16⁰⁹
2019

Storytelling is integral to build audience engagement and a brand with it. But it’s a tool that not many marketers are aware of. Storytelling helps consumers connect deeper with the brand, cut through the clutter and establish an emotional connection with the audience. Volvo, for instance, is not just a car that drives you around. It’s synonymous with safety. To bring out these emotions in its consumers, the brand has employed a series of stories through its marketing tactics over the years that’s responsible for its image and success. So what does it take to be a good storyteller? Here are some tips:

Consistent Voice:
Storytelling is a strategy. It is a powerful way to touch a chord with busy consumers, making them notice you. But when the story differs on different media platforms, it’s difficult for the audience to remember the brand. Consistency in tone, style, colours and approach is imperative for a strong storyline so that the consumer’s perception doesn’t change, even if the media channel does. Whether it is a Facebook ad, blog, video or Instagram post for different audience groups, the brand’s voice should remain the same even if the length of the words vary. That gives the brand stability and consistency in approach and makes it more memorable.

Strong Narration:
As Steve Jobs once said, “storytelling sets the vision, values and agenda of an entire generation that is to come.” A compelling narrative style transports us from our mundane world to an enthralling one with promises of a better life that is hard to ignore. To be a good storyteller, it is important to offer something of value in an honest, persuasive way. All successful brands employ the art of storytelling to deliver their message.

Audience Identification:
Before you build your story, identify your audience to get the direction right. The more details you have about your consumers, the more focused your story will be. Find out facts about the segments such as age group, location, income, gender, education level and interests. There are many third party tools available online to make audience analysis easier. Learn about their lifestyle and aspirations through interviews and surveys. Find out about their language fluency, occupational trends, product preferences, shopping trends and media consumption habits. Pay attention to the little details.

Create a Character:
Create customer personas with the information you have from your target audiences. Your brand’s story will get a direction and idea from your persona stories. Check out the marketing tactics about your competitors and their social media approach. Make sure your story is distinctive from theirs so you stand out. Identify their strengths and weaknesses and build your approach to make it stronger than theirs.

Don’t Sell Aggressively, Tell a Story Subtly:
Identify your brand objectives, then outline the first draft, making sure you’re not aggressively selling your product in your story. Develop a user-friendly voice using simple, easy to understand language, tone and style. Stay away from technical jargon. The simpler and friendlier your voice is, the more powerfully your story will connect. Develop a central character with a voice to humanize your brand.

Media Channels:
Find the media channels that your audiences are on and advertise your work on those platforms. Use good music and a narrator to give a story more interest-value. Use the brand colours to give it strong visual representation. There are many automated tools and software to make graphics easier such as Canva and Visage.

If the entire process sounds too complex and challenging for you, call us at BreezeMaxWeb. We are highly experienced in storytelling using a wide variety of digital tools to build your brand and grow its online presence on Google Search so that your customers find you. Browse through our website to learn more about the wide range of products we offer to companies in Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto and across Canada. Call us to know how we can help build your brand’s story.