In my May 13 post, The Hero's Journey, I wrote about an old framework that has proven the test of time, one of many different dramatic structure models. Neither Jim Gilmore nor I originated any of these, which tell you how good they are, since we tend to stick to our own frameworks!
In addition to describing each of these models – the Freytag diagram, the 5E model, storytelling structure, the Imagineering model of The Walt Disney Company, a signature moment, and finally an in-depth look at Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey – I wrote about how you can make your customers heroes. I provided a number of possibilities across each of the four spheres of transformation (health & wellbeing, wealth & prosperity, wisdom & understanding, purpose & meaning).
“A story is not being shown to them, but the story IS them.”
Let me quote someone who gave me feedback on the previous post, Matthew Waller, who just graduated from Georgia Tech in industrial design, loves designing experiences & transformations, and is soon starting work for a certain company that happens to be the premier experience stager in the world. On the feedback form Matthew wrote: “The most important part of this is saying that the person is the story. The person is the adventure. A story is not being shown to them, but the story IS them.” Exactly!
So here let me add one more example that goes with the The Hero's Journey, a real-life exemplar of how a client of mine applies the hero’s journey to its B2B2C consumers, and even to its partners in making that consumer journey happen.
That story goes something like this. . . .
Applying the Hero’s Journey
Whatever your business, think of how different your transformative experiences would be if you designed & depicted them using the hero’s journey.
I worked with Greyspace founders Clint Carnell and Eddie Yoon to do exactly this with Glo2Facial, a company that offers a facial treatment that uniquely delivers what it calls “Oxfoliation”. This process, conducted by estheticians, activates the body’s natural healing powers via oxygen (O2) and other natural ingredients. The first step triggers the blood to release oxygen up through the skin (taking advantage of a phenomenon known as the Bohr effect). The esthetician next amplifies this with a “lite ultrasound experience” (LUX) and ends the treatment with lymphatic massage that acts as a detox step. Afterward, the consumer’s skin literally glows, an effect that lasts for weeks and without any redness or irritation that comes from other suction-based facials.
New consumers may come into salons, med spas, or dermatologists for a simple facial, but once they experience that glow and hear compliments galore, they come back for it time and time again. It may not qualify as a permanent, life-changing transformation, but customers view it as aspiration-fulfilling.
In addition to being one of the Category Pirates on Substack (which I highly recommend!), Eddie’s an expert on “superconsumers” – he wrote the book Superconsumers: A Simple, Speedy, and Sustainable Path to Superior Growth[i] (also highly recommended) – and differentiates them from mere heavy users who only buy a lot; “superconsumers are characterized by their attitude as well: they are passionate about and highly engaged with – and maybe even a little obsessive about – a category. . . . Superconsumers aren’t random oddballs who buy in bulk. They’re emotional buyers who base their purchase decisions on their life aspirations.”[ii]
“Superconsumers are emotional buyers who base their purchase decisions on their life aspirations.”
His work for Glo2Facial found that 78% of aesthetic consumers are looking for something new, yet the vast majority purchase only one type of treatment. These aesthetic superconsumers aren’t just looking for a beauty transformation, but they love the journey itself. The treasure hunt for new treatments and combinations is fun and deeply reflects their belief that as their skin – and life – progresses, so too must their treatments.
Glo2Facial definitely has superconsumers with aspirations. In one meeting Eddie said that “Every superconsumer is on a quest.”[iii] And when he did, I immediately thought of the hero’s journey – the model for transformative quests. So I worked with him and his colleagues on delineating the Glo2Facial encounter as a journey:
Glo2Facial states the quest for its consumers as “extraordinary outcomes for your skin”. As with all such journeys, it spreads across four parts, which we named Adventure, Initiation, Transformation, and Return. Each of these was further broken down into three steps that collectively define the transformative Glo2Facial experience:
Adventure
Live Life: the consumer is living her life, unaware of the adventure about to begin.
Make Appointment: she encounters her own “call” to get a Glo2Facial treatment. This could be initiated by an ad, a search, an upcoming wedding, by seeing someone else aglow.
