Storytelling

Let me tell you a story: Strategy, Storytelling and You

In 1972, Bill Bowerman, a track coach, had an idea for constructing a lighter, faster running shoe. He tested his idea by pouring liquid urethane into his wife’s waffle iron. By just doing this simple thing, his design inspiration resulted in the “waffle trainer” and fueled the explosive success of his fledgling sports equipment company. Today, that company is known as Nike, Inc. Nike employees know this story by heart and it has become an integral part of the company culture, embodying the spirit of their motto, “Just do it”.

What’s your company’s story? Building a strong brand today requires the ability to tell a powerful story. Storytelling is a
personal way of creating relevant dialogue with your audience. They are sitting there wondering, “What’s in it for me? Why am I here?” You need to answer that question. You want to relate your message back to them. This course will help you use stories to illustrate your message by building a bridge between you and the audience. You will learn when to tell stories, how to get hold of stories and how to develop them. We will go through the 3-Rs of storytelling: Relevant, Relatable and Real. You will also have an opportunity to analyze case studies and hear from brand managers and creative consultants.

Goal:

You will learn how and where to look for potential stories, how to shape them into a
powerful tale, adapting them to different target groups and how to communicate them. We
will also look at how different channels can add to or detract from the power of your
stories.

You are a senior manager, a communication manager or a brand manager with responsibilities for building or guarding the brand of your organization. So don’t spend time thinking about it. Just do it.

• What is a story? and what is Storytelling?
• The relationship between a brand and a story
• Looking for potential stories
• Shaping stories – tools and tricks
• Channel strategy
• Case studies