CHARACTERISTICS OF A GREAT BRAND STORY

LECTURE 02 and 03


Prof. Harsh Desai, Sophia College
INTERACTING WITH A NEW BRAND IS LIKE
MEETING A NEW PERSON
“A good story makes you feel something and is universal. They want to
grasp your values and your commitment to excellence; be inspired and
intrigued. Storytelling is the most powerful way to convey these ideas.”
– Mark Truby, Vice President of Communications, Ford Motor Company
WHAT MAKES A BRAND STORY GREAT?
DANNIJIO
• The brand name is Dannijo, and the brand is Danielle
and Jodie, and consumers have embraced all three.

• They feature customers and advocates in the stories

they tell, but it’s the sisters themselves that are the
beating heart of the company.

• They regularly post inspirational videos such

as #ConversationPieces, casual interviews between
one of the sisters and another influential figure. Each
of their videos tells its own story, and each one is
absolutely true to the brand.

• The sisters launched a popular podcast in 2018 called

‘No Filter with Danielle Snyder’ in which Dani
interviews celebrity friends in music, marketing,
movies, and more. It’s yet another opportunity to chat
and tell stories that resonate with fans of the brand.
What really makes Dannijo’s content stand out is how Danielle and Jodie are almost always
part of the story.You’ll even see the sisters themselves modeling many of their products.
They’re just as much a part of the brand as the products, and when people buy their
accessories, they’re buying the sisters themselves.

Their ecommerce portal features the World of Dannijo blog. With subsections like Style,
Health & Beauty, Motherhood, and Danni & Jo, it’s a one-stop shop for their products,
stories, brand, and adventures.

So what’s the magic ingredient that is making Dannijio work?

AUTHENTICITY
AIRBNB
• Airbnb doesn’t own or manage properties itself. They
simply provide a forum for customers to promote and
book properties, meals, and more. Most companies still
have a product, even if nobody’s buying, but not Airbnb.

• Airbnb knows this, and instead of telling the company’s

story, it gets its customers to tell their stories. This is
so important to Airbnb that they have a whole section
dedicated to “Stories from the Airbnb Community.”
Stories. Front and center.

• This technique works for Airbnb not only because it

helps consumers to build an affiliation with the Airbnb
brand, but because it helps consumers overcome one
of the biggest pain points of using a service like
this: who are the people I will be staying with,
and what will the experience be like? Stories
provide the answers.
Their YouTube channel has over 167,000 subscribers and is frequently updated with new
stories, reviews, and profiles. One such video in 2015 revealed that 550,000 people stayed in
Airbnb properties for New Year’s Eve, in over 20,000 cities. Another just this month invites
you to experience paper marbling in the United Kingdom.

Finally, they recently launched a good old-fashioned print magazine called Airbnbmag that

allows subscribers to “see the world through a local lens.”

Airbnb is literally built on the power of storytelling.

So what is the secret sauce?

CUSTOMERS
GOODLIFE FITNESS
• With over 365 locations across Canada and the
United States, Goodlife Fitness has demonstrated
fantastic growth and staying power since its founding
in 1979. But what worked for customer acquisition in
the past – high pressure, aggressive sales tactics,
coupled with images or videos of impossibly beautiful,
fit, and trim people – doesn’t work anymore.

• In fact, those same sculpted men and women are

enough to keep most of us away from the gym these
days. It’s not the right story.

• A few years back, Goodlife launched their “Live Your

Good Life” campaign. It featured 15 to 30-second
videos, radio, and television spots showcasing the
everyday real heroes in our lives.You may not be a
hero to thousands, but you are a hero to someone.
A year later, Goodlife launched #SexySmartStrong, complete with real people talking about
what makes them feel sexy, smart, and strong. It was people of all shapes, sizes, and
backgrounds telling their stories.

And just a few months ago, they released a series of television commercials showcasing real
Goodlife members sharing their stories or transformation and motivation. The
#ChangeYourStory proved very popular for the fitness chain, and inspired many others to
change their own story, too.

The Goodlife Fitness YouTube channel includes those campaigns, in addition to employee

profiles, recipes, Ask Coach Lav, fitness tips, and more.

So, what motive has Goodlife cracked in bringing people to the gym?
RELATABILITY
MINNETONKA
• Minnetonka has been producing quality, comfortable
footwear since 1946. It’s a “quintessential American brand” –
an ideology the company has lived up to and remained true
to throughout its history, even as the company has gone
international. Today they trade in 50 countries worldwide.