Meet the SCP: At the day and time of the appointment, she’s brought into the treatment room and meets the Skin Care Professional (SCP).
Initiation
Gain Guidance: The SCP becomes her guide through the process (and beyond).
Discover Possibility: If the first time, the consumer learns what Glo2Facial is all about. Subsequent visits focus on customizing the treatment through combinations including HydraFacial, the company Clint Carnell was the CEO of and led through its multi-billion-dollar valuation.
Go Forward: The consumer decides what she wants and purchases the treatment.
Transformation
Experience Treatment: The treatment begins, offering the medical proficiency of a doctor’s office and the experience of a spa.
Stingly & spicy: The first step often feels “spicy” in consumers’ words. Glo2Facial calls it “stingly” (stingy and tingly), as the consumer can literally feel the O2 bubbles come up from their body through their face. Despite the stingly feeling, the consumer is always shocked that the process results in no irritation or redness as with other suction-based treatments. This is why Glo2Facial says it is for everyone and goes with everything.
Awaken the Glow: The signature moment, she sees herself aglow in a mirror, amazed at the transformation of her face from minutes before.
Return
Leave Rejuvenated: Treatment done, the consumer leaves the place and heads out, perchance to catch another peek or two of the glow in a mirror or window.
Get Affirmation: Her friends, family, sometimes complete strangers notice the glow, and tell her how good she looks.
Live Anew: She spends the coming weeks feeling more healthy, upbeat, and buoyant, due to the extraordinary outcome for her skin.
And, of course, ready to make that appointment again when the time comes.
There is a parallel hero’s journey for estheticians
Interestingly, there is a parallel hero’s journey for estheticians. Clint, Eddie, and the team realized that she (they are customarily women) may be the wise guide to her customers, she’s in fact the hero of her own story. At face value, it may seem like she doesn’t have a high-valued job since she often doesn’t have an advanced degree, gets paid hourly, and may not even have health insurance. However, to the skincare superconsumer, the esthetician is the most influential and credible expert. She actually gets close to your face, is very knowledgeable, and makes thoughtful recommendations. She’s often a superconsumer herself, so when she recommends something it feels much more “missionary” (eg, for the consumer’s benefit) than when a doctor does so, which can come across as “mercenary” (for the doctor’s benefit).
Clint and Eddie built training not just for the treatment but for running the business itself, including marketing and pricing. They rebranded estheticians as “Xtipreneurs”, a combination of “esthetician” and “entrepreneur” (perhaps with a nod as well to the esthetic experience they have, and the engaging experience they stage). More than a rebranding, this transformed them from mere estheticians to full entrepreneurs running their own businesses. The Glo2Facial offering combined with the business training helped these Xtipreneurs go from making mid-to-high tens of thousands of dollars to hundreds of thousands.
These dual transformations had a massive impact on the Glo2Facial business. When Clint and Eddie took the US operations over, it was an unhealthy business. Half the customers were dormant. They were scared of the market leader and sold at half the price. Marketing spending was out of control at 75% of sales.
Within a hundred days they rewrote the master plan. They didn’t shy away from the market leader, but helped their Xtipreneurs create combinations with both brands. They doubled the price while taking marketing down to 10% of sales. They created a new brand from scratch in 4 months. And in their first year, they quadrupled sales, going from the #3 to the clear #2 player.
The hero’s journey can be a powerful tool for creating transformative experiences
The hero’s journey is only one way to approach guiding transformations, and it’s certainly not appropriate everywhere for everyone. But when it is, this dramatic structure framework modeled on the journey of a quest can be a powerful tool for designing & depicting, staging & operating your transformative experiences.
Joe Pine
© 2024 B. Joseph Pine II
[i] Eddie Yoon, Superconsumers: A Simple, Speedy, and Sustainable Path to Superior Growth (Boston: Harvard Business Review Press, 2017).
[ii] Ibid, pp. 9-10, emphasis added.
[iii] See also ibid., pp. 78-83.