AchIEvING UlTImATE SUccESS IN PERSUASION: STORYSEllING IS BElIEvINGthe place of someone as talented and singular as Paul McCartney was
at the time? Even while new records featuring his instantly recogniz-
able voice were still being made and released? How could anyone for a
minute not only buy this whopper – but continue to spread it all across
the globe?
Well, there is a very good reason many people actually believed it (or, at
the very least, took it seriously) – and that’s because it was a great story.
And, as we’ll see in this chapter, a great story causes people to believe
fiction over fact – because the human brain can’t tell the difference.
Scary? A little bit.
In this excerpt from our upcoming book, StorySelling to Success, we’ll
explain exactly why this happens – and what it means in terms of what
we call “StorySelling” – the process in which you tell a powerful story
to create a powerful Celebrity Brand.
FACt veRsUs FICtIon: When the
tRUth Doesn’t MAtteRThere are two important points we want to make about stories, points
that have been backed up by tons of scientific research (which we’ll
discuss in detail in our book). Point one: Stories aren’t necessarily a cre-
ative process – your brain generates and uses them as a tool to explain
your life and what’s happening around you. Point two: Good stories hit
your brain in its “reward centers” – they actually cause chemical reac-
tions that make you feel good in fundamental ways.
Now, let’s apply those two points to the Paul is dead story and why it de-
veloped such a massive following, even though it was patently absurd.
To the first point, the “Paul is dead” story explained why Beatles fans
were suddenly not seeing one of their idols anymore, after nonstop pub-
lic exposure since the group became famous. After all, everyone knew
where his creative partner John Lennon was – (this was the period when
John was running around with new wife Yoko making headlines with
outrageous stunts) – and Paul’s absence from the spotlight stood out in
comparison.
To the second point, the Paul-Is-Dead rumor made those believing the
story feel good in the way that “Truthers” (people who believed 9/11