Guide on Storytelling

Do you like stories?
I do.
As a marketer, I acknowledge their immense value in creating a strong emotional bond
with the audience.
When your audience relates to your story, when you speak the same language with their
needs and pains — that’s a win.
How do you get there?
All in this video.
Hey you, and welcome.
I’m Alex, and today, I’ll try to shed some light on ways to incorporate storytelling
into your business.
What is business storytelling exactly?
Business storytelling is the process of sharing relatable stories instead of facts and figures
with your audience.
In 2007, Stanford University Professor Chip Heath, together with his brother Dan, wrote
a New York Times best-seller called “Made to Stick.”
In the book, the two brothers discuss what makes various ideas and concepts stand out
and jog in people’s memory.
Chip described the experiment he carried out with his students.
He had asked his students to present a one-minute story on non-violent crimes.
Most students mentioned statistics, but only one came up with a story.
The post-experiment poll showed that 63% of students remembered the story, and only 5%
remembered the statistics.
Yet it’s not surprising, there are no marketing tricks behind such a result.
Only pure psychology.
According to American cognitive psychologist Jerome Bruner, humans are 22 times more likely
to remember facts when delivered as a part of a story.
So apart from high-quality products, nice discounts, and A-class service, you might
want to let some stories into your content strategy.
Where can you apply your stories?
Basically, any platform where you can connect with the audience: articles on your blog,
interviews, webinars on your YouTube channel, or posts and hashtags on your social media.
Yet always remember that the story you’re telling should be authentic, consistent, have
a clear outcome, and trigger customers’ emotions — happiness, sadness, interest,
and amusement.
You don’t necessarily need to sell or advertise in your stories.
Use storytelling to: Motivate and inspire your audience
Show your expertise Introduce your team and your brand
Share insights Stand out from the crowd
Provide food for thought So, here’s what you can do to incorporate
storytelling into your business.
Tip #1 Engage I guess you don’t wanna be a so-called urban
madman wandering around and telling stories no one wants to hear.
You account for your stories being read, right?
So, before you get down to crafting your brand story, answer the following questions:
Who is telling the story?
What is the reason for the story being told?
Who are the people in the story?
When and where is the story taking place?
What challenges are faced?
Once you’ve set the scene, start crafting your story without shifting your focus from
the main building blocks of your plot.
Next, Tip #2 Be authentic
Keep in mind the digital world we live in now — everything can be traced, tracked,
and checked.
So if you consider hyping on some jaw-dropping yet untruthful story, your lies will come
to light.
Don’t get me wrong, Hollywood screenplay writers might appreciate your ideas, but your
audience will most likely shy away.
SendPulse shared a story in spring 2022 telling about our team.
After the full-scale Russian invasion, our team had to work on our online course creation
platform in the office basement and in dangerous conditions!
Eventually, we released the platform almost on time and are very proud of it!
So now, after I’ve told you the story behind this platform, you will probably remember
exactly the story instead of all the digits and platform functionality I might describe.
The true power of storytelling!
Tip #3 Describe the lesson learned In other words, what did the story teach you,
and which insights did you receive?
Provide inspiring, motivational, and thought-provoking conclusions.
Add hashtags to your story and encourage you to share so that your story goes viral.
Additionally, this way, you simply connect with your audience.
Especially if you share stories of your failures.
Do you have such stories?
Share them in the comment section!
Also, Tip #4 Create your storytelling style
Stick to the same writing and design style.
Be consistent with the same colors, logo, and slogan to ensure your story goes well
with your brand identity and its message.
By the way, there’s a video on our channel on brand identity.
If you need a few tips on it — make sure you check it out!
Tips #5 Involve Use storytelling to create an emotional bond
with your audience.
Share how your business-related event affected you.
Tell what you’ve learned.
Celebrate your customers in your stories.
Alternatively, encourage your audience to tell their story.
No, you won’t be asking your followers to do your work.
You simply unite your audience around your brand by, say, a social cause.
For example, look at what Dove did during their campaigns.
The company offered its customers to use the hashtag #ShowUs to share stories on how they
celebrate their inner beauty and confidence.
I think that a bar of soap, shampoo, or shower gel won’t make you emotional, yet such empowering
campaigns do spark emotional connection and boost loyalty.
Yet, no matter how many storytelling techniques you know, they only work if you have the story.
Once you have one — go ahead spreading the word about it on your blog and social media.
Don’t have a blog?
That’s not a problem!
SendPulse offers great no-code site-building functionality together with multiple templates.
Create your blog for free using SendPulse and start your storytelling journey.
That’s it, folks.
Hope you’re now armed with some motivating tips to start your brand’s storytelling
journey.
And as usual, I’m waiting on you in the comments section to discuss your experience.
Take care and see you!