• It’s clear that Minnetonka understands that staying true to its

roots is key to building a brand with timeless appeal. Sure,
products should move with the times, but wherever possible,
what made a brand great – what attracted customers to it in
the first place – is the foundation of the brand, and should
stay firmly in place.

• VFor Minnetonka, that means being a family brand which

consumers can trust to supply them with products that look
good, are comfortable, and will last. It’s about providing
quality products that are affordable and accessible to
everyone, products that transcend class and
generations. Cameron Diaz might wear them, but so do your
parents, your neighbours, and your children.
It starts with the company “history,” which is presented as a short timeline and ends with an
inspirational movie that delves into the brand’s beliefs and its relationship with the secret of its
success – the customers.

It continues with a short article that illustrates a key component of the brand: the quality of the
products and materials used to make them.

And no savvy digital marketing campaign would be complete without a healthy dose of user-
generated content. The #MyMinnetonka gallery allows customers to upload and share how they
make Minnetonka’s styles their own. Real people, real stories.

The stories continue onto Minnetonka’s blog, where stories are organised under Culture, DIY,
Style, and Heritage with a liberal sprinkling of everyday tales of adventure in which Minnetonka
shoes have a starring role.

That’s a lesson in dynamic storytelling from start to finish.

PRODUCT TRUTH
WARBY PARKER
• The Warby Parker catalog may only include two
main categories – eyeglasses and sunglasses –
but they’ve become an ecommerce success in
the nine years since they debuted because of the
stories they tell.

• Their “How Warby Parker glasses are made”

page offers a behind-the-scenes peek at a pair of
glasses from design through manufacturing,
including background on supplies and suppliers.

• A socially-conscious business? For every pair of

Warby Parker glasses sold, they give a pair to
someone in need via charitable partners around
the globe. To date, they’ve given away 4 million
pairs.
Their self-proclaimed lofty objective? “To offer designer eyewear at a revolutionary price,
while leading the way for socially-conscious businesses.” That’s practically a story unto itself.
And they share plenty of other stories that lay bare exactly how they’re doing it.

“Our customers, employees, community and environment are our stakeholders. We

consider them in every decision that we make.” ~Warby Parker

The main material? Plant-based cellulose acetate. The personal touch? Every pair is
assembled and polished by hand.
FEEL GOOD
BURT’S BEES
• Burt’s Bees sells a huge range of natural
bodycare products (350 at last count, but if
nothing else, you’re probably  familiar with their
Beeswax Lip Balm).

• Yet, despite the company’s success, the Burt’s

Bees philosophy has remained exactly the same:
“What you put on your body should be made
from the best nature has to offer.”

• Taglines on their site include “A full line of

natural cosmetics that work because of how
they’re made, not in spite of it” and “We
harness the wisdom, power, and beauty of
nature, to bring out yours”.
Its “history” is told through a stunning timeline that’s heavy on the pictures and light on
words. The “purpose” page explains the brand’s guiding principles (its triple bottom line:
people, profit, planet). It shows how Burt’s has achieved Carbon Neutral Certification, and
enlightens customers as to how their packaging is as sustainable as the products it contains.

The stories the company tells seep through onto social media, in particular YouTube. It uses
video to educate consumers not only about the Burt’s Bees brand, but also about one of
the key ingredients in the brand’s success: the bees.

Their 2018 sustainability report shows the good, the bad, and the ugly on their way to their
2020 goals. The company is proud of the ingredients it uses and the products it makes, and it
shows. Burt’s uses storytelling as a mechanism to help customers buy into the company’s
philosophy: that we should treat our skin, and the world we live in, with care.
TRANSPARENCY
NIKE
• Nike has understood and has been leveraging the
power of great storytelling longer than most
people have been online. In 1999, the brand
released a one-minute “commercial” that
commemorated the career of Michael Jordan.

• Storytelling sells. Storytelling resonates. Storytelling

connects. 

This ethos has held up, and is arguably what makes
Nike one of the greatest brand storytellers of our
time. Nearly everything Nike does is accompanied
by a backstory, and their website is rife with them.

• Windrunner Jackets

• Shoes for All

New product launches are typically a story rather than a press release. They come with
plenty of backstory, quotes, and the anchor philosophy behind the shoe.

