I might be biased here… but isn’t the term “storytelling” absolutely everywhere? It’s like this magic word marketers throw around to spice up their pitches time and time again.
Don’t get me wrong, as a marketer and copywriter myself, I love using storytelling.
However, as a lifelong fiction literature buff — and at the risk of sounding like a snob — hearing all decent marketing and copywriting being called “storytelling” itches. Just a little.
So, let’s please clear this up from the get-go:
- Storytelling as an art form isn’t everywhere.
- Though marketing is part art, it doesn’t need storytelling to work.
- Storytelling, even when done right, isn’t your magic pill for selling.
Now that we know what storytelling isn’t going to do for you, let’s explore:
- Why storytelling is a powerful marketing tool.
- Three effective ways to use storytelling.
- When to use storytelling for real impact.
What Is Storytelling… Really?
As everyone will tell you, “Storytelling is the art of telling stories.” And as any marketer would put it, “It’s the power of telling stories to sell.” If you’re anything like me, you’ll be like, “Great, but how do I actually apply that?”
To go back to the basics, a story is any narration that has a beginning, a middle, and an end. But knowing that isn’t enough for us to write a story. Otherwise, we’d all have become Shakespeare in elementary school.
Instead, we need to go beyond and recognize the science and psychology behind stories.
When we engage with stories, many things happen under the surface. Note that this applies to fiction — a novel or a TV show — as well as real-life stories — say, celebrity gossip, a friend’s nightmare date, or the news.
The Neuroscience Behind Storytelling
First, our limbic brain lights up. This happens because, even without noticing, we try to put ourselves into the story. Like when you go, “Oh, my… If that happened to me, I’d XYZ…” We engage, shaping the story to match our internal narrative and self-perception. When we relate to a story, we make it our own.
And because brain activity doesn’t happen in a vacuum, our limbic system releases hormones. Typically, if it’s a feel-good story, we release dopamine. That’s why happy endings tend to make us feel happy and optimistic about the future. On the contrary, if the story is dark and dramatic, we tend to release cortisol, the stress hormone. That’s what keeps us at the edge of our seats and why we tend to binge-watch soapy TV shows and true crime. It’s all about the rush.
Of course, these aren’t the only two hormones stories prompt in us, but they give us a clear picture of what happens behind the scenes.
Another interesting neurological effect of storytelling is tied to our mirror neurons. These fire up both when we have some motor activity (perform a physical action) or watch it happen (someone else performs the action). At some point, you might have caught yourself repeating a character’s actions when watching a movie or reading a novel. That’s your mirror neurons at work.
The Psychological Effect of Storytelling
On a psychological level, stories help listeners retain information more easily, put it into context, and bond with the narrator. The explanation is that stories, apart from entertaining, are a survival method.
Cave people would paint stories about their hunts in the hopes other humans would follow in their footsteps and survive. Ancient civilizations would build entire belief systems to help their kind navigate life and society. Today, social media influencers warn us, “I tried the ABC whatever so you don’t have to.”
In short, stories are there to guide us on how to satiate our needs and achieve our goals. The power of storytelling lies in people’s ability to project themselves into someone else’s experience, whether real or fictional.
The Use of Storytelling in Marketing
There are as many ways to use storytelling in marketing as there are grains of sand on the beach. Here, I’m listing the three most frequent and easiest to apply in the context of organic digital marketing:
#1 The Motivational Pitch
There are a few ways we use storytelling in marketing. The first and most obvious one is plain old narration. It could be as an example or to illustrate the benefits of a product or service. Think of your typical TED-talk-style sales pitch, “I was where you are today; then I did so-and-so, and this is who I am now… you can do the same!”
#2 The Entertaining Short
If you are creative and have the skill, time, and budget, you can go for the Super Bowl commercial style. For this, you create an entertaining story — short, sketch, or ad — in which your product or service is either a character, the setting, or a key narrative device.
#3 The Hero’s Journey
This is by far my favorite way to approach storytelling because I adore a good character arc. To use this technique, you can:
- Make your customer avatar the main character of the story.
- Invite them to join you on a transformation journey and discover their path along the way.
Trigger Warning: It’s Not About You!
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to get the high ground here. I’m as self-centered as any other normal, healthy human being. But… after working with tons of brands, diverse audiences, and having my share of intense discussions with colleagues, I can safely say this:
No one gives a damn about you, your brand, or your goals… unless there’s something in it for them.
Cynic? Yes. Real? A hundred percent!
Remember when I mentioned the effects of storytelling on the brain? Or the psychology of how we interact with stories? Re-read if you need to, but I’ll summarize it:
When we interact with a story, our brains go, “Ohhh, like me! Yes, me too… Ah, I’d never do that. Yassss… that’s what I want.”
So, if your story’s goal is to sell, connect with an audience, or make people remember you, you have to make it about them. You are not the punchline, and you’re definitely not the star. You are the relatable Samwise Gamgee to their Frodo Baggins. You are the imperfect Miranda Priestly to their Andrea Sachs. Or even the Merlin to their Arthur.
There Are No Set Rules for Storytelling
There isn’t a right way to tell a story, no matter how many critics you hear. All great stories are unique, authentic, and meaningful; they’re also “great” because they broke the rules.
So, as long as you keep your empathic mode on, you have all it takes to craft a brand story that’ll resonate with your audience. Have fun!