Storytelling is a powerful way to connect with your audience, build trust, and inspire action. But how do you apply storytelling to diverse content formats, such as blog posts, videos, podcasts, infographics, and ebooks? Here are some tips to help you craft compelling stories across different mediums and platforms.
Before you start creating any content, you need to understand who your audience is, what their pain points are, and what they want to achieve. This will help you tailor your stories to their needs, interests, and emotions. Use tools like personas, surveys, and analytics to get insights into your audience's demographics, behaviors, and preferences.
How do you handle engagement from your followers on LinkedIn, for example? I recommend going into further exchange. Offer them the possibility to get to know more content on the topic in more depth. This could be an article or newsletter. Important is to ask questions and provide opportunities for users to share their perspective with you.
"Knowing your audience" is the #1 tip when it comes to marketing as a whole. But let's face it: market research is expensive. Running surveys, focus groups, buying analytics tools... not everyone has the resources needed. Surprisingly, socials have FREE tools that can help get us to get started - features I believe to be largely overlooked. For example, Instagram has Polls (so does LinkedIn), level bars, questions, and reaction stickers. If used in an intelligent way, they can help not only to know our audience better but to create a bond with it, too. For example: want to know where your audience spends most of their time online? Run this poll: "If out of all social platforms, you could keep only one, which one would it be?"
Knowing your audience is not about understanding who they are, but also considering who they want to be. Who they wish to be, or what do they want to achieve to be a better version.
From my experiences in B2B blogs, here are two big takeaways I've learned: Start with Relevance. We all know the importance of a strong introduction. But in the B2B world, it's not just about grabbing attention – it's about immediate relevance. Begin with a scenario or challenge that businesses commonly face. Structure Matters. Just like in any solid business plan, structure is key in B2B blogging. Lay out your introduction (the challenge), the body (the exploration or solution), and the conclusion (takeaways or next steps). A clear, cohesive narrative is what sets great content apart.
An example of storytelling happens to appear when writing for a website. This requires immense patience as it involves sitting down with the founders to understand what gave them the thought of taking such a huge leap forward. A lot of people are misguided with the fact that “your questions lead to building a story”. Sadly, that isn’t the fact. In fact, questions are built based on where the story begins. It’s an emotion that goes on and on till a writer gets the beginning, the in-between, and the end.
Depending on your goals, budget, and resources, you can choose from a variety of content formats to tell your stories. Each format has its own advantages and disadvantages, so you need to consider factors like the length, complexity, and tone of your story, as well as the engagement, retention, and conversion rates of each format. For example, blog posts are great for SEO and education, videos are great for emotion and demonstration, podcasts are great for intimacy and convenience, infographics are great for data and visuals, and ebooks are great for authority and lead generation.
Brand communications expert / I help organizations govern and scale their brands.
the type of content you choose should not only be based on your goals, budget, and resources, but it should also align with your audience’s preferences and behaviors. For example, if your audience frequently engages with video content, it might be beneficial to invest in channels like YouTube . On the other hand, if your target audience primarily consists of busy professionals, easily digestible formats like infographics or concise blog posts could be more effective. Ultimately, understanding your audience’s preferences can greatly inform your content strategy, helping you achieve better engagement, retention, and conversion rates.
Content format should be chosen based on what your audience prefers. If you are targeting gen Z, Instagram reels and video content would be a great platform. However, if you are targeting people of age 40-50, and who are into B2B, choosing LinkedIn carousels and text based posts would be the best. Note : You can experiment with various content formats and choose the ones based on facts.
It's not just the story but also the way we tell it. Aim for immersive storytelling and create an experience for your audience if possible. When I worked in the travel industry, I made a lot of content showcasing locations. The most effective ones would include interactive maps and even soundscapes that transported the reader to that place. When I worked in print, I’d craft multimedia content to enhance the printed story. Obviously, it all comes down to the industry, goals (and, let’s be honest, the budget), but if there’s a chance to create a media-rich experience, go for it! Also, I'm a huge fan of repurposing content. Don't be afraid to explore different formats, and use pillar content as your launching pad.
I have had this quote with me for a long time and it fits here perfectly: "A picture says more than a thousand words..But if the person does not know what words to think about, the picture has no meaning."
I believe that rather than sticking rigidly to a single format, marketeers should consider adapting their content to different mediums. It is quite surprising what happens when you experiment with hybrid formats. Combining elements of different formats can create a unique storytelling experience. For instance, a podcast with embedded infographics or a video that integrates educational blog-style content can provide a richer and more engaging narrative. Also It's worth mentioning that some content formats have a fleeting lifespan in the digital world. Social media posts (can) have a very short shelf life. So be aware what the long-term impact of your storytelling formats is and use them appropriate.
Regardless of the format, every story needs a clear structure that guides the audience from the beginning to the end. A common structure is the three-act model, which consists of a setup, a conflict, and a resolution. The setup introduces the characters, the setting, and the problem. The conflict builds tension and challenges the characters. The resolution resolves the problem and provides a takeaway or a call to action. You can also use other structures, such as the hero's journey, the inverted pyramid, or the before-after-bridge.
All stories, fiction, non-fiction, business, metrics etc etc all need a beginning middle and end. Why? Beginning- why should anyone read what you have written? What are you giving them for their time? Middle- the good stuff - the ‘meat and potatoes’ all the substance the whole point of your content. End- why does it all matter? What’s the point? What’s the CTA? Apply it to anything you write and it will be read with satisfaction.
