Branding and Marketing Assignment

Running Head: BRANDING 1
Branding
Institution
Lecturer
Student
Course
Date

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Introduction
In recent times, brand storytelling has emerged as one way the companies and businesses are
making their presence known to their potential customers (Harad 2013). It is a complex way of
introducing your business or creating the connection with the customers. Brand storytelling
serves numerous purposes. It is understandable that simple ordinary marketing techniques based
on the "me too" approaches are no longer working these days. The company needs to create the
connection with its customers. There is also the need to create the connection between your
brand and the customers and this is the best done through an effective brand storytelling.
The world’s popular brands have a story behind their success. The likes of Coca-Cola, Google,
KFC and Apple among others have a specific story behind their rise. Their founders have a story
behind the business idea that led to the inception of the greater businesses we see today. Clients
tend to associate with business brands that have a sense of origin, the ones with the brilliant ideas
and circumstances that led to their rise to the current market positions. The inspiring story of the
Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) and its creation by Harland Sanders provides the motivation and
the desire of the association with the food outlet firm (KFC History n.d.). From the age of 13
years, Harland Sanders left his family home to venture into many unsuccessful businesses in his
lifetime but eventually managed to bring the story of KFC into a reality.
Brand storytelling should serve a purpose. It should bring out the “human” side of the business to
the customers. It should also provide that link of the business success and the journey through
the development period (White 2009). Therefore, for a company or a business, brand storytelling
should not be just a story about the company, creation of the selling statements or heavy
marketing taglines and mottos that do not outline the connection between the services that a firm
offers and the customer expectations.

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Understanding Brand Storytelling
Marketing has taken a new twist in the contemporary world. There have emerged a large number
of business ventures and the stiff competition is making it quite a challenge for the new products
to break through in the complicated markets (Herskovitz & Crystal 2010). While some firms
have genuinely failed even after trying the best marketing techniques and pumping in a lot of
funds on advertisements; some have only failed due to the lack of creating the connection
between them and their customers. This lack of connectivity raises the question of the brand
storytelling. Many businesses have failed to bring out “our story” part of their ventures; to make
potential customers understand and want to associate with them. In this regard, it is very
fundamental for the business to understand the concept of brand storytelling.
It is crucial to first seek to understand the whole concept of the brand storytelling. Now, what is
brand storytelling? What does it entail and how important is it? These are the primary questions
the management needs to understand. In defining the brand storytelling, du Plessis (2015), states
that brand storytelling is an evolving process involving the continuous narration of the business
brand through compilation, publishing and the sharing of the important content about the brand
through the various media, including the electronic media such as social media. According to
Singh and Sonnenburg (2012), social media has become a crucial part of the branding.
Through this process, the business creates the customer experience through their brand story, a
technique that raises connection between the two parties. In creating a brand, a business should
understand some important components of the brand storytelling. This involves the origin, why
your company came to exist; what has motivated you to wake up every day to come work and
make your business a reality and giving your customers (audience), the inner information of your
business. This inevitably creates the much needed connection.

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For the business to employ an effective brand storytelling strategy, they need to have a perfect
way of coming about their approach to their story. Brand storytelling has become an important
aspect of marketing in the contemporary world. It has been the foundation of most successful
brands in the world (Pulizzi & Barrett 2009). But before executing it, the business should
understand some of the crucial components and characteristics that make up this marketing
practice. These include the origin of the firm, the motivation behind the business formation and
the relationships with the audience.
The origin as a component of the brand storytelling brings the original identity of the firm. The
storytelling should revolve around the inspiring stories behind the formation of the business. For
instance, everyone understands the story of Harland Sanders and the inception of the KFC. While
not everyone would have Harland's story that led to a business; creativity and connection are
important. A business origin serves a very important role in bringing out the identity and this has
been common in Coca-Cola, Apple and many more.
Then secondly, the motivation behind the formation of the business is another major component.
In the storytelling, your audience should understand the reasons behind the formation of the
business, the motivation behind waking up in the morning to come and work. Some creative
stories talk about their desire to come and serve their audiences as the inspiration behind the
continue efforts (Chiu, Hsieh & Kuo 2012).
Lastly, the brand storytelling should enhance relationships. There should be a close connection
between the audience and the firm. This is done when the business reveals the important content
of the firm to the customers. It is an inner revealing process that enhances the connection and
association with the customers, through the brand storytelling.

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Many organizations that make use of better brand storytelling marketing technique have
benefited greatly from this practice. Enhancing the storytelling strategy has emerged as a very
effective way of drawing our customers’ attention in many ways (Woodside & Miller 2008). The
brand storytelling benefits the business in three major ways: capturing of the customers'
attention, distinguishing the brand from the competitors and establishing the brand loyalty.
Effective storytelling as a form of marketing strategy serves a very important role in capturing
the attention of the audience. A well-formulated story will create memories in the minds of the
customers. Several studied have talked about the specific parts of the brain being activated as a
result of storytelling. However, the ability of the story to capture their audience depends on the
perfect narration by the storyteller. The ultimate results of a well-formulated brand story are the
customers establishing networks with the business.
The second importance of the brand storytelling is that it distinguishes the brand from the
competitors. Competition makes business tougher but it enhances quality through provision of
better services. In addition, competition calls for the shrewd marketing strategies and the firms
that prioritize creativity first benefit the most. Brand storytelling distinguishes a brand from those
of the competitors by bringing out a unique identity especially in the industry flooded with
similar products (Boatwright et al. 2009). Standing out is embedded in the unique brand identity
and the unique brand identity is enhanced by effective storytelling.
Lastly, storytelling enhances the customer loyalty and the association with your products. When
the customers are continuously impressed and touched by what your story entails, then they
become more attached to your brand and establish connections (Barker & Gower 2010). Through
established connections, the customers will ultimately develop a strong loyalty to your brand.

