1. Customer = Hero
The hero of captivating marketing stories isn't your brand.
It's your customers and their transformation. Make them the star:
2. Specific Audience:
Impactful stories match the beliefs of a very specific audience.
They then spread your story to people just like themselves.
Remember: marketing to everyone is marketing to no one.
3. Delivery:
Not all stories are novels. Stories can be told with a single picture, tweet, or phrase.
Apple mastered delivery in their "Silhouette" campaign. Each image resonates with an activity, lifestyle, and identity:
4. Emotion:
To capture attention, your story should elicit strong emotional bonds.
@gumroad is a great example of this, tapping into the emotions of escaping the 9-5 and getting paid to do what you love:
5. Realistic Change:
Stories that compel purchase actions aren't fictional, they're realistic and achievable.
• Describe their core struggle
• Narrate their wins/losses
• Highlight their end-results
6. Community:
The best stories happen within the community of people you wish to serve.
Airbnb's CEO said: "Nothing can express our identity more than the stories of people in our community."
Talk to your customers, your audience, your community. Share their stories.
7. Stakes:
What do customers stand to gain or lose from taking (or not taking) action?
Things like money, time, health, status, career, etc.
Stakes build suspense and hold attention.
8. Underdog:
Psychologically, underdog stories captivate us. They give us hope.
Studies show that 88.1% of people root for underdogs. Tap into this with your storytelling:
9. Promises:
Great stories make clear promises; a happier marriage, authentic travel experiences.
The internet is noisy. Your promises must be achievable and exceptional to be worth listening to.
10. The Story Embryo:
This technique is great for brand stories, and evolves on the classical hero's journey.
The hero (your ideal customer) has a need, searches for help, tests ideal solutions, and finally transforms through your product/service.
Were these storytelling tips useful?
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