Storytelling: The Art of Telling Stories

Storytelling is a method that involves narrating stories. Some say it is an art because it requires creativity, practice, and skills that not everyone possesses.

It has become a key element in businesses, as through storytelling, the interlocutor connects with the brand.

In this article, we tell you everything about storytelling so you can add it to your business's content strategy.

Let's get started!

What is storytelling?

“Storytelling is the art of telling stories.” We can say that storytelling applied to marketing is a story (in text, video, image...) that includes useful information to convey a message, with the aim of capturing the attention of customers.

What does storytelling mean?

It is a compound word in English that means: “Story” story and “telling” to tell.

According to Wikipedia, it is defined as:

“Storytelling or the narration of stories is the act of conveying tales using words or images, usually through improvisation and employing various stylistic embellishments.”

Applied to businesses, we can say it is a communication technique that involves telling stories so that the message is more emotional, stands out from the competition, and captures the customer's attention.

For example, you can use storytelling to tell stories that represent the values of your brand, product, or service. To motivate your team or to win over potential customers, among other examples we will see below.

Structure of storytelling

Regardless of the story we are going to communicate, there are parts that coincide, which are:

The Message

The message contains the idea we are going to convey and should have a good creative introduction to make an impact and grab the audience's attention.

The Characters

Every story has one or more characters as protagonists, who are the ones experiencing the events. The goal is for the audience to feel identified with them and make it easier to lead them to the final moment, where the call to action (Call to Action – CTA) occurs.

Be careful! The goal of storytelling is not to sell per se, but to captivate the customer to make them reflect. We will see examples throughout the article.

The Plot

The conflict narrated is the central part of the story where the plot develops. Using techniques like tension and suspense will keep the customer engaged with the story. The conflict should be challenging so that the character undergoes a transformation and overcomes it.

The Setting or Context

Placing the protagonists in a space or setting makes it easier for the listener and viewer to engage their imagination and mental translation. This is referred to as “setting the scene.”

Resolution

This is the part where the conflict is resolved and the character is led to the call to action, experiencing a positive change.

Types of storytelling and examples

Depending on the objective of storytelling and the audience it is aimed at, we can say that there are several types or examples:

Fictional Storytelling to Motivate

It is a fictional narrative that tells the story or event of characters that are not real but seek to represent a message with which someone can identify.

These types of stories are the most popular, as they reflect imaginary situations that act as a metaphor for reality.

They convey a reflection and motivate the receiver to take action.

Storytelling Examples to Motivate

A clear example of this type of story is used by sports brands like Nike. The brand usually accompanies these storytelling campaigns with a slogan, and in this case, the example is:

“Champions are not born. They are made.”

Storytelling Marketing

This type of storytelling focuses on communicating the brand identity to connect emotionally with customers. In other words, it uses a story to convey valuable emotions.

As expected, we will use the campaigns of the well-known brand Coca Cola as an example.

They know their audience perfectly, their interests, which makes their branding campaigns a success. For example, the famous videos that always have an emotional message behind them.

Brand Storytelling Example

The brand works very well with storytelling strategies. A clear example is their latest global campaign: “Masterpiece,” which brings together iconic artworks by Andy Warhol, JMW Turner, and some emerging artists from around the world.

With the aim of capturing the viewer's attention, without bombarding them with advertising messages. Through works of art and Artificial Intelligence, it tells a story about inspiration and creativity.

With the slogan: “Sometimes, we just need a spark to ignite our creativity #TrueMagic #IgniteYourMagic”, it truly captures our attention.

With a message full of values about teamwork, motivation, inspiration, creativity, and excitement.

This example can help smaller companies stand out in a saturated market and attract consumers.

How to Create a Storytelling?

• Okay! These examples from big brands are great, but... How can I apply storytelling to my business if I don't have a big budget?
• Don't worry, we will explain how to adapt this technique to your company:

Analyze Your Target Audience

Knowing the market and audience you are targeting will be a big part of the work. It will allow you to focus the story to make it relevant and emotional for them.

By understanding their needs, you can create a personalized message that moves them to establish a stronger connection.

In this example from the image, we see what is called knowing your target audience perfectly. 

The Aston Martin brand, through storytelling and in a single image, is telling us the story that you don’t need to “buy new to enjoy.”

A brand focused on a very specific audience; male, with a certain purchasing power, who knows that the previous owner of such a car has not mistreated it at all.

Thus, it is a safe and wise purchase:

“You know you are not the first, but does it really matter?”

Define the Objective and Actions to Take

Depending on the audience you are targeting and the objective you pursue, you will use one type of storytelling or another. 

For example, if your goal is to create a community around your brand, product, or service, use storytelling in a way that connects emotionally with the values and experiences of potential customers.

Imagine you are a small company that produces eco-friendly home products, such as reusable kitchen utensils and eco-friendly cleaning products.

Through social media and your website, you can share real stories of homemakers who have tried the products and explain the change in their homes.

Thanks to storytelling, you are creating a community around your brand and promoting values such as sustainability and environmental protection.

Call to Action

Now that you have the community created, it is time to encourage them to take the action you desire. What exactly do you want them to do?

Following the example from the previous story, we see that our homemaker experiences a real transformation when using the products.

If potential customers have reached this point, you must motivate them to take the specific action. In this case, it could be, for example, trying the product through free samples.

Choose the Medium

You need to choose the medium in which you will tell stories. Storytelling can be written, as in social media posts or blogs.

It can also be in video, images, or audio. Or a spoken story, which could be a presentation at an event.

All options are valid, but based on your budget, keep in mind that the most effective medium is in-person or video since the impact is greater. They facilitate emotional recall and the brand stays in the customer's mind, “top of mind.”

A clear example of being in the consumer's mind would be Ikea campaigns, where through stories they lead us to take action.

If you look at the example image, without selling us anything (grabbing our attention), they are selling us everything.

Keys to Good Storytelling

You should consider these recommendations that make an experience unique.

• Remember that it is not about selling, but connecting with the audience. Storytelling should be illustrative to grab attention, but not overloaded with information.
•  Stories should be entertaining, regardless of the goal: creating community, motivating, so that they become memorable for the audience.
•  It is very important that the story has a protagonist, with whom the customer will feel identified and through whom the connection with the brand will appear.
• Generate authentic and coherent content so that it represents the values of the brand.

“It is much easier to communicate a message through stories.”

Tools for Storytelling

Depending on whether you are going to use text, images, or video for storytelling, we recommend some tools that will make your task easier:

Storytelling in Text

To create written storytelling, you can use any online text editor tool, such as Google Docs, Microsoft Word, among thousands that exist.

Personally, I like to write directly in the blog of the website. Because in addition to the functions of any editor, it allows me to write content considering SEO.

Storytelling in Audio (Podcast)

Storytelling in audio format is very well accepted as users can consume this type of content while walking or cooking at home, as it requires no greater mental interaction, just listening.

There are hundreds of tools to create a podcast like Ivoox, YouTube, Tik Tok live, Spotify, Spreaker…

Tools for Storytelling in Video

These tools will help you make your story more attractive. There are thousands, some of the simplest are: Canva, Wondershare, YouTube, Genially, among others.

Conclusions:

Storytelling focused on business is a technique to capture the customer's attention, with a specific goal.

It can be applied to content strategies as what really matters are the positive emotions that the user experiences when interacting with the brand.

If you achieve this, we can say that you have successfully used the storytelling technique.

We hope this article has been useful to you. Thank you for reading us.