Transcript

Angela: What we really need to be thinking about is how to make that message stick and how to make sure that it's memorable, emotionally engaging. But the best stories aren't just engaging, they're really serving a purpose.

Elena: Hello and welcome to the Marketing Architects, a research-first podcast dedicated to answering your toughest marketing questions.

I'm Elena Jasper. I run the marketing team here at Marketing Architects and I'm joined by my co-hosts, Angela Voss, the CEO of Marketing Architects, and Rob DeMars, the chief product architect of Misfits and Machines.

Angela: Hello!

Rob: So I've got this friend and he's really cool, which I know, first of all, you're like, you have a friend? And not only do you have a friend, but this friend is cool. Well, tell me more.

And I tell you what, this guy, he looks like Bono, like he's got the really long hair and he's just cool. And of course, cool people sit in first class. So he's sitting in first class and he's eating yogurt, you know, his first-class yogurt. And he's talking to this beautiful woman who happened to get seated next to him that he didn't know. And he's just telling her about how he's going on this really cool trip to LA to shoot a really big commercial, you know, and he's pretty awesome, right? So, he gets up to go to the bathroom and the thing I didn't tell you is he went to the dentist earlier that day and his upper lip was numb, and he went to the bathroom, looked in the mirror, and he had yogurt all over his upper lip. It was like a big yogurt mustache. And we got a little ring a ding ding ding.

Angela: Sorry, I have somebody else trying to tell me a story, but this one keeps going on and on and on. Wow.

Rob: I know he's got yogurt all over his upper lip. Needless to say, he didn't get the phone number on that trip.

Angela: Wow.

Rob: I think...

Angela: So what are we talking about today?

Rob: I mean, that's a funny story.

Elena: Well, okay. People might be wondering, why did that just happen? Well, this episode is going to be all about what Rob just did, which is storytelling. So as always, we're here with our thoughts on some recent marketing news, always trying to root our opinions in data research and what drives business results. And we are going to chat about storytelling and marketing.

We're going to talk about why story matters so much, what makes a great story, and how can you incorporate it into your marketing and advertising? We're going to cover both theory and practice today, which I always find more helpful when I'm learning. So hopefully by the end of this episode, you can tell a better story than Rob just did, but just in case anyone doesn't believe in the power of story and marketing, or maybe you just need some more data or research to bring this to leadership in order to advocate for it.

I wanted to start with some proof, and luckily for me, there is just a lot of research out there to support storytelling and advertising. I narrowed it down to three studies. The first is titled Visual Storytelling and Advertising: A Study of Visual Storytelling as a Marketing Approach for Creating Effective Ads.

This is by Doa Fook Elduski, published in the International Journal of Humanities, Social Sciences, and Education. The study found that visual storytelling in ads triggers mirror neurons in the brain, meaning when people watch a well-structured story unfold, our brains react as if we're experiencing it ourselves. This neurological effect increases emotional engagement, which makes people feel a stronger connection to the brand.

The second study is titled The Role of Storytelling in Advertising: Consumer Emotion, Narrative Engagement Level, and Word of Mouth Intention.

This one is by Jin Ae Kang, Suk Kang Hong, and Glenn Hubbard, and was published in the Journal of Consumer Behavior. They found that ads with a strong narrative structure—a beginning, middle, and end—significantly boost word-of-mouth intention, meaning people are far more likely to share them. In fact, this study found that storytelling ads generate twice as much organic sharing compared to non-story-driven ads.

And finally, the last study, The Influence of Storytelling on the Consumer Brand Relationship Experience, is by Katia Fernandez Crespo, Elcina Gaspar Ferreira, and Ricardo Muita Cardoso for the Journal of Brand Management. Their research found that brands using storytelling in their ads were perceived as more trustworthy than brands that relied on straightforward product messaging.

They felt more connected, more emotionally invested, and were more likely to buy from brands that use story. So hopefully that's enough evidence to convince everyone of the power of story. But I think everyone listening probably already knew instinctively that story matters because we are humans and we naturally gravitate to stories.

Rob: Gosh, there are so many good reasons, right? First, we want that emotional connection, right? We want to feel something. And I think that's almost ironic when you think about it because we don't just want to feel happy, right? Sometimes we want to feel sad or we want to feel scared—like we go to scary movies, right? For some reason, we just want that stimulus that's going to make us feel something.

Also, we're bored. I think as humans, we're just looking for those things that can capture our attention, and stories do a great job of helping us get out of that lull. Stories also do a great job of helping to make meaning of things, complex topics, and turning them into something that people can follow.

