What?s the Story?

Story telling in advertising is about building worlds, not just ads. It?s imperative to weave a web in order to connect every good story?s individual pieces into a cohesive, immersive experience

Gaston Legorburu

Once upon a time, there was a story. That story was read to a child before bed, sent through an email, told through a movie or spoken over the phone. It?s no surprise that stories are all around us and are a meaningful, critical part of our lives.

However, it can be a struggle to create stories in the digital space. Next-generation storytelling has evolved. Today, ?storyscaping? takes the foundation of the tradition of storytelling to the next level by focusing on the experiences, patterns and structures behind them. But storyscaping isn?t just a philosophy? it?s an approach. We are the authors of story experiences, and by leveraging stories as catalysts, we can ultimately drive and shape consumer behaviors.

The Same Story

The definition of storytelling has remained the same for centuries -the sharing of events with words, images, sounds and experiences, sometimes with improvisation or embellishment. Even in its earliest definitions, ?experience? has always been a part of the description. While the words and the pictures are what make up a physical aspect of a story, in reality it?s a bigger idea?and always has been.

But regardless of the story being told, it?s often the same story?one that connects on an emotional level with a plot, characters and a narrative point of view, just as songs always have a chorus and a melody. Stories are patterns we use to make sense of the world. And these patterns help us make connections with each other and develop a common understanding.

There?s a real discipline and craft around storytelling, which often starts with the seven basic plots: comedy, tragedy, overcoming the monster, the voyage and return, the quest, rags to riches and rebirth. But if you think about storytelling today, part of the storytelling solution involves making decisions about what plot type will best serve the medium. For example, ?overcoming the monster? or ?the quest? may be best served in a video game while the ?tragedy? role may have a social element to it.

It?s All In The Mind

Stories are hard-wired into the human brain. Because of this, stories can create a bond and then drive the behaviours we want. We can use stories to convince consumers to purchase things they weren?t previously thinking about buying, and then tell their friends to buy them too. Stories can fill that role, using emotions as the pivot point to do so.

But more often, we are the creators of the story. And it?s crucial to constantly ask yourself: What is the purpose-driven story for this brand and how should it best manifest itself?

The Five New Experience Dimensions

Consumers already have patterns of behaviour, and that?s not something we should try to change. The smartest companies recognise this and look for the missing pieces that consumers don?t yet have?and may not even know they?re missing. The new story experiences should be based on that.

To create a storyscape, you need to consider five new experience dimensions:

* Understand the experience space

The experience space is that vast space between the brand and consumer?it?s what ultimately connects them to each other whether that?s word of mouth, a viral video or a call center.

All too often, storytelling in advertising is just story yelling?brands are just trying to break through. But those brands are missing a critical lesson that the experience space can teach them: Consumers will learn much more from experiences than they will from a story.

It?s the difference between watching a story and being immersed in that story. It?s the strength of engagement through interaction. The story becomes much more powerful if done right, and once you recognise that, you can build worlds, not just ads.

The experience space is not about today?s ?new and improved? app, website or company. Next week, everything will be new once again. But the story, when done right, will always remain the same. At the end of the day, brands shouldn?t have a digital strategy and a traditional strategy or any other strategy contingency. There?s just one plan, one experience?a communication strategy?that can transcend any campaign.

* Find an ?organising idea,? not just a big idea

Today, real is virtual and online is offline. The consumer sees no distinction and the lines are merging and blurring. While this can sound confusing,

it?s really an opportunity to give brands and businesses a framework for an approach for how we arrive at a solution?one that takes a philosophy and develops an approach to drive it in a real way.

An organizing idea transcends a campaign and offers consistency. As the experiences we create today become more and more complex, the story experience we provide should become proportionately simple. This will allow for a message that is truly purpose driven, one that doesn?t need to be diluted to fit into the constraints of social media, in-store advertising, e-commerce or mobile experiences.

When you have a great organising idea, everything falls into place, making it easy to make sense of the storyscape you?ve created.

* Think outside the storyline

It?s impossible to design a workable linear experience anymore. Today, consumers can drop into any portion of a brand?s experience at any time or level of engagement, so it can?t be scripted from point A to point Z.

Harry Potter is an example of a great non-linear brand experience that is working. It has been incredibly successful at building worlds, not just ads. This billion-dollar franchise has created an immersive environment that consists of books, movies, merchandise and games?even a theme park. Because Harry Potter uses a well-thought-out storyscape, it doesn?t matter where a consumer enters the brand; it?s still that core story. And no matter the level of immersion, whether it?s bite- or super-size, the consumer will always experience the brand as it was meant to be experienced, over an entire spectrum of engagement possibilities.

* Apply ?systems thinking? to connect the story

Systems thinking has the ability to help us understand how an individual will solve the problem using a framework?or a foundation?to arrive at the best possible solution.

When a construction company builds a home, a school or a retail store, the foundation is arguably the most crucial part?and the same applies to storyscapes. Without a strong foundation, a story?s architecture has nothing solid to stand on. Storyscapes take the foundational concept of storytelling to the next level.

Another way to think about good systems thinking is a spider?s web. It?s imperative to weave a web in order to connect every good story?s individual pieces into a cohesive, immersive experience.

* Never use a period, always a comma

Remember to close the loop. With a storyscape experience, everything?s connected.

There should be no loose threads, no dead ends and no pieces that don?t fit the puzzle. If consumers begin their experience with a brand on Facebook or on a website or via a digital display, it should always lead back into the experience as a whole. By thinking in a circular, cyclical way, the consumer will become ?lost? in a brand?s story and experience so much more than words and images.

Conclusion

We have the opportunity to be the new storytellers?the new storyscapers?of our products and services, which can propel brands into another dimension. Storyscaping is an evolution, not a revolution. Instead of thinking in entirely new ways, by using the familiar patterns and emotions of stories, we can truly embrace and appreciate today?s craft of marketing, advertising and storytelling.

The bottom line is that storyscaping will solve any business or brand need, and it will do so by building on the foundations of storytelling to develop an approach that will create an experience that will appeal to its consumers.

Storyscaping allows businesses and brands to turn a philosophy into a plan?to take the resources they have and focus their energy on the right choices for a connected consumer experience.

The writer is worldwide chief creative officer, SapientNitro