Search
Close this search box.

The Power Of Storytelling To Strengthen A Brand

The author Robert McKee once said that “storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into the world today”. If you think about stories, remember that when you were a child, you used to love to listen to what your favorite characters were doing. If you tell someone a story, they are more likely to understand better your point of view and also, to remember what you’ve told them.

Think about it like this: stories are not just for children or for adults who want to disconnect for a few minutes, but for all people, because it involves empathy, persuasion and emotion. With the whole process of modernization, stories changed and found their way into several domains, such as visual arts, music, dancing, teaching, even marketing.

If you were curious about the ways that you can raise awareness and strengthen your brand, then keep on reading, because I’ll share all the details!

We need to know the basics before we can tackle the bigger issue, so what actually is storytelling marketing?

Storytelling marketing means that you are using a narrative in order to communicate a message. You won’t give just numbers and statistics, but you will actually make the audience feel something that will draw them to take action. You can look at storytelling marketing as a way to give more life to your brand.

If you need proof or examples that this method works, think about the TV commercials that Coca-Cola makes for Christmas: everybody knows the truck, the song, the colors that are used etc. Having a storytelling campaign makes people remember your brand not only by the products you give, but also by the story, so we can say that this method can help raise awareness.

Storytelling and empathizing with customers

Before trying to sell anything to clients, it is better for marketers to have a strong foundation of empathy, because relating to customers can make a real difference between a good and an appreciated campaign and a fiasco.

In marketing, storytelling can be used also for creating customer personas. This implies interviewing clients so that the campaign can tell meaningful stories that will draw attention and that will make people feel like they can identify with the stories. The main objective is to make the customers feel like they are the heroes of their own stories and also, you will suggest that you can help them resolve some of their issues.

In order to make the clients look at your brand, you have to make it relevant for them. You need to understand and to know what is important to them, what they’re struggling with and give them answers to their problems.

The marketers and the sales team can work together to create different stories, in order to customize their pitches.

Storytelling for pitching ideas and getting a budget

Did you know that you can convince the execs to give you more money by telling them different stories? Just like we’ve said in the beginning, by telling stories you can convince people that your ideas are great. Create a persuasive and great story, prove the Return on Investment (ROI) and you’ll be good to go.

Storytelling and company culture 

It doesn’t matter if you’re just a startup company or a firm that is on the market for a long time, you still need to have a mission and a set of values. Having a story can make people feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves.

  • the foundation story – this reminds people why the company started and why it still exists. Don’t give just basic details, but use words that are powerful, that activate people’s emotional side, but that is also important for your brand. If people like your story, they can even have a different perception of your brand as a whole;
  • the crisis story – this shows that the life of a company wasn’t always pink. By having a story that explains the hard times that the firm had dealt with, will give people the confidence that there is no crisis situation that the company can’t get out of.

Creating stories and knowing how it’s best to use them can be a really difficult thing to do, but once you discover the power that storytelling has among people, it will all be worth it! Don’t be scared to tell bad stories, to try and change the way you say them and to keep experimenting, because just like the entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk would say, “storytelling is the game. We all do it”.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *