Content Writing

Harnessing the Power of Story for Brands: Madison Avenue Borrows from Hollywood. Again.

Writer / Author Christopher Vickers, Atlanta-based Brand, Advertising + Content Marketing & Communications Strategist & Creator

I was drawn to content, marketing and communications by dramatic storytelling, graphic imagery and disarming humor. Decades later and despite huge shifts in business and tech, these techniques are as relevant as ever.

In his fascinating book, Grow: How Ideals Power Growth and Profit at the World’s Greatest Companies, former P&G marketing officer Jim Stengel describes his journey to uncover the secrets behind the explosive growth of brands like Method, Red Bull, Dove and others. His going-in theory was that they’d all harnessed the power of digital marketing before their competitors. His discovery (10 years and thousands of brands later) was that the highest growth brands in the world had a stronger set of values and beliefs than their competitors, and communicated them in a way that engaged the emotions of their targets in their brand stories.

You may also be familiar with author Simon Sinek’s famous TED talk presentation (or book of the same name) “Start With Why.” Like Stengel, Sinek explored why it is that some organizations and people, be it Apple or Martin Luther King, inspire and others don’t. And Sinek’s answer is that some organizations and people know their purpose, cause and beliefs and inspire their targets with them. Others just communicate features and benefits. At the heart of Sinek’s presentation is this declaration, “People don’t buy what you do. They buy why you do it.” Sinek and Stengel share the belief that your target cares (and your employees care) more about why you do what you do than what you do.

Some of the best CPG examples of the power of purpose include Dove challenging the ridiculous expectations imposed on women by the beauty industry. Or Red Bull taking us on flights of inspiration (rather than bore us with product description). And there’s certainly nothing fuzzy or ambiguous about Always’ purpose behind the #LikeAGirl campaign: “Always is on an epic battle to keep girls’ confidence high during puberty and beyond.” Sounds a little more interesting than absorption layers, huh?

The “why” of brands has always been the secret to creating stories which invite people to care. It just may be better understood through the research and the codification done by people like Stengel and Sinek. But in today’s world of social media and consumer control, the “why” of brands has reached a zenith in value to brand success. The story is what makes people care. And it’s what makes them share. Doug Rauch, former Trader Joe’s president, shared an interesting perspective on this phenomenon at June’s Specialty Food Show in New York when he said, “The context trumps the content.”

The baton for the power of brand stories was similarly carried at the show by retail design expert Scott Kelley. Kelley called for retail brands to think of the store as a movie with a series of scenes creating a beginning, middle and end. He cited the clear purpose and beliefs of retail brands like Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s that distinguish them and power their growth. Kelley decries the retail design that puts too much of the burden on the consumer to figure it out and calls for “editors” to lead consumers on a better kind of retail “story” experience.

Certainly one of the greatest brand storytellers of all time, Bill Bernbach, of global ad agency Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) gave credence to the business-building power of story when he said “Is creativity some obscure, esoteric art form? Not on your life. It’s the most practical thing a businessman can employ.”

References: Mediapost