Does your brand have a story? Can you recount it in less than 30 seconds? A compelling brand story is essential to competing in today’s fast-moving, ever-expanding marketplace. To help get you started, here are six basic pointers:
1) Make it authentic.
The foundation of any compelling brand story must be authenticity. Your messaging needs to center on authentic situations, authentic problems and authentic need states. Explain in people-friendly terms how your products and services add value to your customers.
2) Make it fresh.
Even if your product is not particularly unique, you can probably dig down to identify some unique facts that make your story stand apart. For decades, Folger’s coffee built a story around mountain-grown coffee. The fact is, most coffee is grown at higher elevations. Folger’s just took a parity fact and spun it into something preemptively fresh. Ask yourself these questions. When was your company founded? Who was your founder? What inspired your business model? The clues to your brand story are likely somewhere in here.
3) Make it visual.
If possible make your story something visual. If your baked goods are made with farm-fresh eggs, make your audience see them. If your brand is upscale, make them imagine tuxedos, ball gowns and yachts. Can you tell your story in an infographic? Can you tell it in a silent movie? Look for ways to visualize it.
4) Make it cool.
Look for a-ha moments and interesting facts. Remember, what seems mundane to you may seem interesting to an outsider. Look outside your industry for messaging techniques that you may be able to commandeer for your category.
Does your brand have a story? Can you recount it in less than 30 seconds?
5) Make it charitable.
More and more companies are creating unique brand stories by adding a humanitarian component to their business model. Companies like Warby Parker and Tom’s Shoes have made cause marketing an integral component of their brands. Remember, people like to do business with companies that are not just in it for the money.
6) Make it resonate.
It doesn’t matter whether your business is consumer-facing or business-facing, a good brand story must resonate. After all, your business provides a service or product that will touch the lives of regular everyday folks. Aim for universal truths that resonate.
Take a half day and lock yourself away with your key players, bring in a facilator and see what you come up with. After all, your brand story is an essential ingredient to your marketing efforts. If you are in need of an outside resource to help you discover the essence of your brand, we’d love to help. Give us a shout at 972.488.1660.
We are a Dallas advertising agency with extensive expertise in branding.
