The role of storytelling in social media marketing: How to craft compelling narratives that resonate with your audience

When we hear the word “storytelling”, the brands that usually come to our mind are Apple, Google, Nike, or Coca-Cola.

This is because we feel connected with these companies on a deeper level as they have long harnessed power of storytelling to leave an unforgettable image of their brand on our minds.

But wait!

There are innumerable companies that use storytelling in social media marketing, so what are those factors which make the brands stand out in the market?

The reason is…

Their ability to follow the Inside Out approach while communicating their brand with the customers.

Now what is Inside Out Approach?

Inside out approach is part of Simon Sinek’s Golden Circles theory, in which he suggests that most successful companies adopt the inside-out way of communicating to market their brand among people.

It means they do not connect with their audience by emphasizing “What” they offer rather, they focus on “Why” they offer.

Let’s first delve into the Golden Circle Theory!

The Golden Circle Theory

The theory involves establishing an emotional and deep connection with the customers.

In his book Start with Why, Simon Sinek (an American inspirational speaker) proposed this theory.

The theory says that companies who do focus on “what they sell” rather than “why they sell” lag behind.

Simon suggests that when you talk about ‘Why’ and ‘How’, you communicate feelings and deal with human behavior. But when you talk about “What”, you are just promoting your product.

As per the theory, there are three elements Why, How, & What.

The businesses that have nailed storytelling in marketing put the “why” element first and then move to “how & what”. The

The Golden Circle of Simon Sinek looks like the following:

In this,

Why – is the core belief of their company. It focuses on why they are indulging themselves in their respective businesses.

How- focuses on telling how they fulfil the core belief of their company.

What – is the tangible result for their “Why & How”. It is basically a product or service that the organisation offers to fulfil its core belief.

Let’s better understand this with Apple’s example.

When Apple communicates its product with the customer, it does not emphasis on the product features. Instead, it highlights people’s conflicts or challenges with complicated technology and then tells how it strives to address them.

Following the Golden Circle theory, let’s look at how Apple represents its narrative.

Starts with “Why”

Everything we do, we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently.

Moves to “How”

The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully designed, simple to use and user-friendly.

Ends up on “What”

We just happen to make great computers. Want to buy one?

Tips to craft compelling narratives that resonate with your audience

Now that you understand the order of storytelling in your social media marketing. Let’s know how to craft compelling narratives.

There are following 3 essential elements of storytelling that you need to incorporate into your story to make it effective.

• Character
• Conflict
• Resolution

Let’s learn about them separately and how to use them effectively.

Character

Character is an individual (or individuals) that will participate in your story and take centre stage.  So, while you prepare a plot for storytelling, you should keep the following things in mind.

• The character must act on behalf of your customer
• The customer should deeply resonate with the character
• They must imagine themselves as the hero of your story,
• They feel connected & get interested in your story.

Doing this will make your audience fully engaged with your story and feel a personal connection with your brand.

Conflict

Conflict is the main problem or challenges through which the main character struggles.

Here your audience continues to imagine themselves in the place of the main character of your story. What you need to do here is-

• Make your character strive to clash with the challenge
• Make your audience believe that no hurdles can be too hard to confront.

This will make the audience feel emotionally attached to your story, and they will continue to engage with it.

Resolution

Resolution is the point of your story where the conflict will be resolved.

• Here, you will introduce your product.
• Explain how it will address their problems
• Make them believe in the power of your solution
• Motivate them to embrace it and overcome all obstacles
• Conclude with a compelling call to action that persuades them to take the final step.

Final Note

In summary, when including storytelling in your social marketing strategy, it is important to present the core purpose of your product first.

That is because when you just highlight the features of your product, the customers consider it just a marketing thing and do not seem interested.

However,  by informing them of the purpose of your product and demonstrating how it can make their life easy, you make them engaged and feel connected.

As in the words of Steve Jobs, People don’t want to buy a personal computer. They want to know what they can do with them.

If you are looking for a digital marketing agency in London to help you develop effective storytelling for social media marketing or branding, we can help!

Check out our social media marketing packages or call us on 020 374 52786

Also Read: Amplify Your Brand Message – The Magic of Words on Social Media.