How to capitalize on your story in your ads
For many companies. standing out amongst the masses has long been challenging when vying for the attention of customers. There are so many ad messages to compete with, that finding a way for your message to resonate, becomes a daunting task. If you do manage to make that connection, how do you then cause your audience to act? It’s well and truly become quite the conundrum.
Curiously, most companies have the answer at hand. It’s often their very own story. It just needs to be told in a way that reaches consumers in a way they can connect with it. Now more than ever, consumers are looking for those companies that have a certain uniqueness to them. People want to support local businesses and especially ones that have strong roots in their communities. Connecting with those people through your personal history and story is one of the easiest ways to make that happen and it reinforces that you have staying power in the community.
Storytelling sets you apart from other companies that are focused on the hard sell. Advertising is not always about pushing a product or a service. You can build that into your story and cause people to discover it and connect with it in a way that is more meaningful to them as a consumer.
Targeting Customers
When you look at targeting, think about what stops you as you scroll through endless posts and ads. What catches your eye? Determining that is a critical step. You want to have a compelling image that catches the eye of your customer and stops them from passing you up and make them “click” with you.
To do this, you need to know what kind of content your clients engage with, and what emotions you want to tap into. You need to know what your brand is all about and what sets it apart from other companies. Use that information to develop your story in a way that makes you memorable to people.
Content is key and can be built upon for the long term. Think of it as making an investment. It can serve you well in the end and becomes more valuable to your brand as you build and add to it. Each story you tell builds of the last and so on and so on. People will view you as the go-to source which further strengthens you.
Keeping Things Real
Keep your message and images relevant to who you are. People can sense when they are being fed a line so stay true to your message and how you honestly want to be perceived. To hit that home, it’s important to use photography and video that helps convey who you are and what you offer. You don’t always have to utilize a professional photographer for this, but you will for the important pieces that bring home your message. That said, take advantage of any old creative you have. It comes in handy when you need customers to visualize where you have come from as a business and how you have grown.
Sharing Your Story
Once you’ve got your story established, you need to start thinking of how to get out in front of the right audience. The key to this is knowing where your audience is and putting your message in the right place at the right time for them.
Here are a few ways to effectively share your story:
Traditional media, such as print and TV are still viable options and should not be discounted.
Video sites, like YouTube can help immeasurably and can be shared to other platforms
Social media sites, such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest can be very useful
And don’t forget about personal interaction. With all of the changes society has been going through lately, this is still a great way to get personal and get your message out there.
The steps mentioned here can go a long way to helping you bring together storytelling and advertising. You will be surprised how knowledge of your business will aid in building a very loyal customer while building your brand at the same time.