(openPR) From the bear cave to the story teller
Where good stories come from and how they refresh marketing
In the past, when we sat around the campfire on bearskins, the evenings were long and boring. Then a clever prehistoric man came up with the idea of telling a story and things became colorful in the cave. From the prehistoric story, countless versions developed, from Moby Dick to Star Wars and the Mountain Doctor. At some point, clever marketers also discovered the power of stories. In order to be able to tell them, however, they first needed a storyteller and the profession of copywriter was born.
From hard selling to storytelling
Before that time, it was enough to write a product name on a poster and people would storm the shops. As the density of posters increased and their impact decreased, storytelling became fashionable. The Marlboro man with a saddle, Clementine in the laundry room, the beautiful baker with her hazelnut bars: they all tell stories and anchor messages in people’s minds by following the principles of storytelling:
1. Stories evoke emotions.
2. Emotions are better stored than facts.
3. If you succeed in combining emotions and facts, it changes purchasing decisions.
How do stories get to the plate?
Before telling comes writing. But where can we find good stories and how can we tell them in an exciting way? Let’s sit down next to our ancient people at the campfire. Anyone who thinks that they were playing bears on each other is etymologically wrong, because the expression has nothing to do with bears. It comes from the Germanic word “bar”. That means “burden” and makes much more sense tied to the proverbial back than bears. Nevertheless, we want to continue to gnaw on the bone that has been handed to us and uncover the core of all stories. This can be reduced to three commonalities:
- a hero (m/f/d)
- a conflict (task, challenge, etc.)
- a solution (successful or not)
How are exciting stories told?
When it comes to the question of the success of stories, it is worth taking a look at story specialists like the Eskimos. Many believe that they have hundreds of terms for snow. This is a frequently repeated myth and wrong. But they do have story knives that narrators use to paint pictures in the snow and to clarify what is being told. In this way, word for word and image for image, a story unfolds that captivates the listeners in the same way that a good story lures potential customers deeper and deeper into the funnel. With Eskimos, as in marketing, one thing is clear: if you give away the punch line in the first sentence, you have ruined the story and driven away the listeners.
Stay tuned
Another aspect is also important: good marketing stories are much more than emotional door openers and are not singular events, but multi-part stories with different episodes, sequels and formats. These are tailored to the interests and needs of the listeners. Stories also provide valuable content for social media channels.
What else does storytelling need?
For stories to work, various things have to be in place. First of all, the setting has to be right. In the past, that meant: the fire has to be burning, the cave has to be free of bears and the listeners have enough to eat. Today, that means we have to reach the target group at the right moment and in an open mood. To do that, the story has to be relevant. It has to relate to the listeners’ lives or work and touch on their problems, wishes or hopes. Without a reason why, it misses the mark. In addition, products, services and brands have to do justice to the content of the story. Tall tales can be entertaining, but ultimately they deter people from buying.
So far, so good, so what?
Some people will think that stories work for cigarettes, washing powder and hazelnut bars, but not in the B2B sector. That is a mistake. Nevertheless, many companies are afraid that they will have to invent novels without knowing where to get the material and the words for them. That is a shame. Because storytelling does not necessarily mean writing long texts, but above all good texts. Often it is enough to give a product a simple story and the product is sold. Let’s take an average energy drink: with a little story in the can and wings on the can, it suddenly stands out from all competitors and becomes a top seller worth billions.
Technology stories retold
There are topics for stories everywhere. The key is to recognize them, develop them and tell them. When we look out of the cave sitting around the campfire, it is also clear that storytelling only shows a section of the world, an entertaining and effective facet that belongs in every good marketing mix. That is why txtconcept has been sitting in the text cave around the campfire for more than 20 years and developing exciting stories for technical products, sophisticated services and well-known customers. These come from the areas of mechanical and plant engineering, automotive, pharmaceutical and medical technology as well as food service equipment and sustainable energy. To be continued.
