In this blog series, I will tell you exactly how to apply a storytelling structure to your brand message, to your business.
When you understand the structure of a story, how it is used to compel a human brain just like how screenwriters use it in movies, your brand message will be very powerful.
In step (4), we discussed every guide must be in a position to provide a plan for the hero, the purpose of which is to create a mental path which the hero can visualise in their head. It is only until the hero knows there is a plan lays before them, that they can follow, one-step at a time, that they have the confidence to take on the challenge.
If you missed that article and would like to read it, you can find it here.
Alternatively if you would like to read the blog series from the start, you can find it here.
In this fifth article of the blog series, we will discuss how your brand should call your customers to action and maximise your marketing effectiveness.
Hero don’t take action unless challenged to do so.
In stories, the hero rarely take action on its own unless they are challenged to do so. Imagine if Batman just suddenly wants to go out and start fighting thugs, no one would buy it and the story strength will not be strong. The reason is simple, human beings do not make decisions unless someone challenges them to do so.
That’s right, we are all lazy by nature! Our brain are hardwired to make us so.
In Ironman 1, Tony Stark was challenged to action when he was captured by terrorists who threatened to kill him unless he helps them assemble a missile.
In Batman Begins, Bruce Wayne was thrown into action when Carmine Falcone (Gotham city mafia boss) said no one can stop him from shipping drugs into the city.
In Captain America: The First Avenger, Steve Rogers was challenged into action when his fellow American soldiers said he should just stay in the city as a celebrity because he cannot fight.
How to call the hero to action?
Indeed, the hero is challenged over and over again before they take up the final big challenge and along the journey she is likely going to encounter other problems.
If you ask her to take on the big journey right at the start, she is likely going to hesitate, so instead the guide gives her some guidance first.
Its like giving a person a challenge to cross a rainforest, before she begins the journey she needs to a guide to educate her about the danger she’ll likely going to encounter, places where she can find food or how she could use the nature to build temporary shelters.
In essence, the guide is ‘qualifying’ the hero until she is ready to take on the big final challenge, giving them quick ‘fixes’ along the way.
What does that mean for your business?
In your brand message then, we should consider 2 types of Call-To-Action (CTA):
Direct CTA - directly ask for a sale
Indirect (or transitional) CTA - ask for an interest to the subject
Whilst the purpose of a direct CTA is obvious, a key mistake many businesses make is they don’t make it obvious and appear often in their marketing collateral.
You don’t ask, you don’t get
Customers should never have difficulty (or being too far away) when they decide to make a purchase. Customers are put off when they find it difficult to engage, it delays the purchase. Take the Spotify website for example, the CTA is very obvious.
Of course, not all customers are ready to buy at the onset, they want to get to know you first and understand how you have helped other people solve similar problems, they may also want to find out more. So instead of asking them to buy we ask them to leave their contacts (transitional CTA) in exchange for something they’ll find valuable like an e-book, free course, a webinar or a trial. A transitional CTA has multiple purposes:
It educates your potential customers, who’d shown interest to what you sell
It earns trust in the process
It collects email addresses, creating reciprocity
It helps the company to position themselves as the guide, building authority
It offers something of value for free
Now you can use a email (or any other platforms) nurturing campaign to educate, qualify your customers.
Your Action Today
What are your direct CTA and indirect CTA for your customers?
Are your CTAs obvious and appear often in your website?
What information would your customers find valuable which you use in exchange for an email address?
This is a blog series on ‘Step-By-Step Guide To Using Storytelling To Communicate Your Brand Message’, stay tuned for the next one.
Soft Skills Academy is a communication-based consultancy, we can help you clarify your brand message using the power of storytelling so you can attract more customers and grow your company much faster.
To get you started, download our PDF on ‘How To Stop Wasting Money On Marketing’.
If you think you will benefit from one-on-one coaching with Sam, visit:
http://www.softskillsacademy-hk.com or email us at info@softskillsacademy-hk.com