Use Brand Storytelling to Supercharge Your Marketing
Updated: Mar 18, 2021
Brand storytelling helps you connect, engage, and inspire action.
The Power Of Customer Connection
As entrepreneurs and small business owners, the survival of your business depends on getting the most out of your marketing efforts.
Quickly converting shoppers into buyers is your primary marketing goal – but you’re up against the fact that your customer’s ‘path’ to purchase often looks more like a long and winding road.
To move them down that road as effectively and efficiently as possible, your marketing needs to work overtime - building attachment to your brand while consistently reinforcing your unique value proposition along the way.
With the rise of digital marketing, brands are more empowered than ever to get their message out to potential customers. And today, more brands are taking advantage of this opportunity to win hearts, minds, and share of wallet by moving away from the old ‘push’ marketing approach and embracing brand storytelling.
What Is Brand Storytelling?
One of the best definitions of brand storytelling I’ve seen comes from Marketing Insider Group: “using narrative to connect your brand to customers, with a focus on linking what you stand for to the values you share with customers.”
Brand storytelling is a way to engage your audience in what makes your brand unique and meaningful to them by reinforcing the values you share.
Brand Storytelling Matters
Brand storytelling is one of the most creative and compelling ways to help customers understand – and connect with – your brand.
Storytelling is uniquely human and deeply embedded across all cultures. Scientific studies have shown that stories stimulate brain activity and can change the way we act.
Stories connect on an emotional level, make your brand ‘real’ for customers, create memorable experiences, build trust, and inspire action.
Creating Brand Stories That Connect
So now you know why you should be using storytelling in your marketing communications, but how do you create the link between your brand values and your customer’s values? How can you be sure that every story you tell sends a cohesive and consistent message about your brand to your customer?
To do this right, every piece of marketing content or copy you write – from website copy to Instagram posts – needs to support the brand idea you want to own in your customer’s mind.
And, the best way to ensure all of your marketing communications are working together to drive home your brand idea is to follow a brand messaging framework. It will help you communicate the story of who you are, what you do, and what you can do for your customer in a consistent, easy-to-understand way.
Build A Message House
I like to think of a brand messaging framework as a house with a roof and supporting pillars.
The ‘roof’ is your brand position (the idea you want to own in your customer’s mind) along with the value proposition that tells your audience why your product or service is superior to every other option out there.
The supporting pillars are your key brand stories. They represent the 3-5 most important beliefs, benefits, or themes that make your brand unique. Each should be supported by 2-3 proof points that give your audience a ‘reason to believe.’
Your key brand stories represent the best opportunity to connect your brand with your audience. You will use them to build your narrative and demonstrate the values you share.
Putting It All Together
Every piece of marketing content you create should map back to your message house, whether it’s a new series of blog posts or articles meant to reinforce your brand positioning, a sales promotion that highlights your value proposition, or an Instagram post that creates awareness and engagement with your brand.
Staying consistent with your messaging is key to building a strong brand and reinforcing the values you share with your customers.
Ultimately the goal of your message house is to help build and reinforce your brand idea in every story you tell, while allowing you to get creative in how you bring this idea to life in ways that engage and connect with your customers.
Download Your Free Brand Messaging Framework Tool
Now that you know the value brand storytelling can bring to your marketing, it’s time to create your own brand message house!
Download your FREE Brand Messaging Framework Guide for step-by-step instructions on how to build a message house and get helpful tips on how to use your brand stories as inspiration for content creation.
DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE MESSAGING FRAMEWORK
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