Be The Helpful and Empathetic Guide

Many financial institutions struggle to differentiate themselves in a commoditized market, failing to engage customers deeply and effectively.

Without a compelling narrative, marketing efforts often fall flat, leading to missed opportunities for customer connection and brand loyalty. Traditional feature-focused advertising no longer resonates in a world where consumers seek authentic, emotionally engaging experiences.

This course teaches the StorySelling Method, a proven strategy that transforms your marketing and sales approach. You'll learn how to craft powerful stories that resonate with your customers' emotions, build trust, and guide them towards your financial solutions.

“I could go to a lot of conferences, I could be immersed in different educational courses, but the personalized training that James Robert provided really empowered me in my leadership.”

Deborah Lumpkin

Centier Bank

"The University helped me understand how the work that I’m doing affects and connects and intersects with other work streams in the organization."

Karen Murphy

Kindred Credit Union

Leadership Teams

Learn how StorySelling can be a catalyst for cultural change within an organization, promoting values such as empathy and customer-centricity.

How to Apply the Storyselling Method

Learn how to craft and convey compelling stories that resonate with customers' emotions, addressing their needs and aspirations to drive engagement and action.

How to Develop a Customer-Centric Narrative

Gain the skills to create narratives that position the customer as the hero and the financial brand as the empathetic guide, fostering trust and building stronger customer relationships.

How to Integrate Sales and Marketing Strategies

Master the integration of storytelling into digital marketing and sales, including content creation, email marketing, and customer journey mapping.

Step 1

Learn for clarity

You start by gaining practical insights you can apply through 90-120 minutes of on-demand video classroom modules where you learn a proven curriculum that guides you every step of the way.

Step 1

Step 2

Think with courage

Next, you begin to think about how to turn the insights you gained into action by writing through guided strategic thinking questions that take no more than 15 minutes to complete.

Step 2

Step 3

Do even better

As you begin to apply your thinking you gain support and accountability in the Digital Growth Insider Community, where you can ask questions, connect with others, and attend Office Hours sessions.

Step 3

Step 4

Review for confidence

You develop a one-page strategic growth action plan framed around your unique situation so you continue to move forward with increased confidence along your journey of growth.

Step 4

Meet Your Advisor

James Robert Lay is one of the world’s leading digital marketing authors, speakers, and advisors for growth-minded brands. As a digital anthropologist, he has studied the intersection of marketing, sales, technology, and human behavior for over twenty years. He is also a 2X best-selling author and host of the Banking on Digital Growth podcast, which is ranked among the top five percent of all podcasts in the world.

James Robert has been named a top global financial services influencer to follow by The Financial Brand, while his insights are frequently featured in outlets such as U.S. News & World Report, Entrepreneur Magazine, Quartz, American Banker, and Credit Union Times, among many others.

Course Ten

Produce Content That Helps First

Course Eleven

Promote Content Only to Guide People

Course Twelve

Prove Marketing's Value

Still have questions?

This course is ideal for leaders and emerging leaders with a growth mindset. Although no specific background knowledge or experience is necessary, a basic understanding of banking principles and/or marketing is beneficial.

This course offers insights into the latest trends in the financial industry, enhancing your skills in areas such as marketing, sales, and leadership.

Each course consists of 90-120 minutes of on-demand video lessons, followed by 15-30 minutes of strategic thinking to develop a personalized action plan.

Digital Growth Community Members will receive access to Office Hours with your coach, James Robert Lay, plus the ability to chat with a member support specialist.

Yes, the course can be accessed on mobile devices using the web browser.

If you don’t learn anything new from this course that will help you stop losing loans and deposits, we’ll give your money back.

Yes, however you will not receive invitations to Office Hours with James Robert Lay, the ability to chat with a member support specialist, or have access to the content library.

Every student who completes their course receives a certificate of completion. Completing the course means watching all course content and completing the personalized action plan. You can print out the certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile — and feel free to tag @DigitalGrowthInstitute on LinkedIn when you share it.

With James Robert Lay

Position your financial brand as the helpful and empathetic guide.

Many financial institutions struggle to differentiate themselves in a commoditized market, failing to engage customers deeply and effectively.