Stories distinguish individuals, and the same applies to brands. Marketers employ brand storytelling to sell narratives that cast brands in a favorable light, inspiring actions from their audience.
But first, let’s define a brand story. Is it truly important?
What Is A Brand Story?
A brand story recounts the pivotal events that led to your brand’s founding and continues to echo this narrative as the ongoing driving force of the business. It includes the how and why: how your brand began and why it continues to thrive.
Why Is Brand Storytelling Important?
For some, a brand story isn’t just a straightforward narrative; it’s more about the brand’s reputation – what consumers think, experience, and feel about the brand. Take, for example, an old cafe in a small town that doesn’t have a website or social media. Even without an ‘official’ brand story, customers create their own stories based on their experiences, which means the business has less control over its narrative.
However, using digital storytelling in branding changes this. You can take control of your story. The 2022 Edelman Trust Barometer found that consumers are now more driven by beliefs. In fact, 58% of consumers support or buy from brands based on shared values and beliefs, and 64% invest in them. So, by creating a compelling story, you can show what your brand stands for and connect with consumers who share similar values.
In a crowded market, every business, even niche ones, needs to stand out. Competitors often offer similar products or services. A unique story is what can make your brand stand out.
How To Write A Brand Story
To write a compelling story, aim for an emotional narrative that inspires action. But where should you start? From revisiting your “why” to implementing search engine optimization (SEO), here are some storytelling techniques or steps to ensure you create quality content.
Reiterate Your “Why”
Before you start incorporating brand storytelling into your SEO strategy, pause and reflect. Think about the journey that led to where your brand is today and consider your core purpose. When doing this, think beyond just making sales. Ask yourself:
• What drove me to start my business?
• What do I ultimately want to achieve?
This reflection should reignite your brand’s purpose, guiding the direction of your brand story.
Understand Your Offerings
Even if your brand didn’t start with a significant story, and your main goal was to make money – which is totally okay – you can still inject a new purpose to energize your brand story.
To achieve this, get to know your product or service better by considering:
• What issues does my product or service address?
• In what ways is my business making a positive impact in the world?
Use the key features of your product or service and the difference they make in your customers’ lives as either an enhancement to your evolving story or as its foundation.
Involve Your Customers
As you analyze how your offerings change lives, directly ask your customers. This approach provides diverse perspectives to enrich your branding storytelling. Position your customers as the heroes of your narrative, with you as their sidekick. Here’s what to do:
• Invite select customers to share their experiences with your product or service. • Identify common struggles that customers faced before discovering your brand.
Positioning your customers as the heroes makes your story more relatable, appealing, and relevant. Their stories become the hook of your narrative.
Decide Your Call-to-Action (CTA)
You must decide the exact action you want your audience to take, whether your story shares brand values, invites partnerships, or simply informs. This clarity will also help shape your story. In any SEO content strategy, including storytelling in branding, your CTA can be:
- Buy a product or service.
- Sign up for a free trial.
- Subscribe to a newsletter.
- Support the local community.
Remember, a CTA acts as your story’s signpost to convert viewers. Without a clear CTA, your audience may not know the next step and could leave without taking any action.
Choose a Medium
First, choose a medium to tell your story, but also think about using multiple mediums for a bigger impact. From blogs to podcasts, use various formats to boost your SEO content strategy, ensuring a unified approach across all channels. Next, consider partnering with other brands or influencers for branded content, which can extend your story’s reach even further. You can:
• Collaborate with an SEO content writing services agency to ensure perfect development, production, and marketing of your story.
• Engage with influencers who are a good fit for your industry and audience, targeting branded content that leads to successful outcomes.
Finally, remember that your budget will likely dictate your choice of storytelling medium, so make sure to discuss this openly with your SEO content writing services specialist.
More Storytelling Techniques And Tips
Mastering brand storytelling is indeed challenging, as stories and the process of building a brand story vary greatly. However, before diving into some brand storytelling examples, here are some vital tips to help you effectively sell your narrative:
Firstly, maintain your brand’s essence. While brand storytelling allows for creativity, make sure every story element aligns with your brand identity. Consistency in branding is key and signals reliability.
Secondly, embrace authenticity. It’s okay to draw inspiration from competitors, but don’t limit yourself to their boundaries. Highlight what makes your brand unique, from your team to your offerings. Authenticity sets you apart.
Thirdly, trigger emotions. Remember, your audience might not remember every detail of your story, but they will recall how it made them feel. Emotional connections are powerful and improve recall.
Lastly, utilize digital storytelling tools. Being aware of your options is crucial for budgeting. Digital storytelling tools have features that can greatly simplify production for your brand.
Want to create your unique brand story? Floodmaker can help. Let our team support you in telling your story.