The heart of every business is human connections. At the end of the day, our work boils down to dealing with people: we exist to solve their problems and mitigate their pain points.

In a landscape cluttered with different messages competing for the customer’s attention, how can you captivate and establish a relationship with your audience?

Storytelling is an age-old idea that draws people together and keeps them engaged. It’s a powerful tool to build and nurture relationships.

Brand storytelling tells the purpose of your business. It tells the story of how you and your product or service came to be. It tells of the kinds of people who find value in your offering. It’s a concept that underpins your website and other marketing collateral, something that everyone on your team embraces.

The Advantages of Storytelling for Brands

It’s all the rage in the field of business and marketing, and rightfully so: marketers and other business leaders are beginning to understand that the ultimate way to a customer’s heart is through stories.

Without a brand story to support you, you are just another commodity. Replaceable. [Tweet this!]

A powerful brand story makes you memorable. It engages and motivates people. It builds relationships and trust, thus inviting customers to return for more.

Do you believe your business has all it takes to help people or other businesses? Then your story matters. It is therefore mission-critical that you pay attention to the brand stories you tell.

Storytelling Is Not Supposed to Be Promotional

Many marketing professionals get caught up with the motivation behind storytelling. Brand storytelling is not a promotional tactic. It’s not a marketing collateral that tries to sell your product.

Storytelling is a strategic imperative that is necessary for business growth. [Tweet this!] 

It strengthens your brand and showcases why you are a leader in your industry. It’s a foundation on which to grow upon. And to be effective, your story needs to reach your audience on an emotional level.

How to Tell Your Story and Brand Storytelling Examples 

Once you understand the importance of a great story for your brand, the next step is developing your story.

1. Be Genuine and Consistent

Your audience will know if you aren’t authentic, and your message will be received poorly.

Take, for example, the company Happy Chicken Eggs. This is a family-owned farming company in Australia that believes all egg-laying hens should have a healthy, vegetarian lifestyle. Their motto, “Happy Chickens Lay Happy Eggs” is simple and meaningful; their branding depicts happiness and at the same time shows how sincere they are about caring for the hens.  

Read about their case study here.

2. Instil Your Brand Personality within the Story

Storytelling is the perfect medium to show your brand personality that resonates with your audience. Your brand personality plays a crucial role in how you communicate; customers tend to be loyal to a brand that is driven by personality.

RUC Mining is a good example of using their brand personality to make their brand message exciting and relatable. 

As an underground mining company, RUC Mining makes it clear to their team that in an industry full of uncertainty, they are able to give certain results by being serious about their own safety and health.

To be able to engage effectively with their team, they used storytelling and adjusted the language and tone accordingly, as shown in their comical, satirical video featuring Haz-Man™.

3. Show Your Audience Why Your Brand Is Different

Today’s irresistible brands don’t play it safe. They tell stories that amplify what they do best, differentiating themselves from their competition.

Bowhill Engineering does a good job at showing why they are unique and different. What once were their differentiators had become a parity in their industry. So to be different in their category, they now add the best value to their client projects by being involved right from the start.

Read about their case study here.

4. A Good Brand Story Shows Your Purpose

Your purpose is vital to your overall message, and a good brand story makes your purpose clear.

The International Spine Centre’s “Life Beyond Pain” brand video shows its audience why it exists. No patient should be in pain, and the International Spine Centre clearly shares their purpose of achieving pain-free living for every patient they serve.

When your brand offers a specific service or fills in a need, make sure that you tell this in your story. While it is a simple concept, this is one part of your brand story that you can’t miss. Your purpose is why you are in business in the first place.

5. Give Your Customers a Reason to Stay with Your Brand

In crafting your brand story, think about why your customers should care about your business. If your audience doesn’t feel that your brand is special or they don’t see a reason to stick with your brand, your story isn’t going to make an impact.

You want customers to discover your brand and to fall in love with your brand and be loyal to it. No matter how you reach your audience, you have to give them a reason to stay.

Bankstown City Aged Care knows what it means to give customers a reason to stay with their brand. Bankstown City Aged Care is a community that takes care of its own. Started in 1973, it is a community living facility for seniors. It was created by the community and is a non-profit agency that is there for the community. This is a compelling reason for individuals to believe in the brand and to have brand loyalty.

Conclusion

Marketing is constantly changing, and the way in which people interact with brands is different because of social media and quick access to information. To stay strong in a competitive industry, you have to connect with your audience.

Storytelling is an art, and effective storytelling takes time. 

It is universal and, at the same time, contextual as the way we tell stories is important too. You can have a good story, but if you are not telling it the right way, you will not be able to connect to your audience. So you need to be mindful of that too.

Once you learn the elements of a solid brand story, you have to be able to put it all together.

To recap, a great brand story:

• Is not promotional and reaches the audience on an emotional level
• Is genuine, consistent, and has a personality, building trust with your audience
• Makes it clear why you are different
• Lets your audience know why your business exists
• Gives your customers a reason to be loyal to your company

No matter how long you have been in business, now is always a good time to learn how to strengthen your brand through powerful storytelling.

Build your audience on a strong foundation through powerful storytelling, and watch your customer base grow.  [Tweet this!]