The 4 WHYs of Brand Storytelling

Is storytelling becoming obsolete as people age?

Do brands need to jump on the bandwagon of storytelling?

What does brand storytelling do for the business?

Storytelling seems to be highly connoted with children and young adults. Attention-grabbing storylines, expressive storytellers, and a neatly-wrapped 'moral of the story' are essential parts of childhood stories. Not only those, but most stories will tingle the heart and play with the emotions, which could come in the forms of tears, laughter, confusion, anger, and more.

As adults, the need to feel the broad spectrum of emotions do not diminish. Research has shown that although adults get better at regulating, controlling, and hiding emotions, the effects of the felt emotions do not decrease in impact. Emotions are still felt deeply, and the drive to chase pleasurable emotions and avoid painful ones is just as strong as that in children. Not only that, but adults tend to remember and associate objects and events to specific emotions and past experiences.

Storytelling Allows Businesses to Reach Their Objectives

By understanding that adults associate both positive and negative emotions to specific memories and occasions, companies are able to utilise this as part of their arsenal when building brand awareness. Depending on the type of business, there can be a broad spectrum of emotions to aim for. For instance, a quirky and bubbly fashion brand with a target market of teenage girls may not want to evoke negative emotions, such as sadness, anger, seriousness, disappointment, etc. However, a charity brand could make use of some negative emotions to achieve their objective of collecting donations. Videos or images that tug the heart of the target audience can trigger the acts of generosity.

Storytelling Builds Rapport

The process of storytelling requires some form of sharing, whether it be information, important dates, personal details, or many others. No good story is able to hold its ground without revealing any information. This information exchange builds relationship and rapport with the audience, which will make them trust what the business has to offer. If the customers need specific products or services offered by the business, rest assured that the brand will be at the top of their minds.

Storytelling Creates an Unforgettable Experience

All over the world, 137,000 businesses are started each day (source). In a sea of opportunities, tough competition is to be expected between both startups and the already-established businesses. To stand out, merely having a high-quality product or service is no longer enough. There needs to be a differentiating factor that sets the business apart from others. Stories help businesses do just that. The key is to discover the stories that make a business unique and worth the customers' time and money.

Storytelling Conveys Authenticity

Every business can use buzz words to attract customers, however, getting them to stay requires a single ingredient - authenticity. Customers can sense if a business is simply communicating to sell. When businesses are able to tell success stories or real, authentic case studies, customers are more likely to believe in what the business has to say in the future. Keep in mind that case studies and success stories do not have to be perfect - most of the time, customers understand that even the best-case scenarios in life contain some degree of imperfection or flaw. Being brave and real enough to flaunt some reasonable imperfections shows true authenticity.

Final Words

As more businesses pop up and the competition heats up, it is becoming all the more crucial to be unique and connect with customers. Storytelling is an efficient tool to do exactly that. With that being said, storytelling is a craft that is only as effective as the storyteller, which is precisely why XXX is here to help. We are the number one branding and public relations agency with the sole purpose of elevating the way customers view your brand and business. Reach out to us today.