Which would you rather listen to – a story about a product and the person who bought it, or a laundry list of features that the product contains? If you’re like most modern consumers, you would probably rather hear a story. Storytelling fits perfectly with inbound marketing because they both focus on providing value to the customer.
Make a memory
Storytelling is crucial because it creates an emotional connection and a lasting memory. As an eCommerce company, you have to work even harder to forge this connection. Have you ever wondered why you can remember a song from 20 years ago but not the facts you needed to pass a biology test? Oral traditions, like rhyme and rhythm, help people remember and pass on information.
According to Psychology Today, “tales that last for many generations tend to describe concrete actions rather than abstract concepts.” This quote is so powerful because this is exactly what you should be doing with your marketing strategies. Your customers generally won’t remember that facts and figures about what makes your product so great. They remember the concrete actions, the stories that you tell about the product.
Human thinking is naturally episodic and narrative; when you remember a past event, you probably don’t think of it in bullet points – you replay your memory of how it happened. When customers think of your brand, what story do you want them to associate with it?
Focus on buyer persona
Another reason that storytelling is effective is because humans generally respond better to individual claims than to groups. When people are asked to donate to a crisis affecting millions of people versus to help one specific child, they donate more to the individual child.
However, researchers have found that people give more to large groups when those individuals seems to be a coherent unit. For example, they found the people were more willing to donate to six children from the same family compared to six children who were completely unrelated.
When using storytelling, focus on one buyer persona at a time and target your story to that persona. Instead of speaking broadly about how thousands of people love your product or service, focus in on one person or a specific group of people and tell that story in greater detail. How did your product make a difference in the life of an individual? Try highlighting the unique experience of your most satisfied customer and how your product worked for them.
Involve your customers
User-generated content can be a great way to use storytelling in your marketing efforts because it comes directly from your customers. One great example is the Lay’s Do Us a Flavor contest where customers submitted ideas for new potato chip flavors. Customers submitted flavor ideas, then three top flavors were chosen and produced. Then, Lay’s encouraged customers to try all three and pick their favorite, which would then be added to their product lineup. This campaign engaged customers, drove sales, and gained national attention.
According to Nielsen’s latest Global Trust in Advertising report, 83% of people trust the recommendations of people they know, 66% trust consumer opinions posted online, and only 42% trust online banner ads. When potential customers see others engaged with and satisfied with your product, they are more likely to buy in as well. Even smaller companies can hold a contest for users and sharing the submissions and results across social media platforms.
Match linguistic style
When former America’s Next Top Model Creative Director, Jay Manuel, was directing Cover Girl commercials, he always told the models to talk like they were telling their best friend about the product. This helped to achieve the brand goals of being accessible and authentic. Storytelling means taking a conversational tone, rather than sales-focused language.
A study analyzing linguistic styles and conversion rates using Amazon book reviews found that when the language used is consistent with the product user group’s usual linguistic style, conversion rates increased. When you tell the story of your brand, use conversational tone paired with the linguistic style of your target audience. No one wants to feel like they are being marketed to; people believe in brands that they can relate to.
As you can see, storytelling is a compelling way to market your brand. Great stories elicit an emotional response from listeners and are shared with others. What story are you telling? ParadoxLabs Marketing is here to help.