Every brand has a story.

Yours might be related to your company’s mission, values or personality. Whether it’s motivating customers to achieve something amazing, helping people to solve problems, inspiring customers to join you in tackling important issues, every company’s story is different and deeply personalized to that organization. 

No matter what your brand’s story is, it’s crucial – now more than ever – to tell it. 

Over the last couple of years, the COVID-19 pandemic changed our approach to many things; from the way we work and live to how consumers interact with a brand. The shared experience of living each day with uncertainty has led to a more empathetic society that values authenticity and brands with personal experiences that they can relate to, holding this newfound value much higher than facts and figures, when it comes to making a purchasing decision.

Stories Differentiate Your Brand From The Competition 

Research from McKinsey estimates that we experienced ten years of eCommerce acceleration in 90 days during the pandemic, with 75 percent of consumers trying new brands, 60 percent of which they will continue to shop with in their post-pandemic lives. 

With so many companies competing for attention, standing out above the crowd takes more than listing statistics and citing product specs and benefits. It takes telling a story that draws customers in and holds their attention. 

HubSpot, a B2B inbound marketing software company, is known for its amazing content hub, which is filled with storytelling driven case studies, useful blog posts, downloadable templates, and more. So much so, that HubSpot has differentiated its brand by becoming a media company and the go-to resource for people in the sales and marketing industry.

Additionally, HubSpot continues to grow across different topics and channels of interest to its current and prospective customers with acquisitions like The Hustle newsletter and podcast, both of which use storytelling to teach entrepreneurs how to start or grow their businesses.

In the B2C space, look no further than Unilever’s All Things Hair campaign. The brand knew that there were around one billion Google searches relating to hair care monthly, however, they also noticed that only 15% of YouTube’s beauty content was made up of hair care videos, most of them from vloggers.

Unilever, whose hair care brands include Dove, Suave, TRESemmé and CLEAR, took advantage of the opportunity to create All Things Hair, the YouTube channel of hair styling tutorial videos from the world’s most-followed beauty vloggers, using Unilever products. The first-person storytelling when paired with valuable hair care tutorials resulted in the channel becoming a go-to source of information and inspiration. It also amassed many millions of views across the globe and drove sales of the products featured.

Stories Bring Greater Brand Value – And Increased Sales 

For a long time, branding was simply considered the logo, the cool tagline, or even a recognizable color palette. But in truth, branding goes far beyond that and more people have recently come to appreciate this and search for brands that align with their values.

According to research by Headstream, if people love a brand story, 55 percent are more likely to buy the product in future, while 44 percent will share the story, and 15 percent will buy the product immediately.

A great example of this comes from REI. REI’s brand story encourages people to #OptOutside and experience nature and to find out what each one of us is capable of. But, what happens to #OptOutside when a pandemic hits and people are spending their time indoors? During the pandemic, REI pivoted #OptOutside in a way that delighted both customers and sales figures.

For example, one of REI’s micro stories was about “Friday Motivation” with a funny visual of a man on his mountain bike reaching toward a beer can. Another inspired people to participate in an #REIChallenge tiniest mile challenge at home. There were also blog posts which combined storytelling with sales-driving tactics, such as how to turn your camping tent into a cinema – complete with product links, of course.

The result? According to Ken Voeller, circular commerce and new business development director of REI, said the company noticed a large uptick in sales at the beginning of the pandemic, including used gear, which is part of the company’s circular strategy. While REI’s co-op reported no profits in 2020 but ended the year in a strong cash position and debt-free, sales quickly re-bounded to $3.7 billion in 2021, an increase of 36% compared to 2020 (source here). 

Stories Build Authenticity In An Age Of Skepticism

In today’s digital age, consumers are more skeptical than ever before, especially when it comes to brand and product claims. A lack of authenticity has become a proverbial achilles heel for brands. Research from Stackla shows that 86 percent of people say authenticity is important when deciding what brands they like and support. The challenge? Only 57 percent of people perceive content from brands as authentic.

In this era of heightened skepticism, brand storytelling can bridge this authenticity gap. Companies can bridge this gap by focusing on telling more meaningful stories around their customers, employees, products, values, mission, and more. 

Here are ideas for the types of authentic stories your company can tell:

• The Origin Story: Share the journey of how your company was founded, including the challenges, initial vision, people and circumstances that drove its inception to humanize your brand.

• Customer Success Stories: Collect and showcase genuine customer testimonials and stories about how your product or service has made a positive impact on their lives. Include user-generated content and visuals when possible.

• Product Evolution: Narrate the journey of a specific product’s development, from concept to market. Discuss the improvements, feedback, and real-world uses that have shaped its evolution, emphasizing customer-centricity.

• Behind-the-Scenes Insights: Offer a behind-the-scenes look into your company’s operations, processes, and the dedicated professionals who ensure quality and reliability in your offerings. This can provide transparency and trust.

• Employee Spotlights: Introduce key employees who play crucial roles in delivering value to clients and end products. Share their backgrounds, expertise, passion for the industry or even giving back to the community to demonstrate your team’s dedication.

• Industry Thought Leadership: Incorporate stories into your thought leadership content, such as whitepapers, webinars, or articles, to establish your company and key employees as industry experts. There’s a reason why we wrote our book with tons of stories – they educate and entertain – keeping the reader more engaged. 

Final Thoughts

Simply put, brand storytelling bridges the gap between your company and the audience that you want to attract. It communicates your value in a way that gives you an edge over others and it helps you form authentic relationships with people who will value your products and services most. 

For more details on this, click here to purchase The Laws of Brand Storytelling to learn how to use the power of storytelling to win over your customers.

Jessica Gioglio is the co-author of The Laws of Brand Storytelling and The Power of Visual Storytelling. Professionally, Jessica has led innovative marketing and public relations programs for Dunkin’, TripAdvisor, Sprinklr, and more. Today, Jessica is a keynote speaker (book her here) and founder of With Savvy Media & Marketing, a strategic branding, storytelling, and content strategy consultancy.