Reflection Assignment : Storytelling for Building Relationships 

 Challenge : 

 I work for a small not - for - profit organization that provides home care and personal supports to   seniors so that they are able to live independently at home for as long as possible .   My role is in   corporate communications , which includes public relations and marketing communications . We have   extremely limited resources for communications : the corporate communications budget is $ 0 , while   the marketing budget is a modest $ 15,000 .   Basically , our marketing communications efforts need to   cost little and have a big impact . For us effective communication is about engaging with the right   audiences and , with such limited resources , this has become fundamental . 

 Selection : 

 We chose the storytelling tool because we have a good understanding of our audience .   While the   primary users of our services are seniors , we knew that few seniors sought support services ( like   home cleaning , companionship , help with personal hygiene or cooking , or home maintenance )   themselves .   For many older adults seeking these services is akin to admitting defeat and they   generally prefer to rely on family and friends whenever possible . Of course , this arrangement may   work well for the senior , but it can put an enormous amount of pressure on the family member who   becomes the care giver .   We know from secondary research that this caregiver is often the eldest   daughter , who has her own priorities , often with a family ( children ) of her own and a job . Welcome to   the so - called sandwich generation !   The pressures of having to care for both aging parents and their   own children are the main reason why this is our target segment . 

 In the past we had used marketing copy that was full of jargon and dense language .   It sounded   corporate and unnatural .   We knew that storytelling could add that human dimension we were   missing and could help us have an even better understanding of our clients ’ needs . 

 Application : 

 We developed a series of true stories based on actual client experiences . It was important to tell   stories that were real rather than fiction .   Each story highlighted how services are tailored to each   client ’s needs and how staff work collaboratively with clients to determine the level of service . To   protect our clients ’ privacy , we referred to the clients in the stories by their initials . 

 We worked with our program managers to identify clients who would be willing to have their story   told .   Managers provided the background details , like the types of services the client receives .   From   this background , we developed interview questions and had face - to - face meetings with the clients .    The questions were different for each client because we based the questions on the individual ’s   experiences ; the questions focus on the areas of service , if and how the services have improved   their quality of life , and what their experience was like working with their support workers . 

 We found that stories were a great was to illustrate our clients ’ experience .   We were also able to   answer some of the “ unasked ” questions through the stories .   In the past staff have reported 

 experiencing resistance from clients on their initial visits ; this is understandable .   If service was   arranged by the eldest daughter , as secondary research suggests , then it would be natural for the   client to feel powerless and resist the care and the “ stranger ” providing that care .   Staff often heard :   “ I do n’t need you here . ”   We were able to address these concerns in the stories , where clients 

 admitted to their initial reluctance to the support worker , but acknowledged that these concerns went   away as they built rapport with the support worker and the client / worker relationship developed . 

 We took a prototyping approach to the exercise and started with a series of four stories focusing on   personal support ( support with daily activities like personal hygiene , rising out of bed , cooking and   cleaning ) , companionship , falls prevention , and cooking and nutrition for older adults .   Because of   the extremely limited budget , we decided to put the stories on our website and disseminate through   social media .   We would have liked to record the interviews and be able to create documentary - style   videos , but have put this idea on the back burner until we could analyze the results of the initial   stories were released . 

 Insight & Approach : 

 What we learned from this exercise is that people really connect to stories of other people .   The   stories helped spark the conversation about elder care services within a family and allowed the 

 organization to be an integral part of that conversation .   After seeing the stories , we had calls asking   questions about how to broach the subject of getting help at home for their parents . It also helped   calm fears and ease concerns , especially with the messages around tailored services that are client- driven .   The messages reinforced that the client is empowered and helped make a difficult 

 discussion about change more manageable . Another important benefit that has come from this   storytelling approach is that others are now submitting ideas for stories ; both the people who do the   work and those who receive service enjoyed being reflected in the stories . 


