Keynote: Art and Science of Storytelling by Keith Kmett

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This online event was titled: The Art and Science of Storytelling. The keynote speaker was Kieth Kmett. Kmett is the epitome of the well-worn cliché that “where there is a will, there is a way”. This cliché fits in well with Kmett as he has vast experience in variegated fields. Not only does Kmett have 2 decades of experience in customer experience (CX) and user design, he is also- and it is no small “also”- a master storyteller who is passionate about humans (inclusion/equity) and is a customer journey mapping enthusiast hence deservedly wearing the title for being the keynote speaker.

Kmett began his impassioned presentation by explaining to the audience what storytelling entails by mentioning that storytelling is engrained in who we are as human beings. He further on mentions that by and large, people have this one myth about storytelling, which is for one to be a great storyteller, they are supposed to have this “beautiful brain” of being creative, logistic, and being able to bring together data interpretation (turning data into wonderful stories). But Kmett argues incisively that one doesn’t need this type of brain to be a great storyteller, instead one must be a great collaborator. He argues that even some of the greatest storytellers haven’t achieved that on their own, instead, they have collaborated with others for great insights hence Kmett showing that collaboration plays a central role in the art and science of storytelling.

Further on into his presentation, Kmett touches on a very poignant question about storytelling which is: Why use storytelling? The following Kmett says are some of the uses of storytelling, these include inter alia, the following:

• Stories sell

• Stories provide relevance

• Stories set the context

• Stories create purpose and drive action

Adding on, Kmett also highlighted how storytelling can be of help to companies. This he mentions, includes:

• Companies gain a competitive advantage

• Enhances the business’s customer experience (CX)

• Allows for employee growth

In continuation, Kmett brings the so much anticipated aspect of storytelling by the attendees, which is the steps involved in one building a story. He brings out the four (4) steps involved in story building which include:

1. Find your story (What are the stories that are of interest to you which you think need to be told) and pinpointing exactly What is the point of the story (This involves what exactly one wants to achieve from telling his/her story)?

2. Write your brief (putting the pen to paper by getting as specific as possible about who’s your audience, what does your audience care about?)

3. Identify that ONE idea (what’s the idea you want to convey, what is that one thing you want your audience to remember about your story)

4. Choose a medium [Conventional vs Non-conventional] (e.g Conversation, Video, Powerpoint, or Email)

In closing his presentation, Kmett had a wonderful story to tell the broad audience as they had so much anticipated that from him. The story was based on the challenge: “Getting funding for our marketing automation efforts” which Kmett did for the company (Principal) he works for. Kmett took us through the steps he took in overcoming this challenge and the achieved results.