introducing narrative techniques as a tool to help brands communicate better. This is how “the yellow path was born: 7 steps to be successful by telling a story”, a methodology to improve the storytelling of both companies and personal brands, and with a whopping 4000 brands and managers, such as Caixabank, Santander or Christian Escribà ( director of Pastelerías Escribà) among others.
1. What is storytelling?
storytelling is the creation and use of a magical atmosphere through a story. It has existed since we gathered around a fire and we were half apes, and in short it is what makes the human being, because the identity of man is built through his role in the history.
Examples of this technique would be Chanel , because it lives from the story of a person (Coco Chanel) , as well as Rolls-Royce (Henry Royce and Charles Rolls) < / strong>. If you enter the websites of both brands, deep down they don’t sell you anything, they only explain the great stories. Storytelling not only encompasses companies, but also people, such as Steve Jobs or J. K. Rowling .
The King of App storytelling is “turning dreams into apps” . Then, King of App could be considered an app builder, but in reality it is much more than that, since it is a company that through apps makes the dreams of marketing departments come true
2. Why should companies create their storytelling?
The most visionary leaders have always created stories and the most visionary brands have also created their storytelling . Today, with the digital transformation, half of the companies are going to disappear, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) . How is this possible? Well, this transformation that we are experiencing has caused us to be exposed to a lot of information, so the only way to distinguish ourselves within the noise that there is is to create a story that works and that associates you with the heart of your audience; you have to seek to be remembered, to be memorable.
For this same reason, Chanel is more than just handbags, Rolls-Royce more than cars or King of App is much more than creating an application . So, in all this constant flow of information on the Internet , the only way to reach the minds of our audience is to create stories that are unforgettable. In my opinion, I would give importance today more than ever that all companies become storytellers , that is, that they make their story conscious.
3. What are the keys to storytelling?
The first of all is to know who you want to tell your story to, and then you would have to deal with two pillars of storytelling: change and empathy .
When I refer to change , it is what your product will contribute to the world. For example, Coca-Cola speaks of them as a drink that brings happiness, or in a world affected in such a way by global warming, Unilever products will sustainable. We see then how in the story of Coca-Cola or Unilever, there is a change. The same happens in the app market, where King of App appears as a simple and inexpensive alternative for those marketing departments to create a tool as useful as an application.
The second key to storytelling is to create empathy , that is, you can put yourself in the place of another person or brand. For example, Obama , in his race for the presidency of the US , sought that, just like Donald Trump a few months ago. In the case of the second, much more recent, when he sells you the US brand, he tries to relate it to the failures of the current American president, showing that he was able to move on and showing that he is a self-made man. Or J. K. Rowling , who went through a great economic downturn at the beginning of her career, until she became one of the most influential women on the current scene.
4. Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got here?
I am a writer, although I also did training and consulting for managers. While writing my first novel, I asked myself a question. “What would happen if I applied narrative techniques to the professional world?” , and thus be able to help brands and managers to be able to use these same techniques . This is how I started creating my methodology of storytelling, “The yellow road” , and with which I have helped more than 4,000 brands and people, such as Google, Santander or King of App .
5. How would you describe your passion for storytelling?
For me life and storytelling is the same, because the story in our storytelling. “Who are you? What have you done? ” are questions that help us recreate our own story. As well as organizing or structuring it in such a way that we can tell it to other people and thus be able to achieve your own success , both personal and professional.
6. What would be your personal motto?
The phrase I like the most is “what defines us is not what we say we are but what we choose to do” . And this happens every day, every moment. So, each one has to choose what he is going to do when facing adversity, if he will knock you down or if you are going to get ahead; This decision with two exit options , we take them every day, second by second, and in the end it will be what best defines us as people
7. What is your personal definition of success?
Reach your own goals and obviously be happy doing it
8. How has your experience been doing storytelling?
It has been a very good and satisfying experience, because by making others grow, you can also do it yourself. Many times I have come across brands or people with an interesting story, of improvement or inspiration. Personally, it has also given me a more positive vision of the world in which we live, seeing the human being turn his failures and adversities into gasoline in order to move forward.
My experience with King of App was very nice, to see how a group of people had come up with the idea of a project that would make dreams come true, and how they were overcoming adversity. They suffered many setbacks and have continued to advance ; That is something that surprised me, that spirit of improvement, of a search for excellence.
They go on the market and … their technology is useless! They start over. When they had it … their programmer escapes with the code! They start over. When they are about to get it, they run out of cash! They get the minimum but the money runs out again. And when the end seemed immediate … your project is awarded by the European Commission for the best ICT technology! Always overcoming adversities in King of App.
