Evolution of brand storytelling
Brand storytelling in Ireland has been around for a number of years. The first recognized example was The Furrow magazine published by John Deere in 1931 and initiated to educate farmers on the new technology of the day and how they could be more successful as business owners.
Who doesn’t like a good story, it creates interest, curiosity and intrigue. Stories are being used more and more in business especially in blogs where experts are selling stories and brands are buying into those stories.
Brand stories aren’t just a major part of the strategy of a marketing agency they are guiding principles which impact every part of a business. They are not just a marketing message, they also act as a sales pitch to your target audience and they could act as a call to action to share your experiences and stories.
Traditionally there have been marketers and publishers, however marketing departments are becoming more like publishing departments. This is never an easy transformation and as bigger corporations have already adopted this process many brands are still finding it hard to cope with content marketing structures. The biggest challenge corporations and indeed smaller businesses is finding engaging and informative content that actually engages prospects and existing customers.
Brand storytelling has to be studied and researched properly and you need to be motivated. So why a story? Maybe, When, is a better question? NOW or SOONER. It’s like getting a scoop, if you don’t get the story out there someone else will. It is embedded in us that we love to know what is going on, especially gossip. News travels especially fast when there is a juicy piece of gossip to be passed on. This is how news could be embedded into you branding storytelling strategy. spreading the word is the fastest and cheapest marketing strategy known to man.
Story telling is the centre of marketing today whether your aims are based in search engine optimization ( getting found through key words) ,conversations or using social media tools, none of these will be effective without storytelling. A content marketing strategy will always precede a social media strategy.
Stories are fueled through imagination . In 1944 a college in Massachusetts students watched a film staring two triangles and a circle. They had to describe the scene where they were entering and leaving a box.
- They thought the triangles were men fighting and the circle, a woman, all were trying to escape
- The circle was concerned
- The circle and a triangle were innocent youths
- The big triangle was frustrated and angry
We have all at one time looked up at the clouds and seen realistic shapes of animals and faces. Stories are a trigger to activate sensors in the brain which influence what we have seen and heard, helping us to explain insights and mysteries into our lives.
So when we hear and see brand stories our imagination can determine what decisions we make and create brand loyalty, through shapes and colours.
A story can have a purpose and a strategy but without a human connection it won’t be very memorable. Stories humanize us and no amount of marketing, however clever, can replace our need to feel connected. A great way to achieve this is to have a call for action. This doesn’t have to be a sales pitch, it could be an invitation to share their stories, opinions or to connect with each other.
Please share your stories with us, it could be a disaster or landing your first customer.
Brand You Creative
Creator – Lee Kavanagh on Sep 11, 2018
