marketing concept with business graph and chart hand drawing on blackboard
“Once upon a time, there was a Kingdom. There lived a beautiful princess…
…and they lived happily ever after!!!
Do you remember listening to such stories in your childhood? Yes, most of us would.
Why do we watch movies or read comics? It is natural human behavior that we love to listen to narrations and experiences in a story format. There could be three types of story plots.
Stories about somebody overcoming a problematic situation or facing a lot of challenges and finally coming out victorious are challenging plots. Sometimes stories involve emotional plot or creative connection plot.
We can use these elements in our marketing plan as well. Today there are a lot of players serving the same demographics and offering the same product in the market. Hence, it is tough to attract user’s attention. When you want to attract your customer or engage your user; storytelling will be very helpful.
Storytelling is nothing but translating your marketing message into the narrative format.
LG is a powerful brand in India from past 21 years. In May, The brand recently celebrated its successful 21 years. This ad film garnered more than 46 million views and 27000 likes.
The ad video focused on innovations by LG, and that was shown through a grandfather, father and daughter’s emotional bond. It shows how the daughter helps his father after she gets to know that her grandfather and her dad are not in speaking terms because her dad failed in his math’s exams as a child. This film shows a connection between 3 generations, common factor being Mathematics and as the story unfolds in the video, we see various LG products being used.
The full video of the ad garnered more than 46 million views in just 2 weeks and was loved by its audience.
Here are few ways to use storytelling in your marketing plan:
Right content strategy plan
Content is always the king in all types of marketing strategy. So plan it very well for your branding. Your content should be multidimensional and ongoing. As per the current market trends and lifestyle changes, you should be able to make changes in the story. The content should not only focus on success and high points of your brand, rather it should also talk about failures or challenges you have faced during the journey.
Nobody likes misleading or fake content. Your brand story should look authentic, relatable and easy to consume. Don’t try to exaggerate your strength points and brand image. Be honest with your audience; as this will have a significant impact on your audience.
Multiple distribution channels and mediums
Nowadays users are scattered over different distribution channels. Digital media is booming in the market; however old media still has its own share of the audience. Videos, images, infographics, blog posts can be used together to create a great impact on them. It is imperative to use all kind of channels to draw the user’s attention. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter can be used to engage the real-time audience.
Giving a trailer of the story and maintain curiosity
Before you launch your story, you should first release a few trailers or teasers. These will help in keeping the audience engaged and curious to know about the brand and story both. However, consistency should be maintained as you release each piece of content. This helps a lot in getting a good amount of followers.
Don’t sell your story; sell your brand
There is a big difference between narrations of a short film, movie and a brand’s story. The marketing stories have a motive – selling the product or service and not the story. Because if your brand is telling a great story, but it is not selling your brand, it is of no use. At the same time, it is essential to make your audience feel that they are valued and make them connect to your brand. Your story should promote the benefits of your product or brand, the positive side of your brand. A best practice is first to highlight the problems and then later communicate how your brand can help them to come out of it.
Start your story with a hook
You can use quotations, statistics, questions or anecdote to start your story. These kinds of hooks will give an excellent start. Some eye-catching images will hold user’s attention. So the best use of visuals and content both are very important to engage your customers.
While choosing correct visuals for your brand promotion do remember:
- Maintain the consistency in all images
- Make engaging and compelling images
- Add numbers or quotes whenever possible
- Skip the pictures which tell an entire story
Google story
One of the famous examples of storytelling is Google story. It has become Google’s tradition to launch a video story about the whole year’s searches – ‘Year in the search.’ The entire video gives you a recap of the most impactful events throughout the year. It includes achievements, great people who left us, heroes, emotional incidents. It leaves an emotional impact on viewer’s mind.
“Sometimes reality is too complex. Stories give it form.” – Jean Luc Godard
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