The Art of Storytelling
Most people enjoy a good story, featuring relatable characters and an engaging narrative. Stories can influence how we think about ourselves, each other and the world around us. Within them people can describe and attempt to understand the past or present and express their hopes and fears for the future. Through stories we can explore imagined worlds, such as those found in science fiction books and movies. When stories resonate with us, we are more likely to remember them and share them with other people. Applying the Five Factor Model to copywriting and knowing how to create customer personas, can increase customer engagement, generating more leads and sales.
Personas and Narratives
Each of us has the thread of a story running through our life, which provides us with a sense of continuity by connecting our past, present and the future. Our story is shaped by perception of ourselves, other people and the world around us. Authors can create fictional characters and narratives that take readers on a journey. Combining the Five Factor Model with the art of storytelling can deliver narratives in which customers interact with products or services in a manner that resonates with the target audience.
How To Use Storytelling In Business
How To Use Storytelling In Marketing
How To Use Storytelling In Business
Learning how to use storytelling in business could begin with customer personas. Characters might be based upon real people or fictional and created using the five factor personality test. They might attract or repel an audience and human beings can respond in a similar manner to an organisation, business, product or service. The central character in a narrative is often portrayed as undergoing a heroes journey, in which they will overcome challenges and win some prize of great value. For example, a business could identify a problem and offer a solution that a potential customer will value. They could tell a story that features relatable characters and an entertaining narrative, in which a customer imagines themselves achieving their goal using a product or service the business sells, which could motivate them to make a purchase.
When seeking real world examples in which personas and stories were used to sell products or services, try to recall some memorable advertising campaigns. For example, a company selling productivity software might feature within their marketing content a business owner struggling to cope with a heavy workload, that they are then able to manage using the software the company sells. A travel agency could feature people escaping the stress of work and enjoying a holiday overseas, or adventure and the freedom of the open road. An electric car company could highlight comfort, reliability and range, by combining technical data with a narrative featuring people enjoying a fast paced city lifestyle and a weekend at the beach. A business selling leisure products might show people gathered together and enjoying the company of family and friends. A business selling food could highlight taste, nutritional value and the social benefits of sharing a meal.
How To Use Storytelling In Marketing
Business owners wanting to promote the products or services they sell could use storytelling for landing pages or the about page on their website. Potential customers will want to know how a product or service can help them. Rather than ‘our’ success or ‘we’ as a company, content that focuses on customer wants and needs, using words such as ‘you’ and ‘your’, is more likely to generate leads and sales. Such terms should not be overused, but instead form a natural part of the flow of the content, which can also be more effective when written in the second person. The benefits could also be highlighted by storytelling in email marketing sequences.
Around the world and across generations, stories have been an effective method of remembering and sharing information. Ideas woven within a good story can establish emotional connection with an audience. Some people respond to content marketing that presents data in the form of dry facts and figures. However, applying the art of storytelling in marketing that uses relatable characters and an engaging narrative can leave people with a stronger impression of a product or service they read about. This can lead to a growing sense of brand identification. If a brand reflects how a person thinks and feels about themselves and how they live, or aspire to live, it can motivate them to want to purchase a product or service.
The stories people tell each other about an individual or business can shape how they are perceived. A business selling a product or service could create better stories by learning more about their customers wants and needs and developing more realistic marketing personas. This could help a business to communicate with them more effectively. Marketing strategies could use surveys to gather audience data that informs sales and marketing strategies and development of mission and vision statements. Storytelling techniques could be employed within the AIDA content marketing funnel. The acronym stands for attention, interest, desire and action. This could translate into awareness of and interest in a piece of technology, followed by the desire to own it and the act of making a purchase.
People are more likely to remember and share customer story content that takes them on an entertaining journey, such as using storytelling in case studies of products or services. The process of creating an engaging story could begin with the hero character, representing the customer, confronted with some challenge. They encounter your business, which understands their needs, motivations and how they can be helped. The customer then uses the product or service that your company sells to resolve their problem, or achieve their business goals. The story ends with a happy customer, who can now look forward to greater success within their own business.