290: Why Danny Gonzales Thinks Manufacturing Has a Storytelling Problem

Content becomes forgettable when the key message isn't wrapped in storytelling.

People don’t retain information anywhere near as well as they remember stories they hear, and this is where manufacturing is missing a trick.

Manufacturers are battling false perceptions that the industry is dirty, dingy, not innovative and not creative. But what’s really happening is a failure to communicate the good stuff - the advanced systems and problem solving going on behind factory walls. The things that impact almost everything we touch in our lives.

Chris is joined by Danny Gonzales, CEO at IndustrialSage – a video production company focusing on telling those manufacturing stories. Danny noticed that the sector was massively underserved and saw an opportunity to change peoples’ perceptions. Using his background in B2B video production to fill the empty space with tales of meaningful work, and to show them to people in a way that they can receive it as something cool. Not a brain dump of stagnant information.

For anyone thinking about how manufacturing companies can better communicate their value, attract talent, build stronger brands or create connections through storytelling, this episode is a look at how media and manufacturing are merging.

In this episode, find out:

• How IndustrialSage was born out of the discovery that the machines, technology and processes happening in factories was both very cool and underrepresented in media.
• IndustrialSage and Danny’s mission to change the common misconceptions about the manufacturing industry through storytelling and thought leadership.
• How true opportunity is found in the niches, despite the instinct to gravitate towards the aesthetic and techy industries which are usually overserviced.
• How Danny’s career has evolved from his college dream of becoming a Hollywood producer, and how an actual Hollywood producer set him on his current path.
• Why product-user content filmed on an iPhone is outperforming brand films and how leveraging these tools can save time and money while embracing the shift towards authenticity.
• Why Danny believes the key to creating quality video content is in the strategy and distribution and what companies can do to implement these effectively.
• Why storytelling is the best way to communicate the value proposition and the psychology behind why it is so effective in overcoming the flood of content.

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Tweetable Quotes:

• “IndustrialSage is on a mission to change the perception of the industry. There are a lot of people that think it's dingy, grimy, not innovative, not creative, and they're dead wrong. We want to show what is going on. We want to do that through storytelling.” – Danny Gonzales
• “Most people will upload videos, and they just sit there on YouTube, maybe embedded on their website, and that's it. There are so many other use cases – social media, in your trade shows, in your email campaigns.” – Danny Gonzales
• “For anyone that's going to be a little bit more storytelling driven, there's like an 8X chance that people are going to remember it better when you wrap it inside of a story. That's just how we communicate, and it's easier to be able to transmit.” – Danny Gonzales

Links & mentions:

• IndustrialSage, industry-leading media company, publishing compelling content for industrial & manufacturing professionals
• Sierra Nevada Brewing, their Mills River Taproom in Asheville is the Willie Wonka of craft breweries
• Connect with Danny on LinkedIn

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.