I was talking to a friend today about small things, such as smart cars, folding fans, and “bets” – as in the small actions you take in business and product development.

It got me thinking about product messaging – and keeping it short.

You might have heard the short story by Margaret Atwood, who wrote A Handmaid’s Tale:

“Longed for him. Got him. Shit.”

The “him” in this story could have authored this short story:

“I met my soulmate. She didn’t.”

Or maybe you’ve heard this bullet of sadness attributed to Hemingway:

“For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”

The last hits hardest, but but they’re all good; they all hook you in and tell the story at the same time.

At a campfire or a kitchen table – the skillful storyteller captures the entire essence of a story in just a few words, hooks in their listener, assesses  interest, then decides how much of the rest of the story to tell.

As it it with a case study – get good at compressing them down to one sentence and they become hooks.

The point is: don’t think you don’t have enough room to tell a story in your messaging.

(This was originally published on Art of Message – subscribe here)