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The significance of storytelling for the successful branding process depends on the appropriate
techniques used. The brand storytelling process should be undertaken in consideration of various
factors including the media and the prevailing market trends. Since the practice is an emerging
area in the marketing context, there is a high likelihood that most organizations are going to
undertake the storytelling process, but only the successful techniques will emerge top.
The organizations should focus on the consumer needs and evoke their emotions. The story
should address the role of the organization in fulfilling the customer needs. Creating a story that
evokes emotions among the customers is a good starting point for the business (Woodside 2010).
Then the customers should be led to understand in what ways the products or the services from
the story will fulfil their expectations.
Secondly, the business should understand the business trends and make use of various media.
The ever-changing trends are crucial in determining the course of the business. In devising an
effective brand storytelling strategy, then trends should matter. These include the cultural aspects
of the business and the technological trends. The contemporary world is changing rapidly and
now the amounts of media options for the business have also increased. It is, therefore,
appropriate for the firms to make use of all the media including the social media in presenting
their story for a wider reach (Rogers 2013). Sticking to traditional methods such as the print
media and the company profiles, brochures and flyers are now outdated.
Lastly, in the storytelling process, the business should stick to the basic storyline structure and
bring out the brand identity and personality. The story should have the beginning, the middle part
with the climax and the conclusion (Hermansson 2008). The storyline should also bring out the
company’s values and allow the audience to learn more about the brand.

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Numerous brands have opted for storytelling as part of their greatest marketing strategy. The
Coca-Cola Company has the reputation of the firm with the best marketing techniques. The
company initially started by John Pemberton as a patent medicine was bought by Asa Griggs
Candler and who transformed it into world’s leading beverage manufacturer and seller through a
series of effective marketing strategies. The company uses storytelling to the best of their
capabilities. Coca-Cola’s brand story dates back to its inception, their longevity and the ability to
create situations. The company has established incredible brand identity and, being a non-
alcoholic beverage manufacture, it invented more healthy drink brands such as the minute maid
after customers' growing interest in the healthy drinks (du Plessis 2015). Their brand storytelling
is well scribed on all the known global media across the world.
Conclusion
Generally, branding is the process that requires effective strategies. Brand storytelling has
emerged as the best way of marketing the brand identity and creating the connection between the
company and the customers. The storytelling requires a variety of techniques. The business
should consider important aspects such as the media, the prevailing trends, customers’ needs and
the brand value among others (Dahlen, Lange & Smith 2010). These should be combined with an
effective storyline that brings out the inner circle of the brand to the customers.
Considering all the above-discussed concepts, it has now emerged that brand storytelling is now
an inevitable practice for most business ventures. Storytelling in the world of business
competition and product alternatives would enhance the brand identity and the brand loyalty
which are the two biggest weapons a brand can possess in the competitive market. Brand
storytelling, is, therefore, an integral part of the business brand in the contemporary world.

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References
Barker, RT & Gower, K 2010, 'Strategic application of storytelling in organizations toward
effective communication in a diverse world', Journal of Business Communication of Business
Communication, vol 47, no. 3, pp. 295-312.
Boatwright, P, Cagan, J, Kapur, D & Saltiel, A. 2009, 'A step-by-step process to build valued
brands', Journal of Product and Brand Management, vol 18, no. 1, pp. 38-49.
Chiu, HC, Hsieh, YC & Kuo, YC 2012, 'How to align your brand stories with your products',
Journal of Retailing, vol 88, no. 2, pp. 262-275.
Dahlen, M, Lange, F & Smith, T 2010, Marketing Communications: A brand narrative
approach, Wiley, West Sussex, UK.
du Plessis, C 2015, 'Brand Storytelling: The Case of Coca-Cola's', Communitas, pp. 84-103.
Harad, KC 2013, 'Content marketing strategies to educate and entertain', Journal of Financial
Planning, pp. 18-20.
Hermansson, E 2008, 'How does a company communicate through storytelling? ', Unpublished
dissertation. International Business and Economics Program.
Herskovitz, S & Crystal, M 2010, 'The essential brand persona: storytelling and branding',
Journal of Business Strategy, vol 31, no. 3, pp. 21-28.
KFC History n.d., 'KFC Globally'. Available at: http://www.kfc.com.kh/en/about-us/kfc-history/
(Accessed 26 Nov 2017).
Pulizzi, J & Barrett, N 2009, Get content get customers: Turn prospects into buyers with content
marketing, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Rogers, R 2013, Digital methods, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA.

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Singh, S & Sonnenburg, S 2012, ' Brand performances in social media', Journal of Interactive
Marketing, pp. 189-197.
White, M 2009, A Short Course in International Marketing Blunders: Mistakes Made by
Companies that Should Have Known Better, World Trade Press.
Woodside, AG 2010, 'Brand-consumer storytelling theory and research: Introduction to a
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