7 Ancient Archetypes Your Brand Storytelling Should Use

What is the best part you remember from your childhood?

For me, it was when my grandpa used to share stories with us. I miss him and his stories.

Listening and telling stories is a part of everyone’s life.

No matter how old are you, admit it, you love hearing stories.

We all do.

From sharing gossip with our best friends to sharing stories and daily routines with our family and cousins, we all share stories.

Stories can be a memory, a fantasy, or gossip.

But we all share stories now and then.

We tell stories to the baby to give him some values that help in nurturing.

Yes, stories with values help in nurturing and building a character.

But why am I sharing this with you?

We all are aware that storytelling is an integral part of the marketing strategies in a business.

I am not here to tell you the importance of storytelling, but to share insights on how you can do it and in how many ways you can do it.

Storytelling must include the following elements:

· Purpose of your story — A purpose or a reason is the pillar of your story. Why did you start in the first place? Why are you doing this? What motivated you to do this? These questions must be answered in your storytelling. Let me share an example with you. I know a digital marketer, who was doing quite well with his agency, and suddenly he shifted his career towards teaching. Why did he do that? The only thing that motivated him was he wanted to share his knowledge with the world, institutes are charging way too high that not everyone can afford, so he decided to teach basic digital marketing for free and advance courses at really affordable prices. The reason and the free course tactic worked in favor of him, and in the blink of the eye, the seats were full for the advanced courses as well.

So now, do you understand the importance of having a reason?

I am doing this for the money, is also a very good and practical reason, but why are you doing what you are doing for the money when there are so many other ways to earn good money?

The hero — Every story has a hero, but in business, there is only one hero.

Do you know who I am talking about? Yes, you know.

The customer.

In marketing, your story’s hero should only be your customer. Your story should be customer-centric and not brand-centric. So that your customers can engage and relate to the story, and when this happens, they will create a bond with your brand eventually.

You can start your story by sharing your views about what your customers want and talking about the problems your customers face and lastly, telling them how you are going to solve their problems.

You can use surveys, feedback, or testimonials from your customers in building a story.

· The conflict — Who doesn’t like suspense and a little thrill in a story? Conflicts give that touch to your story and make it spicy. Share about the problems you are facing to provide a solution your customers are looking for. Talk about the hurdles you are going through while building a brand for your customer. Talk about the struggles that no one is aware of.

The only key to your customer’s heart is to share. Make them feel connected with your stories. Make them aware of the fact you are building something for them, and only them with no hidden motives.

· Awareness — The creation of awareness is the first step towards any brand promotion. This is the ultimate strategy first you create awareness and then you promote it.

Nobody trusts a brand that they have never heard of. Build your story which is shareable and relatable.

Most of the brands use social media platforms for sharing stories with the real audience.

A touch of reality can do wonders.

· Climax — The climax in your story here is the impact that you will be going to leave on your audience. It must include the ways you are going to solve your customer’s problems and how you plan to overcome the conflicts that your brand is facing. Your story’s end should be impactful. And you can make that by adding values to your story. Give them something to remember your story and share it further.

The above points are the pillar of a story building. But here is more in the store. Storytelling is not only one type. There are 7 ancient types of storytelling as well. Yes, there are types of storytelling. But why do we need to know about the archetypes? Because this will help us in knowing the nature of the business and building a story accordingly.

So, here are the 7 ancient archetypes your brand storytelling can use:

1. Monster in the house: A storytelling type where the hero kicks out the monster from the house. In a brand’s story, a hero is your customer and the monster is the conflict that you or your brand is facing.

2. Rags to Riches: A story like ‘shazam’ hope you have seen that movie. If not, then it is a story about an old powerful wizard who gave his all power to an ordinary teenage boy but with a good heart. It is a good movie; you should watch it. So, my point here is, you can use this type for building a powerful character. This type is used commonly by educational institutes.

3. Comedy: As the name suggests, a type where you build up a funny story. Emotions are the best way to create a bond with the audience. And what is a better way to share an emotion that would make your audience laugh?

b: By sharing a tragic story you not only get the sympathy of your audience but also their trust. This is best suitable for insurance companies, therapists, etc.

5. Rebirth: Here you talk about the things that your audience can face in the future, good or bad circumstances, and then changing the strategy accordingly. The storytelling should be impactful so that whatever you are stating sounds realistic.

6. The quest: The story about the side-hero who helps the hero to find out the treasure and rescue the princess. He is not the hero, but a friend who helps the hero to meet his goals and dreams. Any brand can use this type. Be that friend to your customer (hero), who helps in making their (customers) dreams come true.

7. Voyage and Return: Have you seen Alice in wonderland? Yes, this is the storytelling type, where the hero is stuck in an isolated place and is struggling to make out their way home. This type fits best for travel companies, like OYO or Make My Trip.

Conclusion: If you are going to share your brand story with your audience, then you must know the right way to do it. Don’t miss out on any element, they are the only pillars your story can stand on.

And understanding the nature of your business can clear out any doubts about which ancient archetypes of storytelling your brand should follow.