 |
Call us on 01733 891 860 (UK) or use this contact form |
 |
|
|
|||
|
 |
Moving communication campaigns into action |
|
|||
|
|
|
The role of story-telling in marketing writing Here is a back issue of Marketing Booster, the email newsletter that Richard Groom writes and sends free every fortnight to subscribers. You can subscribe here or read over 60 back issues using the back issues index page. Recently I took a week's holiday in Spain. The resort I stayed in was still in close-season mode, which was fine as the weather was sunny and I was happy enough just walking along the beaches and in the mountains. I also listened to a lot of music. In particular, I played Johnny Cash's last album over and over. "American IV: The Man Comes Around" is a stunning collection of superb songs, brilliantly performed and recorded. (Stay with me: the marketing bit will be here soon.) One thing that struck me the more I listened to the album is that most of the songs tell a story. And like most good stories, they each have a beginning, a middle and an end. For some, the beginning intrigues the listener, making you eager to find out what's going to happen next. For others, the beginning sets the scene, often a scene that sounds a bit like a situation you are in or have been in at some point. Have you ever tried to write a story as part of your marketing messages? It can be a very effective way of doing things. Look at ads on TV. They often tell a story, even if it's just for 30 seconds: the kitchen floor was dirty, then they bought some cleaner and now it's clean; the family went on holiday and had a great time. Here's one example of how a story approach might work. Let's assume that a legal firm specialising in the publishing sector is creating some new marketing materials. They could write like this: "Frances had run her publishing company for seventeen years. She loved her job - especially meting authors - and couldn't imagine doing anything else. But one thing had always bugged her: she hated spending time on the legal side of things." That's a clear beginning - it sets the scene and will hopefully gain recognition from readers in the same situation. It continues: "In the beginning it was interesting to learn about the legal aspects of publishing contracts. But that soon passed, and drawing up contracts became a real chore. Frances found herself spending less time with authors and more time with boring documents." Then the piece could explain more about what was involved in the legal work - and how tiresome it was - and then move on to how XYZ Legal took over the work. I don't know what you think, but I reckon that sounds a lot more interesting than the 'same old' approach often taken in marketing materials. Aren't we all more interested in people than concepts? Using a story approach also makes it easier for you to do something that you probably don't do enough: write passionately about your organisation. And more importantly, you can write with passion about the things that your customers care about. You can also start to write about feelings. Look at most of the marketing stuff you receive - so much of it is dry and lifeless. But we know that feelings often play a big part in people's purchase decisions. So write about those feelings. What feelings? Well what about the FRUSTRATION of spending more money than necessary. Or the ANGER at wasting time with an outdated bit of technology. Or the JOY of saving money. Or the EXCITEMENT of knowing that new equipment will raise productivity. Writing stories isn't the only way to write marketing materials, but using the approach here and there could help you to have a greater impact. Copyright 2004 Richard Groom |