To make your stories more engaging and memorable, you need to use storytelling elements that appeal to your audience's senses, emotions, and logic. Characters should be people or entities that your audience can relate to and root for. Conflict is the obstacle or challenge that drives the story forward. The plot is the sequence of events that show how characters overcome the conflict. The theme is the main message or lesson of the story. Style is the way you tell your story, such as the tone, voice, language, and imagery. With these elements in place, you can create a story that resonates with your audience.
Too often, businesses write "success stories" in which their software is the hero. (I did that myself, many year back.) But a company or piece of software make a lousy protagonist. Always make stories about human beings. Your customer should be the hero, and your solution their enabling tool. No one lined up to read books about Harry Potter's wand.
A key point to consider while creating content is to look at what value your audience derives from it, and not just what you are excited to tell them. The best content looks like it was tailor-made to entertain, educate, answer or solve "my specific needs" - be it doubts, questions, fears, anxieties. Having a strong hold on your audience and what they care about and how your content benefits them becomes more important than the mechanics of writing it itself.
Before you begin considering the storyline of your content piece, ensure you understand the underlying story of your brand. Is your brand centered around problem-solving or value-based offerings? Understanding this is crucial because it will guide the thought process on what should be emphasized in your content. This, in turn, allows you to convey your message through various narratives and diverse pieces of content. Most importantly, these efforts will consistently align with your brand story, fostering greater relatability with your customers and establishing a memorable hook for recognition and brand recall.
Sometimes one story has a few different pieces of content. It starts from LinkedIn article, later photos carousel on Instagram, and finished in podcast ????????
Brand communications expert / I help organizations govern and scale their brands.
I advocate for initially capturing your target audience's attention by presenting an aspirational desire, experience, or opportunity that aligns with the customer personas you've developed. This serves as the 'character' and 'conflict' in your marketing narrative. Then, introduce your product or service as the 'plot twist'—the solution to overcome the challenge. This approach essentially employs a 'pull strategy,' where the sale naturally concludes the story.
Once you have created your content, you need to optimize it for your audience and your platform. This involves making sure that your content is relevant, valuable, and accessible to your audience, as well as in line with your brand, goals, and metrics. To do this, use keywords and phrases that your audience searches for and that match your topic and intent. Additionally, use headlines, subheadings, captions, and summaries that capture attention and communicate the main idea of your content. You can also add images, videos, audio, and graphics to enhance your story and appeal to your audience's senses and emotions. Furthermore, use links, buttons, forms, and social media icons to encourage your audience to take action and share your content. Finally, use analytics, feedback, and testing tools to measure and improve your content's performance and impact.
This is well summed up. Your content should be easily discoverable by those seeking the information it contains. Sharing your story or content is all about making it accessible to those who need it. To appear on Page 1 in search engine results (SERPs), ensure that your content can be found through relevant queries. This forms the fundamental principle of online visibility.
Brand communications expert / I help organizations govern and scale their brands.
Always align your content with your brand, goals, and metrics, to maintain brand consistency in voice and style. Craft headlines that serve specific KPIs and include CTAs that tie back to your brand / business objectives. Regularly review analytics to ensure your content is on track to meet its goals. This focused approach is key to building long-term brand authority.,
Incorporating storytelling techniques such as conflict and resolution, a well-defined hero's journey, or even just a relatable metaphor can turn bland content into an engaging narrative. But let's not forget the endgame: optimization. Because what's the point of a great story if it doesn't reach the right audience? I've had some great successes integrating storytelling into various formats—from case studies and whitepapers to podcasts and social media campaigns. It's a versatile tool that, when used right, can amplify your marketing message significantly.
Distribution is also key and often not given enough attention. We see too many brands creating valuable content, posting it to social media once, and calling it a day. This is a waste. The distribution stage is where you should perform a lot of tactical experiments. Test different platforms and when you post. Test copy and images used to promote the content. Put budget behind the posts to reach new audiences. Explore less-obvious platforms for niche targets. See if you can get the content picked up by an industry newsletter. Post meaty excerpts of your content on social instead of teasers and then link to the source in the comments. Try syndicating it on Medium, LinkedIn, and other platforms as appropriate. Get creative!
When Clients ask my Team for podcast, we ask them with simple: why? What’s your goal? That is the main question with great story: why people should listen to me?
Remember one very important thing - every piece of content has to be a story. Every social media post, every banner, flyer and poster, every ad email you send out to an inbox - there has to be a narrative they either form or build. So you can either create what would be an 'anthology', new stories every time that stick to one narrative (Black Mirror) or a constant, long story that every piece of content adds a little bit more to (Friends) Make sure to ask yourself this - what would your audience would resonate more with? For Swiggy and Zomato, it is the former. They've taken an anthological approach, where all their content pieces are unique stories. On the other hand, the best example of the latter is Duolingo. For obvious reasons.
I want to say, storytelling is the heartbeat of Liateam's content strategy. Whether it's articles, e-books, our talk show, or events, we weave narratives that resonate. Stories breathe life into our podcasts, printed materials, campaigns, and presentations. They're not just words; they're the connective tissue that binds us with our audience. Our Content Strategy Document is our roadmap, guiding us to craft diverse content that captivates, educates, and leaves a lasting impact.