7 storytelling techniques every marketer should know

You could have the best product in your industry.

And still lose to a crap one with a better story.

Here's a challenge for you...

Scroll through your feed right now, and count how many ads make you feel something vs how many you scroll straight past without even registering them.

Bet you scrolled past around 70% of them?

That, my friend, is storytelling doing its job, or completely missing.

Here are 7 ways to make sure that's never you:

1️⃣ Problem, Solution, Proof

Show the pain, show the fix, show it worked.

Example: Broken hair, then the fix, then the before and after everyone screenshots.
Top tip: Shoot both photos in the same lighting, same angle. If they don't match, people clock it as staged instantly.

2️⃣ The Origin Story

Why you built this in the first place.

Example: "I couldn't find a bra that fit right, so I made one."
Top tip: Say it to camera instead of typing it out. Hits different coming from a person instead of a caption.

3️⃣ Before/After

Let the transformation do the talking.

Example: 1 photo of before and after, pretty simple hey.
Top tip: Slap a timestamp in the corner. First thing people check when they're deciding if it's staged.

4️⃣ Social Proof as Narrative

Let the customer tell it; that's what buys more people in.

Example: A review, reposted as the ad itself.
Top tip: Pick the one with a weirdly specific detail, instead of the "obsessed!! 10/10" one. 

5️⃣ Us vs. Them

Position against the old, boring way of doing things.

Example: "Everyone else sells water. We sell rebellion."
Top tip: Pick an enemy, e.g. an old habit or category norm. Avoid naming a competitor outright (even if you want to 🤣)

6️⃣ The Reveal

Build curiosity before you show the product.

Example: Hide the product for the first few seconds. Then cut straight to it, no slow build.
Top tip: Throw in a sound cue right as it appears, this could be a bang or a drop, anything. People notice it with their ears even if they're half watching.

7️⃣ One Benefit, One Story

Strip the brief to 1 thing and tell it well.

Example: 1 claim, 1 shot of the product, nothing else competing for attention.
Top tip: Run the same ad twice with 2 different single benefits and see what wins. Let the numbers tell you what people genuinely care about.

Too many brands try to cram all 7 into one ad.

Pick one and tell it well. 

That's the whole trick.

Which one of these is missing from your creative right now?

♻️ Repost this for the marketer still writing feature lists instead of stories.
And follow me, Jacob Rokeach, for more on creative strategy and growth in retail, beauty, and fashion.