Storytelling is an essential marketing tool for brands looking to ground their business strategy with messaging that is memorable, emotionally engaging, and profitable.
The most successful brands do this by balancing emotion with just the right amount of information: a great story is easy to understand and simplifies big ideas in a way that sticks in people’s minds. Even more, it surprises, delights, makes audiences think and feel, and motivates them to act in ways that data cannot.
A story can go where quantitative analysis is denied admission: the hearts. Data can persuade people, but it doesn’t inspire them to act; to do that, businesses need to wrap their vision in a story that fires the imagination and stirs the soul.
Here, branding agency I Concept will share insights from our framework for crafting a story that connects with audiences, and will drive sales. Read on to find out.
What is a brand story?
A brand story is a narrative that communicates a company’s mission, evokes emotion, and builds customers’ trust. It is a starting block for your brand identity. Customers who are moved by your brand story are more likely to count on your company and buy your products or services.
A well-crafted brand story articulates a specific customer problem and offers a compelling solution. In addition, it conveys a company’s purpose and values in an engaging, inspiring way. The most engaging brand stories are:
- Authentic
- Centred on the customer
- Consistent across channels
- Simple and clear with some vivid details
- Structured like a story
- True to your brand’s personality and voice
Effective brand stories offer more than just the facts; they recognise and appeal to a customer’s humanity and the need for community and connection. Humans are hardwired to connect to each other and their communities through stories, so the brands that are able to humanise themselves are the ones that stand out.
Studies have found that there is a connection between our neurological makeup and our response to storytelling, noting that “a happy ending to a story triggers the limbic system, our brain’s reward centre, to release dopamine, which makes us feel more hopeful and optimistic.”
Brand managers, marketers, entrepreneurs, and advertisers use this emotional response to drive sales, expand awareness, increase customer loyalty, and integrate their products into customers’ everyday lives.
How does a brand story work?
Understanding the importance of good storytelling is crucial when developing a brand story, but crafting a narrative that customers can connect with is challenging. Storytelling frameworks are a helpful tool for structuring an engaging narrative that will capture your ideal customer’s attention. Common story frameworks, like the hero’s journey or Freytag’s Pyramid, help focus a story and make it simple, memorable, and emotionally engaging. By using these frameworks to help structure your brand story, you can elicit a strong emotional response in customers and inspire them to deepen their engagement with your company through brand advocacy.
How do you write a compelling brand story?
Writing a narrative about your brand identity is no easy task. It requires superior writing skills and in-depth knowledge of your business goals and target audience. You need to infect people with your brand’s spirit. Here are 8 steps to putting together a killer brand story.
- Define your mission and brand personality
You need to clearly define your business mission to ensure interesting and effective storytelling. Your entire communication and interaction with your customers should be based on the mission your business pursues and its values.
Once you have your mission statement and values, and know what makes yur business unique in the marketplace, identify your brand’s personality and voice.
Constantly refer back to your mission and brand personality as you develop your brand story that will convey your brand’s values.
- Make it appealing
The best way to make your story appealing is to make it human. It is a good start with the motivations, impulses, emotions and desires that will help your customers see the people behind your business has met along the way that have shaped the brand. Express how clients and their experiences have influenced the business concept.
To make it even more human, you can add case studies or employee stories to your story. Depending on what you value most in your company, you can use it as leverage for your brand narrative.
- Study storytelling
Storytelling is a special kind of copywriting that has certain tricks. To write your brand story, you need to know what typical narratives have in common. You should place the main characters at the core of your story, add some critical details to keep your audience’s attention (conflict), then finish up with the revelation.
It is good if your story makes your readers want to keep reading. It is even better if your story makes your potential customers research more about your brand. Thus, you need to highlight your story’s conflict to grab the attention and keep the readers on the edge of their seats.
You do not have to write a long story. Try to make your readers transit from the conception of your business idea to the status quo. Determine the main characters and empower them by speaking out loud your business’ values. When you are done, read your story out loud to make sure it flows.
- Make up your main characters
It is okay if your real story does not have a real character to base your story on. It can be told by a fictional character. You can empower them with any voice and any role you want while communicating the truth about your brand. Think of Ronald McDonald from McDonald’s standpoint. He is a fictional character who has been acting as a brand storyteller for decades before content marketing started playing a key role in marketing.
- Add visuals
To embed your story in the minds of your customers, you need to make it live. By adding images and other visuals, you can communicate more effectively whilst helping people retain information better. Think about the cavemen, they communicated visually years before languages were developed. Remember, whenever you feel that your point is weak or your story lacks emphasis, you can add visuals to make your message more vivid.
- Stay consistent
Try to stay consistent with every value you claim to share. Customers are very good at spotting dishonesty, so it is better to stay consistent. You should avoid any contradiction that may confuse your customer. Remember that he or she will rely on their senses. If they feel as if you violated their trust, you are likely to lose part of your audience.
- Make a difference
Customers find it very important to know how you want to make a difference. It is good if your brand story hints at common social problems that were resolved within your office. It is even better if you can tell how you try to make this world a better place by solving problems at the community level.
- Activate your story
Okay, now you have a story. What’s next? You will then need to effectively share your copywriting with your potential customers. You need activation in the market. For this, it is better to think about where your customers would find right for discovering your brand story and understand your brand identity. It could be a website, magazine, email or on social media channels.
Remember, your brand story is as important for your marketing team as it is for your customers. A well-written brand story will help them come up with advertising ideas and campaigns that are aligned with your primary goals and purpose. If this really works, your brand story will naturally bring about lead generation.
Craft your branding with I Concept
Need assistance in developing a compelling brand story? Contact the top branding agency Singapore that’s in the know. More than just crafting your brand story and brand strategy with you, I Concept Singapore will help walk you through every step of the brand development journey, from assisting with market and competitor research, to creating a set of brand visuals and brand identity that talks, and helping you pick the right words through copywriting to communicate what your brand is all about. We can also develop digital marketing campaigns right for you, as well as creating a website that attracts the right visitors for your business.
Contact us today, and allow our team of brand guardians to journey with you to create the most suitable website for your brand. You may also tap on up to 50% funding support from Enterprise Singapore to raise your brand equity via the Economic Development Grant for Strategic Branding and Marketing. We’re a pre-approved vendor for just that.
Brand your business right with a brand story that people can relate to, and witness its dynamic growth.
