Storytelling is undoubtedly the most efficient means of communication especially when you want to drive some action. It has the power to engage the users similar to that of amazing story books, entertainment, aesthetic art, or even great marketing gimmicks.
It is really fascinating to see that some companies are highly capable of enticing their audience through exceptional storytelling. The communication between businesses & customers is mainly due to the charts, numbers, reports, or news which does lack context. The context comes into play when a strong data is supported by stories rather than any other means.
1. Create stories & not KPIs
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are the parameters that measure the action. But the question emerges, “Whether it can also drive the action?” Not really. The whole scenario changes when these KPIs are presented in the form of a short story. When metrics are showcased in this particular way, every user will be able to connect with it quite easily. Not just that, but a story even helps users to comprehend what exactly they are looking for & where to begin with.
2. Make relevant use of Google Analytics
The Application Programming Interface (API) of Google Analytics is such that you can add any context to it after getting any other data out. It is always preferable to go for storytelling rather than letting people export their product purchases for specific keywords. This is due to the fact that both the story as well as the exported report will provide you with the same facts & information. However, users will be more inclined to read the storyline instead of going through the charts & figures. You can even use graphics to enhance your stories to a great extent.
3. Accept stories from your audience
It is not always the case that stories should be told by you only. The encoded data inside the Analytics tool is already speaking a lot about the visitor stories. Web site content vs. visitor’s behavior is one such untold story of a website. Many things to complement one another while many don’t, but still one gets a hint of what is going on & what needs to be changed for the better prospective future.
4. Leads are generated as a result of storytelling
The storytelling should not be utilized for external or internal marketing. It should find more relevance in communication strategies designed by the online marketers to interact with the visitors.
As an example, if users are asked to provide their personal details for a specific purpose, then that purpose needs to be backed by an appropriate story. If that doesn’t happen then the lead gets lost. So to avoid that an engagement factor should always be installed in the storyline so that users don’t have any second thoughts while clicking confidently on the “I Agree” button.
What’s your story?
Some very popular services, products, blogs, or websites that you see online have gained a high amount of popularity due to smooth storytelling. Several elements or components have to be taken care of while achieving this such as content writing, design, unique sales proposals, Calls to Actions (CTAs) and much more.
Every stepping stone acts as a chapter of the story which helps in pushing a prospective customer along the conversion funnel. Telling stories is quite certainly not child’s play, but the task could definitely be made easier by embedding optimization techniques, metrics and reports into it. This would lead to the engagement stage which is a part of human nature when it comes to listening to stories.
Has this article helped in escalating your storytelling abilities for your advertising campaigns, or probably even within an organization?
Stephen Moyers is a writer, web designer, blogger and Social Media lover. He is currently associated with SPINX Digital, a Digital Marketing Agency in Los Angeles, California. You can follow Stephen on Twitter and Google+.
