What Brand Story Strategy Really Is (And How To Get Started)
/
Brand Story. Despite the fact that it’s the buzz of the marketing world, there’s still quite a lot of confusion around what it actually is, and how you can implement it successfully.
The first thing you should know, is that from the very first moment you started interacting with your customers, you’ve been building brand story. Whether you realised it or not.
It’s time to take control of your brand story.
And to do that, you need to understand what it really is. What it means. Why it’s such a powerful concept. And the elements you need to hone in on to be able to effectively implement Brand Story Strategy for your brand.
We start with a Business Plan but not a Brand Plan.
We’re all familiar with a business plan. Even if you start your business with a simple, one page plan that outlines your goals, you don’t start your business without one.
But most small businesses don’t start out with a Brand Plan.
So, what’s the difference between them?
A business belongs to you – a brand belongs to everyone.
And when we treat our brand as something beyond ourselves, something we want our ideal client to connect with, we start to think about it in a different way. And we seek to build connection.
When you have a BRAND PLAN you can influence brand story.
When you have a brand plan, you can grow your business around connection, build loyalty and create a valuable, saleable asset.
Brand Story Strategy is the compass that will guide you creating a tribe of loyal followers who love everything you do.
And it’s what will help you build Apple, Barbie or Lamborghini level brand recognition for the people that matter to you.
What Brand Story isn’t.
Whatever you might have learned so far about Brand Story, it is not the narrative story of how you started your brand or business.
It isn’t the words you write for the about page on your website, or the anecdotes you tell.
Brand Story is more than this. It’s more than the content you create, more than your social media posts and more than your marketing.
And because it’s more than your story, I see lots of people start in the wrong place when it comes to using Brand Story.
They start with their story.
But if you want to grow a brand with heart, you need more than just storytelling.
Brand Story Strategy isn’t Brand Storytelling
Brand Storytelling is a marketing approach.
Brand Story Strategy is a choice to use brand story as the foundation for all business decisions, brand decisions and marketing decisions.
When you choose to take a Brand Story approach to Brand Strategy, you’re choosing for Brand Story to underpin everything you do.
And this is where it gets really powerful.
When you take a strategic approach to brand story instead of simply using it as a tactical marketing tool that uses storytelling to communicate your brand message, you’ll actually find that the message you’re trying to send to your ideal customer will become easier to create and deliver.
This is because you’re putting brand story at the heart of your strategic choices when it comes to creating connection with your customer.
When all of the foundations of brand story align, you’ll give your brand the edge that allows you to connect with your tribe in a meaningful way.
Brand Story is more than a single marketing tactic.
Brand Story is a strategy.
If you’ve been selling anything (from beauty products to technology and online courses to professional services), from the moment you started interacting with your customers - however it is you started doing that - you’ve been building a brand story.
Brand Story started forming for your customers from that very first point of connection.
Because from that interaction, an impression started forming in your customer about the type of brand you are. What you stand for, what you value and how you fit into their life.
Your brand story is actually the story your customers tell themselves (and others) about your brand.
And they base this story around the things that we say, the experiences we create and the way we help them to change for the better.
But just because our customers are the custodians of our story doesn’t mean we don’t have control over it.
Brand Story Strategy is the way we help our customers tell the right stories.
Brand Story Strategy is a choice to use brand story as the foundation for all business decisions, brand decisions and marketing decisions.
When you choose to take a Brand Story approach, you’re choosing for Brand Story to underpin everything you do.
And this is where it gets really powerful.
When you take a strategic approach to brand story instead of simply using it as a tactical marketing tool that uses storytelling to communicate your brand message, you’ll actually find that the message you’re trying to send to your ideal customer will become easier to create and deliver.
This is because you’re putting brand story at the heart of your strategic choices when it comes to creating connection with your customer.
When all of the foundations of brand story align, you’ll give your brand the edge that allows you to connect with your tribe in a meaningful way.
Why should you use Brand Story Strategy to build your business?
Brand Story Strategy is like the DNA of your brand. It’s the way we help our customers to tell the right stories about our brand.
When it’s executed effectively, it helps your ideal customer not just to buy from you (over and over again) because they feel a connection to your brand, it helps them to become an advocate for your brand by telling others how they too fit into your story.
