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Think you can tell a complete story in six words or less? Take a minute and try it out.

No worries if you find it difficult…it is!

There are more than six words in the title of this blog post, yet we believe you can tell the entire story of your innovation or idea in just six words. (Most of the time, we challenge ourselves to do it in even less.)

It Started as a Bet

We’re not the first ones to tell a story in six words.

The first six word story is popularly attributed to Ernest Hemingway as a challenge between him and other writer friends. The story goes that he bet $10 (no small sum in the 1920s!) that he could write a complete story in just six words.

Of course, his friends took the bait. Six words later, they were paying up.

Here’s the story: For sale. Baby shoes. Never worn.

It’s a sad story, absolutely. But a complete story, too. With emotional stakes. And impact. We’re still talking about it decades later.

That’s what we aim for when we tell six word stories, too.

Why Six Words

You might have read our blog post about humanity’s shrinking attention spans. Today, you have less than 47 seconds to capture consumer’s attention and sell your story.

That’s no surprise as television and social media have become two main avenues for marketing. These forms rely heavily on visual and graphic details as well as video.

It makes sense, then, that copy must shrink to accommodate shorter attentions and a move toward more visuals.

Volkswagen is a great example of this. Their award-winning ads from the 1950s have shrunk from paragraphs to a single headline (and just two words—impressive!).

It’s also important to note that consumers typically read the first three and last three words of a headline. It makes for a tighter, higher-impact headline to cut out the middle and stick with just 6 words.

Of course, word count is dependent on what kind of content you need. A print ad is going to look and read differently than a social media ad or t.v. spot or even sales deck. Plus, you have to consider how visuals align with copy.

That’s where we can help.

Six Tips for Creating Six Word Stories

When creating a six word story, skip the AI-generated stuff. Instead, focus on the following to create storytelling that stands out and sells your story almost instantly.

What makes your product or innovation stand out? Why are you better than the competition? It’s worth taking some time to understand your 3-second wow so you can capture that in your six word story.

Oftentimes, simplicity is best. A clever pun or rhyme can be fun to write, but sometimes your story is simply what makes you superior. (Hint: check out your points of difference and R&D data as good places to start.)

It’s okay to have fun with your story! A good rhyme, metaphor, or allusion can really stick in people’s brains. Take flower power, in the Volkswagen ad above. With the new VW Bug upgrade, there’s nothing flowery about it. Their story is all about power.

Think of your six word story like a headline. What visual would fit best with it? How can your six word story help to support the visual story?

Consumers can sniff out BS from a mile away. Don’t make promises you can’t keep. A sensational headline is easy to skip over. Stick with what makes your brand stand out—and always tell the truth.

Upstream360 is made up of a team of copywriters, illustrators, graphic designers, producers, directors, and editors who are waiting to help you tell your six word story…then bring that story to life through visuals, videos, and more.

Check out some of our work, including our six word stories at our website. And be sure to shoot us an email if you’d like to work with us on telling your brand, product, or innovation’s story (even if it’s longer than 6 words).