And yet Nike doesn’t just tell its own stories: the company is pretty passionate about giving
others a voice, as well.

It’s safe to say that the Nike marketing strategy is really killing it with brand-driven

storytelling, and while it would be fair to argue that it’s easy for the company – that it’s the
biggest brand discussed in this class by far – that doesn’t mean we can’t learn from the
stories it tells and how they’re presented.

So, What’s making Nike tick?

INDIVIDUAL VOICE
AUTHENTICITY
CUSTOMERS
PRODUCT TRUTH
FEEL GOOD
INDIVIDUAL VOICE
TRANSPARENCY
RELATABILITY
“Tell the truth but make it fascinating”

–David Bhai Ogilvy

“Keep it short, everyone can benefit”
–Not what she said, but someone must have.
BUSINESS
STORYTELLING
CREATES ALIGNMENT
BETWEEN YOUR
BUSINESS, YOUR
CUSTOMERS AND
YOUR PROSPECTS
20 HOURS

The average amount an adult spends per week with digital media.
IN JUST ONE MINUTE

1,388 blog posts are published.

Facebook users share 2.5 million pieces of content.

YouTube users upload 72 hours of new video content.

Twitter users tweet nearly 300,000 times.

Instagram users post nearly 220,000 new photos.

YOUR GOAL IS TO
MAKE A HUMAN
CONNECTION
Resonate with people, people that need your help and guidance
STORIES WILL HELP
YOUR PROSPECTS
MAKE SENSE OF
DECISIONS THEY
ARE ABOUT TO MAKE
DON’T BLEND IN, STAND OUT

Story is not your history

Story is the answer to why you zig, when the

world goes zag

Your story is your statement of purpose for

existence

Steve Jobs, “Square Pegs in Round Holes”

STORIES ARE HOW
AUDIENCES
REMEMBER
WHAT ARE THE STEPS IN CREATING A
STORY?
FIRST:

THE GOLDEN CIRCLE
SECOND:
UNDERSTAND THE
NEEDS AND WANTS
OF YOUR
CUSTOMER
THIRD: 

START WITH BUYER
PERSONA
FOURTH: POINT OF VIEW
FIRST PERSON POV

The character is yourself.

It’s more confessional.

Builds authority.

Use when there is a known person, an author, behind the content.

SECOND PERSON POV

The character is your audience.

When using “you” language, you need to really understand your buyer personas.

Tell the story in a way that shows empathy.

THIRD PERSON POV

The character is your audience.

When using “you” language, you need to really understand your buyer personas.

Tell the story in a way that shows empathy.

CONSISTENCY
IS KEY
FIFTH: CONFLICT RESOLUTION

THE CONFLICT IS THE

LESSON IN HOW THE
CHARACTER
TRANSFORMS
THROUGH
CHALLENGE.
STORY WITHOUT
CONFLICT?
THE CONFLICT SHOULD RESONATE WITH

Your prospect’s problems.

Your prospect’s needs.

Your prospect’s buyer’s journey stage.

SIXTH: THE BUYER’S JOURNEY
SEVENTH STEP: RESOLUTION
WRAP THE STORY BUT ALSO GIVE CTA!
Teapot Example

I’M A LITTLE TEAPOT

SHORT AND STOUT
HERE IS MY HANDLE,
HERE IS MY SPOUT.
WHEN I GET ALL
STEAMED UP I JUST
SHOUT. TIP ME OVER
AND POUR ME OUT.
Character?

I’M A LITTLE
TEAPOT SHORT AND
STOUT HERE IS MY
HANDLE, HERE IS MY
SPOUT. WHEN I GET ALL
STEAMED UP I JUST
SHOUT. TIP ME OVER
AND POUR ME OUT.
Conflict?

I’M A LITTLE TEAPOT

SHORT AND STOUT
HERE IS MY HANDLE,
HERE IS MY SPOUT.
WHEN I GET ALL
STEAMED UP I JUST
SHOUT. TIP ME OVER
AND POUR ME OUT.
Resolution

I’M A LITTLE TEAPOT

SHORT AND STOUT
HERE IS MY HANDLE,
HERE IS MY SPOUT.
WHEN I GET ALL
STEAMED UP I JUST
SHOUT. TIP ME OVER
AND POUR ME OUT.
BETTER EXAMPLE