{"id":31511,"date":"2014-04-21T09:00:50","date_gmt":"2014-04-21T16:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bruceclay.com\/blog\/?p=31511"},"modified":"2019-07-22T09:49:25","modified_gmt":"2019-07-22T16:49:25","slug":"how-to-use-storytelling-for-content-marketing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bruceclay.com\/blog\/how-to-use-storytelling-for-content-marketing\/","title":{"rendered":"How 3 Big Brands Use Storytelling to Make Everyday Products Exciting"},"content":{"rendered":"

Storytelling. It\u2019s important. I feel like you, my Internet marketing comrades, get this by now. Interruption marketing is dead, the online attention span is dwindling, content creation is up, and your brand needs a hook to catch consumer attention before the message goes in one ear and out the other (if it even gets to the first ear at all).<\/p>\n

\"what's<\/a>
Photo by Tim Hettler<\/a> (CC BY 2.0<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

You get it.<\/p>\n

But what if you\u2019re not GoPro? What if your brand is boring or mundane? What if you sell less than sexy everyday products like graham crackers or online classes?<\/p>\n

Enough with the what-ifs.<\/p>\n

Storytelling that works is all about telling\u00a0your<\/i> story in a context that gets people thinking about their own lives. Every brand, no matter how “boring,” has some special hook in their product line or their value system that is a great story just waiting to be told.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Taking a cue from the experts that are already doing it right, here are three great examples of big brands that are content marketing with stories that sell,\u00a0<\/span>and five reasons why their campaigns work so well.<\/span><\/p>\n

Three Examples of Storytelling That Works<\/h2>\n

At the heart of it, storytelling is about using characters, setting and storyline to take an audience somewhere and make them feel something.<\/p>\n

The values-driven, user-generated stories Patagonia, Honey Maid, and the University of Phoenix tell with their unscripted “Worn Wear<\/a>,” “This is Wholesome<\/a>,” and “A Career Outside Of Football” campaigns accomplish this extremely well.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what their campaigns look like:<\/p>\n

Patagonia: “Worn Wear”<\/h3>\n

In the “Worn Wear” series Patagonia invites brand advocates to share about their outdoor adventures, their lives, and the stories their gear would tell if it could talk.<\/p>\n

The campaign has two parts: A 27-minute YouTube documentary that brings to life the stories of seven adventurers, including Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard himself, and a dedicated landing page where readers can scroll through user-submitted images and their accompanying \u201cDear Patagonia\u201d stories.<\/p>\n

If you’re thinking about how not boring outdoor gear is, I tend to agree with you, but watching the documentary you’ll notice some of the products featured (like a child’s romper and a pair of board shorts)\u00a0are not all that exciting on their own. It’s the stories around<\/em> the romper and the shorts that make them engaging, not the clothes themselves.<\/p>\n

In their own words, Patagonia describes the project as \u201can antidote to the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping frenzy,\u00a0[released as] an invitation to celebrate the stuff you already own.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

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