EMAIL: 
ID_NUM: 
NAME_STUDENT: 
PHONE_NUM: 
STREET_ADDRESS: 
URL_PERSONAL: 
USERNAME: 

### Task: You are a PII (Personal Identity Information) Detection. Given a essays written by students, you have to identify ONLY the following:
NAME_STUDENT - The full or partial name of a student that is not necessarily the author of the essay. This excludes instructors, authors, and other person names.
EMAIL - A student’s email address.
USERNAME - A student's username on any platform.
ID_NUM - A number or sequence of characters that could be used to identify a student, such as a student ID or a social security number.
PHONE_NUM - A phone number associated with a student.
URL_PERSONAL - A URL that might be used to identify a student.
STREET_ADDRESS - A full or partial street address that is associated with the student, such as their home address.
### Input: Reflection Assignment : Storytelling for Building Relationships 

 Challenge : 

 I work for a small not - for - profit organization that provides home care and personal supports to   seniors so that they are able to live independently at home for as long as possible .   My role is in   corporate communications , which includes public relations and marketing communications . We have   extremely limited resources for communications : the corporate communications budget is $ 0 , while   the marketing budget is a modest $ 15,000 .   Basically , our marketing communications efforts need to   cost little and have a big impact . For us effective communication is about engaging with the right   audiences and , with such limited resources , this has become fundamental . 

 Selection : 

 We chose the storytelling tool because we have a good understanding of our audience .   While the   primary users of our services are seniors , we knew that few seniors sought support services ( like   home cleaning , companionship , help with personal hygiene or cooking , or home maintenance )   themselves .   For many older adults seeking these services is akin to admitting defeat and they   generally prefer to rely on family and friends whenever possible . Of course , this arrangement may   work well for the senior , but it can put an enormous amount of pressure on the family member who   becomes the care giver .   We know from secondary research that this caregiver is often the eldest   daughter , who has her own priorities , often with a family ( children ) of her own and a job . Welcome to   the so - called sandwich generation !   The pressures of having to care for both aging parents and their   own children are the main reason why this is our target segment . 

 In the past we had used marketing copy that was full of jargon and dense language .   It sounded   corporate and unnatural .   We knew that storytelling could add that human dimension we were   missing and could help us have an even better understanding of our clients ’ needs . 

 Application : 

 We developed a series of true stories based on actual client experiences . It was important to tell   stories that were real rather than fiction .   Each story highlighted how services are tailored to each   client ’s needs and how staff work collaboratively with clients to determine the level of service . To   protect our clients ’ privacy , we referred to the clients in the stories by their initials . 

 We worked with our program managers to identify clients who would be willing to have their story   told .   Managers provided the background details , like the types of services the client receives .   From   this background , we developed interview questions and had face - to - face meetings with the clients .    The questions were different for each client because we based the questions on the individual ’s   experiences ; the questions focus on the areas of service , if and how the services have improved   their quality of life , and what their experience was like working with their support workers . 

 We found that stories were a great was to illustrate our clients ’ experience .   We were also able to   answer some of the “ unasked ” questions through the stories .   In the past staff have reported 

 experiencing resistance from clients on their initial visits ; this is understandable .   If service was   arranged by the eldest daughter , as secondary research suggests , then it would be natural for the   client to feel powerless and resist the care and the “ stranger ” providing that care .   Staff often heard :   “ I do n’t need you here . ”   We were able to address these concerns in the stories , where clients 

 admitted to their initial reluctance to the support worker , but acknowledged that these concerns went   away as they built rapport with the support worker and the client / worker relationship developed . 

 We took a prototyping approach to the exercise and started with a series of four stories focusing on   personal support ( support with daily activities like personal hygiene , rising out of bed , cooking and   cleaning ) , companionship , falls prevention , and cooking and nutrition for older adults .   Because of   the extremely limited budget , we decided to put the stories on our website and disseminate through   social media .   We would have liked to record the interviews and be able to create documentary - style   videos , but have put this idea on the back burner until we could analyze the results of the initial   stories were released . 

 Insight & Approach : 

 What we learned from this exercise is that people really connect to stories of other people .   The   stories helped spark the conversation about elder care services within a family and allowed the 

 organization to be an integral part of that conversation .   After seeing the stories , we had calls asking   questions about how to broach the subject of getting help at home for their parents . It also helped   calm fears and ease concerns , especially with the messages around tailored services that are client- driven .   The messages reinforced that the client is empowered and helped make a difficult 

 discussion about change more manageable . Another important benefit that has come from this   storytelling approach is that others are now submitting ideas for stories ; both the people who do the   work and those who receive service enjoyed being reflected in the stories .
### Output: 