Storytelling is a powerful tool. It goes beyond just presenting facts about your brand; it’s about creating a narrative that resonates with your audience, evokes emotions, and fosters a deep connection. Influencers can evoke emotions through storytelling. Authentic stories told through individual content creators help build trust and brand loyalty. This is especially true with younger shoppers, who are more likely to follow and buy from accounts run by influencers, including the 40% of millennials and Gen Zers worldwide who follow influencers. Plus, our Trust in Influencer Marketing report found that more than 50% of all respondents find influencer content more compelling than scripted advertising, making authentic storytelling even more essential.
Tips to incorporate storytelling into influencer content
Follow these tips to maximize the impact of your story-driven content.
Understand what your audience wants and needs
Knowing your audience members’ pain points at various points of their customer journey, as well as their desires, can provide a starting point for your content.
Highlight a relatable challenge that your brand’s product or service addresses or solves in a way that your audience may be experiencing in their own lives.
Create relatable characters
Look for opportunities to use “real” people — either telling their own story or playing a character — with whom the audience can relate to make the story more believable.
When Canadian online grocer Goodfood wanted to promote its one-hour delivery service, it enlisted the help of mid-tier Instagram influencer Marilou Moles. The video post, accompanied by happy, upbeat music, featured Moles as a busy working mom who has forgotten to make a plan for dinner. Captions included, “Is this you? Working so hard you forgot it is dinner time?” something most working moms relate to.
Evoke emotions by sharing compelling visuals and sound
Stories, like movies, can evoke more emotion if strong visuals and music or sound accompany them to lead the viewer’s feelings down a particular path.
You’ll need to determine what emotions you’re aiming to drum up in your audience before you create content. With those goals in mind, you can choose elements that support setting the mood.
Leverage social proof whenever possible
There are few better ways to validate the effectiveness of your brand’s products or services than social proof.
Tap into satisfied customers’ feedback to share actual success stories to boost trust through authentic storytelling.
Lifestyle influencer Devin Cordle shared her story about getting diagnosed with diabetes in this TikTok campaign to promote global healthcare company Sanofi’s “The 1 Pledge Movement.” Offering a personal glimpse into when she was diagnosed and why she was misinformed about her risk, Cordle provided social proof for the campaign through this authentic and heartfelt story.
Showcase your brand’s values
Modern consumers are picky about with whom they spend their money.
Ensuring a brand’s values align with its own is crucial for today’s shoppers, who want to know they’re not giving away their hard-earned money to companies with unscrupulous tactics or who actively work against causes that matter to them.
Include a clear and seamless call to action
What action do you want the audience to take? Download an app, follow the brand on Instagram, sign up for a newsletter? A clear CTA can direct them to do just that. When creating shoppable content, make the experience as seamless as possible for the buyer.
Engage with the audience in the comments
Consumers often want to deepen their connection with a brand, so don’t disappoint them. Good storytelling can lead to substantial engagement, and brands would be remiss not to respond to questions and comments.
Even a simple “We’re so glad to hear this content moved you!” can demonstrate that your brand is paying attention, listening, and nurturing its relationship with consumers.
Use these tips to foster strong and impactful storytelling in your influencer marketing campaigns. With a compelling message, evocative music, compelling visuals, and a relatable and engaging narrative, you’ll quickly recognize the value of storytelling in your campaigns for years to come.
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