The Art of Storytelling
Your Secret Weapon to Creative Marketing
Have you ever found yourself lost in a good book - time stands still and you find yourself sitting for hours unable to tear yourself away?
Or, those adverts that are more like mini-movies and stay with you for a long time afterwards? In the UK there was a really powerful one a few years ago by the British Red Cross where there’s a girl walking with her dog and she tells a narrative of disasters saying she’s the reason they’re happening and finally reveals “I am a crisis and I don’t care who you are.” It’s a very powerful story of how The British Red Cross help people in a crisis by drawing attention to those twists of fate where we end up in disastrous situations unexpectedly. The story is powerful and hard-hitting.
But, what’s the point in me bringing this up today?
These show the magic of storytelling, and it’s a magic your business absolutely needs. As both a fiction author and creative marketing coach, I’ve seen many times how the power of story in marketing can be nothing short of ingenious. So, today I’m going to take you on the story of how and why storytelling isn’t just a twee nice-to-have in your marketing toolkit, it’s an essential part of connecting with your audience authentically.
The Science Behind the Power of Story
As humans we’re wired to respond to story, it’s as natural as sleeping. If we’re given raw data to analyse two areas of our brain activates. However, if we’re given that data in a story format, multiple areas of our brain light up as if we’re experiencing that story ourselves. That’s why when you read a fantastically written food-blog you can almost taste that chocolate cake or feel that excitement when a travel writer gives us a brilliant Instagram caption.
It’s really fascinating what the neuroscience behind this says about us as we’re engaged in a story. Essentially, our brains release oxytocin, which is sometimes called the trust hormone. This creates empathy and connection, which makes storytelling one of the most powerful tools in your marketing box. Because, if your audience feels trust for you and what you’re saying, they will trust that what you’re offering is genuine, worth their time and truly helpful to their needs.
Why Your Creative Business Needs Storytelling
1. Emotional Connection
Stories work like bridges, they connect you and your audience through emotion, which is a major part of the buying decision process. When you share the journey behind your creative process, or the challenges you’ve overcome, you’re not just selling, you’re inviting people into your world and it’s this vulnerability and authenticity that resonates deeply with your audience as they can then relate to and see themselves in that story.
2. Memorable Marketing
In a world where we’re spammed to the hilt with thousands of messages every day, stories help you stand out from the rest. People will forget statistics and dull data, but they will remember how you made them feel when you shared that struggle you’ve been having. Think about the last advertisement that stuck with you, I’ll bet it was a story rather than a list of features and benefits. The reason the Red Cross one stuck with me is because I, like all of us, have been in unexpected crisis situations and I remember deeply the feelings of despair and shock. That narrative tapped into an experience I’ve had in life and allowed me to relate to it in a powerful way. It then flipped that and told me that the British Red Cross are there for people in crisis situations, but it’s that ability to connect to my past experiences and those fears we all have about other crisis situations happening again.
3. Trust Building
Stories make you relatable and show your human side. When you share authentic experiences, struggles and triumphs, you build trust naturally without the hard sell. This is important in creative industries as personal connection often drives buying decisions.
4. Differentiation
In the crowded marketplace, your story is what makes you unique, it’s what stands you separate from everyone else. No one has lived your life and experienced things you have, or can tell those stories in quite the way you can. This is what gives you a competitive advantage.
From Theory to Practice: Storytelling in Action
Let’s look at some other real-world examples of this in action. One of the biggest and most recognisable ones is the John Lewis Christmas advert. Every year, people wait with bated breath as to what the story will be about this year, and this is so big, it often features on the national news. If you just take a second to think of that in terms of what it actually is - an advert is a news item on the national news of the UK. The purpose of the ad is still the same - to get people to shop in John Lewis, but that’s not why people remember it, it’s because it’s a story. 2024’s advert was about sisterhood and family and memory. A woman is looking for a gift for her sister and steps into the memories of their life together looking for something to connect her to the perfect gift. The story is a journey through life and absolutely encompasses the whole point of family, connection and love at christmas time. It taps into the nation’s thoughts and feelings of connection, gifting and sharing at that time of the year. It’s powerful and each of us can relate to it.
When I’m not doing marketing I’m a fiction author and write historical mystery fiction, the whole world I create, the characters, the narrative, sometimes the places are made up, but the story is one people can relate to as they’re about connection, family, struggle, loss, love, getting over adversity and solving mysteries. They’re all things we can relate to as humans and imagine ourselves in those situations. The same principles apply to your business, you can tell your story and the story of your failures, your struggles, your wins and your life as you build your business.
The Elements of Effective Story in Marketing
1. Authenticity
Your story needs to be genuine, audiences can spot inauthentic story from miles away. Share real challenges, experiences and wins - even the small ones.
2. Relevance
Each story should have a purpose, whether this is highlighting a client transformation or explaining your creative process, make sure your stories connect with your audience’s needs and desires.
3. Structure
Good stories have a beginning middle and end. They take the audience on a journey, building tension and reaching great conclusions. In marketing this is often highlighting a problem, sharing the journey and then showing the solution.
4. Emotional Impact
The best marketing stories touch hearts before they touch minds, they create emotional responses that then leads to action. Emotion is the major part of decision making.
Your Story Matters
Every creative business has stories that are worth telling and these could be anything from:
The moment you decided to start a business
Those challenges you’ve overcome
All the transformations you’ve seen in clients
Your why and the reason you do what you do
But many creative business owners struggle to find and tell these stories effectively. They understand the concept of telling a story but aren’t sure how to do it. Many have roadblocks and often say things like:
“My stories aren’t interesting”
“I don’t know which stories to tell”
“I’m worried about being too personal”
“I can’t find the right words to tell it”
These are common issues and I’d recommend people who find the issue really taxing try reading Building a Storybrand by Donald Miller.
Alongside this, I’ve created a marketing clarity session, which are one on one sessions where we dive into your current marketing, what you love, hate and what’s working or not working and I will give you an action plan and list of recommendations to help you get started doing your marketing in an easy and fast way to success.
Finding Your Story
The most powerful stories sit right at the heart of:
Where your heart lies
What your audience needs to hear
What makes you different
All the best and worst parts of your journey
During the creative marketing clarity session, we’ll discover these elements together and create a plan to share your marketing across the channels you like the best in a way that fits your personality and the things you love. The session is about getting to the heart of what you love, not making you do things you don’t want to do.
This all results in marketing that feels authentic and compelling, aligned with who you are as a creative professional.
Next Steps
If you’re ready to harness your marketing for your creative business, I’d love to help. Book a creative clarity session where we’ll:
Uncover unique angles
Identify what marketing you love to do
Create a practical strategy
Design a clear path to get started straight away
Ready to transform your marketing? Get your session booked in, I’m offering this brand new service at a very discounted rate for the first few people, so grab yours before the price goes up.
Remember what you have to say is worth telling and should be done in a way you love and in the places you like to hang out.