How To Connect With Your Audience Through Effective Storytelling

In today’s world of business, traditional marketing tactics simply aren’t enough. For your company to truly stand out among the rest, you need to connect with your target audience in a more compelling and meaningful way. A recent survey in the USA found that 65% of consumers said that they are more likely to do repeat business with a brand that they managed to form an emotional connection with. Similarly, the Harvard Business Review found that most customers find an emotional bond with a business extremely valuable. As a brand owner, you might be curious as to how you can go about establishing such an important connection with your target market. Luckily, the team at Brandability has compiled a list of the top ways in which you can form a lasting emotional connection with your customers. Think about the story behind your brand Great visuals and catchy copy are just not enough when it comes to ensuring clients feel like they have a connection with your company. Far superior to this is the value of a great story. People want to hear what your business is about and why they should care about it. If your story resonates with them, you’re already one step closer to winning their hearts and minds than your competitors who do not have such a unique story. Storytelling is paramount as a good business story is 22 times more likely to be remembered by customers than plain old facts or statistics. Further to this, if clients feel like your story connects with them, they are more inclined to support your company and to tell their friends about your company. Here are a few pointers to help you develop your company’s story:

• Your branding should use "real" words and a vocabulary that resonates with your consumers. For example, don't use trendy slang if your core customer base is retirees; use intelligent, vivacious words instead. Use the demographic of your target audience and the ethos of your brand's story to guide your language choice.
• Be fearless with your mission statement. Whatever your brand story is, be sure its ethos shines through everything you do. Being passionate and authentic to that story will help build strong and lasting connections with people who align with that same mission.
• Create something exciting. Keep your customers engaged and excited about what your brand is doing, and create an experience around the unique brand you've created.

Use your story as a springboard for branded products Once you have figured out what your business story is, it's time to start repeating it and getting it in front of your clients’ eyes. One of the most successful ways in which you can communicate your story to your audience is by using branded merchandise and products. A survey found that 85% of consumers are likely to do business with a company that gave them a promotional product branded in such a way that it communicates something of the company’s ethos to them. Thus, it is imperative that the products need to be branded with elements that remind clients of your company’s narrative. This can be done either visually through certain elements of your logo that might be related to your story or it can be something like a slogan or sentence that comes directly from it. Even the repetition of a certain word can be an effective way to ensure your brand’s story is communicated to clients. A good idea is to use your friends or co-workers as a focus group to try and identify which elements of your brand’s story really sparks emotion from them. You can also get creative with QR codes. In the UK, a study found that nearly 40% of all consumers scan QR codes at least once a week, making them popular and effective. The code can link back to a specific page on your website which details your brand’s story to the full extent. Make sure the products you choose match your brand’s story What kind of products should you look at using for this purpose? Well, that really depends on the contents of your business story. For instance, if your brand was created with the intention of being a sustainable company, it would make more sense for you to make use of branded products made from recycled materials. If your company’s look and feel were inspired by the fact that your company was created to be a very vibey, modern business, it would make sense to choose branded merchandise like fashionable shirts or caps to market it. Inviting your customers to feel like they're part of your brand and "in the club" will create a deep, emotional bond that surpasses any rational thought and keeps them coming back for more. Where to buy branded products At Brandability, we offer a wide range of products that can all be branded with your company’s identity and story elements. No matter what you are looking for, we are bound to have options that suit your needs. Visit our website today and chat with our branding experts who can assist you in making sure your promotional products effectively communicate your story to your target audience. Click here.