Storytelling is something relatively new in the arena of brand strategy. At the same time, storytelling has always been with us and always will be. But a lot of advertising misses the point when it comes to brand storytelling. So how can businesses use storytelling to capture their audience’s attention and delivery a meaningful message?

Brand Storytelling is a way for businesses to engage and connect with their audiences in a deep and meaningful way. Humans have evolved to share and communicate ideas through stories, which makes them far more memorable and impactful than a simple list of features and benefits. And rather than telling the story of the company itself, effective brand storytelling places the customer at the center of the story.

The Origins of Storytelling

To understand the power and significance of storytelling, we should go back to the beginning. And that’s going to require me to—guess what?—share a little story.

The oldest written story of all time is probably the Epic of Gilgamesh from ancient Babylonia. The hero accomplishes a series of impressive victories, but about halfway through the saga, Gilgamesh’s best friend Enkidu dies. Confronted with death, he spends the second half of the epic searching for the elixir of eternal life. Against all odds, and with some supernatural assistance, Gilgamesh recovers this magical plant from the bottom of the sea. But in a cruel twist of fate, he falls asleep and a wily serpent makes off with the prize.

In the end, the great hero returns to his city of Uruk, not with the gift of eternal life, but with a story. We might conclude that the ancient storytellers recognized storytelling itself as mankind’s greatest blessing, while eternal life belonged exclusively to the gods.

The Power of Story

Indeed, we can trace the use of myths, legend and folklore to the earliest eons of prehistory. Before people had the science or the reasoning to explain things like the seasons, or the weather, or life and death, they depicted them with stories.

It’s clear then that our minds and our very DNA are wired for stories. Stories are what brought our ancestors around the fire every night, in addition to the warmth. It’s what drew our parents to the movie theaters every weekend, along with the popcorn. And it’s what attracts us to Netflix almost every night of the week. That and the inexplicable human propensity to procrastinate.

From Gilgamesh to the Holy Bible to Grimm’s Fairy Tales, stories do more than just entertain us. The good ones, the ones we remember, engage with us on a subconscious level. Good storytelling triggers our primitive instincts and our innate brain chemistry.

More to the point, if someone shows you a slide with 8 or 10 bullet points, and later asks you to recall those items, how many will you usually remember? Now, think about what happens when someone tells you a story. An hour or two later you can probably retell the story, if it’s a story worth telling. You might miss a detail here or there, but the key elements will probably all be there.

Why is that? Because stories contain context, which makes them memorable, and therefore powerful.

Joseph Campbell and the Hero’s Journey

Last century, the seminal scholar and preeminent mythologist Joseph Campbell devised (or discovered?) the model of the Hero’s Journey. Essentially, he realized that every great myth from every great religion follows the same basic framework. The blueprint applies equally well to fairy tales, novels, and cinema.

Campbell’s classic work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, directly inspired George Lucas when he wrote Star Wars. So Star Wars is one of the best and easiest examples to study. But once you understand the pattern, you’ll recognize it everywhere. Whether intentionally like Lucas, or intuitively like so many others, the great storytellers have been applying this narrative structure since time immemorial.

The 7 Stages of the Audience Journey

There are a few different ways to break down the hero’s journey, into 7, 8, or 12 stages. Campbell actually identified 17 steps, but in Brand Storytelling we reduce the audience journey to 7.

1. The existing world: Establishing the protagonist in their ordinary life
2. The obstacle: With which they struggle and need a solution
3. Call to action: Something happens and it’s time to take action
4. Meeting the guide: When they first discover the solution for their problem
5. The challenge: They begin the course of action but encounter fears and vulnerabilities
6. The transformation: Overcoming the obstacle and realizing their deepest desires
7. The new world: Return to the familiar place but with a new perspective

I invite you to revisit Star Wars on your own in order to identify these narrative stages. Then you can do the same with your other favorite books and films. Keep in mind, some stories may put the greatest emphasis on one or two stages of the journey, and quickly gloss over or simply imply others. But in the end, it’s always a story of a character in a certain set of circumstances who faces choices and challenges and undergoes change.

The Customer as the Hero of Your Story

Building a brand story isn’t exactly the same as writing a novel or a screenplay, but it involves the same fundamental framework. The most common mistake we see, however, is that brands want to tell their own story. “This is the problem we ran into and how we got started. Here is the idea or solution we had. This is why we created it.”

For many businesses, this is an interesting story and one worth sharing. We call it the origin story. But it’s not the same as the brand story.

The brand story follows the journey of your customer. There’s nothing so enjoyable as a story in which you are the star.

When you tell the story, you don’t want people to see you. Well, yes, of course you do. But that will come later. What you really want to do iscapture their attention instantly, by showing them something in which they see themselves.

In order to do this, you need to really understand who your customers are. This is where Brand Strategy really begins, and everything else builds upon this understanding. Show them a state of normalcy they can relate to, and show them the specific problem that they’ll recognize.

The well-crafted brand story should have them thinking: “Oh, yeah, I’ve totally been there,” and “Oh, I hate when that happens.” And then they meet their guide. This is where you (your company) comes in. And then they say, “Dang, I need that. Where’s MY guide?”

Brand Strategy

The whole purpose of Brand Strategy is to give your business a human face, one that your customers will quickly recognize and look to as their guide, friend, teacher, or savior, depending on the circumstances. When you really understand their hopes and fears, you can draw them into your story.

You already know you can provide their solution, but they need to understand that too. And there’s no better way than with a story. That means building a complete story that captures the entire journey, from start to finish.

But you don’t need to, nor should you, tell the entire story at once. When you go to write an email or post something on your social platforms, you can pick and choose pieces and snippets from the story. Give them a glimpse, enough to see themselves. Maybe remind them of their struggle, maybe give them a peek at the prized life they desire. And, of course, you’ll want to introduce them to the guide who will make their transformation possible.

It takes a careful blend of art and science to piece together a compelling story of your customer’s journey. By combining diligent research with thoughtful intuition, you can strike the fine balance that traces the universal journey while also highlighting the particular challenges of your audience. And the result will be something they can instantly relate to and readily feel part of.

The Story Continues

Follow the story and learn how to grow your business or practice with Brand Storytelling and winning Brand Strategy. Be sure to check out some of our other articles and services.

• An Introduction to Brand Archetypes
• Adopting Brand Personas
• Speaking with Brand Voice
• Brand Strategy Services

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