One of the immemorial qualities of being human is that we create meaning through stories. As media theorists like Marshall McLuhan have dedicated their careers to studying, the media in which we express those stories have changed throughout history — and the rate of that change is accelerating each year. Today, new technologies are transforming how we create, share, and consume stories. Those transformations can be jarring. Yet they can also offer opportunities for brands to engage with customers and create striking — and enjoyable — new experiences.
Read on for a few ways that storytelling continues to evolve at the intersection of brand and technological innovation.
Interactive Storytelling
Long batted around as a motif in science fiction, immersive experiences like virtual reality, augmented reality, and gamification have arrived into the mainstream. 360° storytelling offers businesses the opportunity to move audiences through an entire world in which the customer plays the hero of the brand’s story.
Data-Driven Storytelling
The plethora of available rich data about customer behavior and preferences is already transforming the way that brands craft their stories. Marketers that leverage data can connect more deeply yet directly with their audiences through stories personalized to their interests and search habits.
Social Storytelling
Practically all serious brands use social media, in part because social platforms make it easier to share stories and reach audiences than ever before. Social is your opportunity to engage with people with a voice and perspective they can relate to — while also covertly advertising your products and services and engaging with them in real time.
Video Storytelling
Two stats to keep in mind: 244.4 million digital video viewers live in the US, 91% of consumers want to see more online video content from brands (according to 2023 data). Point being, your business should market itself through videos on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Keep those videos on-brand, but don’t be afraid to be engaging and funny, no matter if your video content is 30 minutes or 30 seconds long.
Episodic Storytelling
The rise of streaming platforms like Netflix and Prime has put new, complex pressure on the craft of episodic storytelling in the digital era. Writers and directors have risen to the challenge, creating stories in a serialized format over multiple episodes to such effect that critics are now dubbing the period we’re living in “television’s third golden age.” Hence the parallel rise of brand films, where companies take a cinematic approach to their marketing. (Check out the nearly 40 brand films that Patagonia’s produced.) Brand films are not cheap. But the investment that you’re paying for is impressing your message into your audience’s memory rather than just grabbing their eyeballs.
Brands that embrace new formats and technologies have a better chance of thriving in a digital landscape that seems fated to fundamentally change every business quarter or so. Put the customer at the center of your story, and remember to craft a narrative that goes deeper than merely closing a sale. After all, the best advertising has always been a great story.