Brand Story Strategy brings heart to the brand strategy process. It’s the marketing long-game. It helps make connection the centre of your marketing choices which allows you to focus on making sure that your brand purpose is connected with the purpose of those you serve.
By bringing story into the brand strategy phase, you can link your values, vision, mission and points of difference directly with the message you’re trying to send to your customer.
The result is messaging that truly connects with your target market and helps them more easily tell the story of your brand to themselves (because they can see how it fits with their view of the world) and to others (this is brand advocacy).
The Strategy part of Brand Story is important.
When you choose Brand Story Strategy as the compass for building your brand, it will help you to –
Choose which stories to tell
Depending on what you want to be known for and the feeling you want to create for your customer, your strategy will guide you on which stories you should tell.
Easily decide HOW you should tell those stories
It will also let you easily decide HOW you should go about telling those stories. The tone, the marketing tactic, the messaging, are all easier to determine, when you’re implementing from a brand story strategy.
If you’ve been struggling with a marketing message that just isn’t connecting, then Brand Story Strategy is the answer to that.
Connect these stories to your customer
Finally, it will clearly show you how to connect those stories to your customer, so that they can see themselves within your brand story, and decide that they belong.
Be consistent with your brand
It’s hard to build trust and community when we aren’t consistent.
Brand Story Strategy helps us to be consistent in the way you show up everywhere, so you’re reinforcing the story over and over and over again in the minds and hearts of your customers.
And the more you reinforce the story the more powerful it becomes.
How to Build a Brand Story Strategy
Brand Story Strategy is underpinned by six key elements.
I call these the Pillars of Brand Story Strategy.
When you get clarity on these foundational elements, you can put them at the centre of every decision you make in the way your brand shows up.
When you choose to implement Brand Story Strategy, every interaction your customer has with your brand will be more consistent. And you need to be consistent – because every single interaction with your brand is either building or breaking your brand story.
The Six Pillars of Brand Story Strategy
There are six key elements that lay the foundations for using Brand Story Strategy to build a brand with heart. They are your Brand Vision, Brand Mission, Brand Values, Brand Differentiators, The Tribe and Brand Personality.
BRAND VISION
The end game. The reason the brand exists.
BRAND MISSION
The path to achieving the brand vision. What you do. How you want to change people.
BRAND VALUES
What you believe in. What you stand for. What defines the brand.
BRAND DIFFERENTIATORS
What makes you different from your competitors. Why your customers should do business with you instead of them.
THE TRIBE
The people you serve. What they care about and how they see the world.
BRAND PERSONALITY
How the brand speaks and behaves. The brand tone of voice. Brand personality must be connected to brand values.
Once we’re clear on these six elements, you’ll be able to start using Brand Story as a strategy. Because these elements will influence:
BRAND COMMUNICATION
What you say. How you say it. When you say it. Where you say it. And not just in your marketing, but everywhere.
VISUAL IDENTITY
How you look. Visual identity should be underpinned by all other brand story elements to visually tell your brand story.
ACTIONS
Our daily actions within your business are the way you live your brand story. Your actions give your clients stories to tell about you (and this leads to brand advocacy, which is truly brand story strategy in action).
Want a handy Pillars of Brand Story Strategy Guide?
Brand Story Strategy is Brand Strategy with heart
Brand Story Strategy will help you create a breakthrough brand, because it lays the foundations for everything you do in your business.
You can use it to positively influence the experience of your customer.
You can use it to influence your marketing and content decisions including what stories you tell and how you tell them.
You can use it to make decisions about the products and services you’ll offer and how you’ll offer them.
Brand Story is an ACT. It’s something we choose to DO. It’s how we want our brand to BE.
When you make the choice to use Brand Story as a strategy, instead of a tactic, it has the power to cement your brand into the hearts of your customers for the long-haul. You’ll consistently find the right customers, those customers will insert themselves into your story, and go on to tell that story to other people who are just like them, bringing you more of the right customers.
And so, the brand story cycle is set in motion.
When you’ve got the foundations right, Brand Story will always be your most powerful marketing arsenal.
WANT MY HELP TO BUILD YOUR BRAND STORY STRATEGY?
Then you need the Brand Story Strategy Workshop.
Delivered via video tutorials, workbooks and live group coaching calls, this 8-week program will help you close the loop on the things that are holding you back from growing the brand and business you want to build.
