The Persuasion Story Code: The Magic of Conversational Storytelling Paperback – August 14, 2023

There was nothing to dislike. I loved this book...this is an easy to digest manual on how to create and format stories to persuade targets to say "yes", whatever it is you need them to say "yes" to. As an experienced, working b2b copywriter, I've read, studied, collected and USE many different types of proof points and persuasive techniques. The information in this book is instantly usable, and will be extremely valuable to me and my clients. I rate it as one of the top 10% resource books in my library, of any kind. (and I have a LOT of books). Great job, David!

“If you want to change society, tell an alternative story.”That famous quote is from Austrian theologian Ivan Illich.I like that quote a lot.It’s inspiring. It’s poetic. And it’s pithy.All things writers like me, tend to love.But I’m not an ordinary writer.I’m a copywriter.Specifically, I’m a direct-response copywriter. And a copy chief in the highly competitive field of financial publishing.And while the quote from Illich is artistic and lofty in aspiration…It has absolutely zero real-world value to the stories I write every day.The stories I write can’t be artful and idealistic — empty of substance and change.No.The stories I write have to shock… inform… compel, and, most importantly, PERSUADE people to BUY.David Garfinkel will show you how to write these types of stories in his masterful new book, “The Persuasion Story Code.”Inside “The Persuasion Story Code,” David provides a cornucopia of story-selling frameworks.25 of them in fact.Each one of these 25 mini-story frameworks will help you engage, convince, and move the sale forward. If not, close it completely.Each story has a structure: A beginning, middle, and end.And each story has several necessary components. Including…Characters: The people — your prospect and guru.Conflict: The challenge or problem your prospect wants to solve.And a Resolution: The action of, or progress towards, buying your solution.And each story can make you RICH.This is where David clearly distinguishes between “story” and “$tory.”“Story” is what you read in Shakespeare, The Brothers Grimm, or in a good Lee Child thriller.It also embodies the soul of communication described in the Illich quote above.These “stories” are usually broad, archetypal narratives. That try to impart some life lesson.But they don’t have any significant personal application.David uses the film Rocky as an example of these types of successful Hollywood stories.Sure, Rocky is inspiring, entertaining, and captivating.It’s a great underdog story and one of my top three favorite movies of all time. Along with The Shawshank Redemption and A Bronx Tale.But each of these films was written to entertain and to provide an escape from reality.Not to ENGAGE reality.That’s where David exposes the fault in following Joseph Campbell's seminal work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces.Because while Campbell’s work serves the purpose of screenwriters and fiction authors…It has little bearing on crafting stories in business.That’s precisely the problem David solves in his new book.Because the 25 story frameworks David covers include stories about:• How to build trust.• How to explain your product.• How to identify with the emotional needs of your prospect.• How to differentiate your offer from all other alternatives.• And how to reveal an unexpected benefit.Among many more.All 25 stories are short, engaging, and immediately practical in a real-world sales scenario.You can place them at the beginning of a sales letter or presentation. Or towards the offer section, right before your CTA.And you can stack them on top of each other, almost in perfect sequence, to craft a comprehensive sales argument.So, whether you sell face-to-face, through the written word, from the stage, screen, or over the phone…David’s new book, “The Persuasion Story Code,” will give you the ULTIMATE “cheat code” for conversational selling.Joshua Lee Henry

As an email marketer I can’t tell you how important storytelling is to the craft. I went from not getting many sales from my emails for my clients to landing $25k, $20k and multiple $3k -$5k deals once I began storytelling. And this books helps with how to inject stories in your writing for multiple situations. It’s versatile, concise and practical. Definitely a must have.

We all use casual stories every day to persuade people... our kids, spouses, colleagues, students, shopkeepers, etc. But we do it without thinking... which can often cause a "foot-in-the-mouth" situation.Now, with David Garfinkel's "Story Code," you have at your fingertips 25 formulas with endless combinations for planning, crafting, and creating persuasive stories on demand. There's nothing else like this anywhere... at least, I've never seen anything even as close to exhaustive or as helpful. Though it is exhaustive, it is a quick read, easy to understand, and endlessly helpful (no exaggeration, because mathematically, combining and re-combining various elements of the 25 formulas makes these combinations endless).In my two careers--first as a full-time composer, and now as a full-time marketer and copywriter--the use of story is critical. Whether I'm trying to persuade an audience with notes or words, when a reader/listener gets into the stories I tell, they persuade themselves and I don't have to do any hard selling whatsoever. Up until now, I just made it up as I went along. But now, I can craft a story in advance and test its strength before I show up in front of my audience to be sure the story I'm telling is as persuasive as possible.If you engage with people in any capacity at all, this book can help you quickly discover how to make friends, influence people, persuade them to your cause, and even enjoy buying what you're selling... all through the power of casual, stories built with the "Story Code."

When it comes to storytelling, “The Persuasive Story Code” did a masterful job of taking it from the hero’s journey down to the barstool.Whether we realize it or not, we’re using persuasive stories hundreds of times a day. In this book, David just gives you the tools to do it successfully. He breaks persuasive stories down to their essential building blocks in a way only he can. (Side note: His superpower of breaking down and codifying persuasion is one of the things that makes his Copywriters Podcast one of the biggest hidden gems out there.)I ripped through this book in a day or two, but this will absolutely be one I’ll take off the shelf time and again to reference as I’m writing. Can’t recommend this one enough.

amazing book

Simple methods that actually drive sales. Loved the book.

This is not particularly well-written. Its usefulness depends on where you're starting from (have you already done some research/learning in persuasion?) so while I didn't find it a total waste of time I don't think I gained anything useful from this book.