There's also, I think, a level of order and certainty that we get through the formula of storytelling. I always think it's ironic that now and then you'll get a movie that wins awards because it had an unhappy ending, but nobody went and saw it. You know, and they're like, "Oh, so bold because, you know, it wasn't a happy ending. Because it's a cliche." Well, it's a cliche for a reason. We like order. We like certainty, and I think stories take us on that journey where there's an outcome we can feel good about.

Elena: I'm with you on that. I hate when books do that—where they try to be unique and have the book end sadly. It's like, there's a reason why Harry Potter didn't end in a terribly sad way. There's a reason why Harry got to live at the end of Harry Potter.

Rob: Don't ruin it. You don't ruin it.

Elena: Okay, come on. Well, we've all probably witnessed a little bit too much, if we're being honest with ourselves, of storytelling that just doesn't hit the mark. Maybe it feels too long, maybe you weren't the right audience, or the ending might have been given away like I just did. But lucky for us, there is a proven story structure that all of our favorite stories follow. Some call it the hero's journey, or sometimes it's known as just a strong story arc. So Rob, could you walk us through the pieces of a great story?

Rob: Absolutely. Like I said, if you steal from me, you're stolen twice. So today we're stealing from Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey, which is an incredible book. He wrote this book called The Hero with a Thousand Faces, and it really lays out how all of the great stories from mythology have followed the same framework even to today.

And he uses Star Wars as an example of that hero's journey. So think about it this way. You start off with the call to adventure, right? So you've got Luke, who—you know, he's a farm boy living on Tatooine, life kind of sucks. Then, all of a sudden, he finds this message in R2D2 from this hot princess named Princess Leia and...

Angela: Hold on. Did you just call her Princess Leia?

Rob: Princess Leia.

Angela: Oh, okay. Sorry.

Rob: Leia, but I meant Leia. You're right. Princess Leia. You know, tomato, tomahto.

Angela: Get the name right.

Rob: It is. It is. So, you know, at first, he's like, "I can't leave the farm." So the hero refuses this call to adventure. They meet a mentor. Oftentimes, for Luke, it was Obi-Wan Kenobi.

And he learns about this thing called the Force, which he can't do, but he's like, "Oh, that's pretty interesting." And then something happens that triggers him to go on that journey, right? In this case, his uncle and his aunt get killed by the Empire. He's like, "Dang it. I'm going to go on this journey." So he goes on the journey and he deals with trials and transformation. He meets some allies in Han Solo and Chewie. And they go to the innermost cave, which is, you know, the Death Star, and they rescue the princess. And then there's a big ordeal—Obi-Wan gets killed.

But there's the seizing of the sword, right? Like, Luke gets the plans for the Death Star, and then there's the road back. They take the plans, they go destroy the Death Star. There's resurrection because Luke finally gets to use the Force—to trust in the Force—so he can destroy the Death Star.

And then he returns with the magic elixir, which is, again, all parts of the same formula. And at the end of the day, he gets the girl, which is also his sister. And that's kind of gross. Maybe that part's a little off script, but overall, it follows the same story arc.

Elena: Love it. So now we've talked about why stories work in advertising, why we love them, and what a great story looks like. I want to get a little bit practical. I think it's easy to buy into story as an important part of advertising, but probably harder to implement. So Ange, how do you think brands should think about incorporating story into their marketing?

Angela: Yeah, I think, first of all, if you are at that spot as a marketer, good job. Like, don't convince yourself you need to go back to the rational speeds and facts marketing. We all have consumers that are in-market and out-of-market, and both sides are really important. I'm going to talk about that a little bit. But when we're thinking about storytelling and marketing, this is more than just a creative exercise. And I'll come back to that in a minute.

What we really need to be thinking about is how to make that message stick and how to make sure that it's memorable, emotionally engaging. But the best stories aren't just engaging, they're really serving a purpose—whether that is making the brand more memorable, reinforcing what makes the product or service unique, or just driving that immediate action.

So even back to what Rob was saying, with the hero's journey—great framework, but specifically in TV, which is where we work, we only have 15 or 30 seconds. We don't have enough time to maybe tell that entire story. So we need to think about how to drop viewers into a key moment that highlights the brand's role in solving a problem or fulfilling a need and getting that viewer to feel something in that process. And when people feel something, they remember it.

This is why the best brand stories are simple. They're repeatable. They're a lot of times culturally relevant, but not every brand needs this sweeping narrative, forcing a story where it doesn't fit. You know? And in doing that, sometimes it can make it feel really inauthentic, or it can work against you and actually make it forgettable.

So what you're trying to do is be real, be distinct, and tell a story that actually matters to the people that you're trying to reach. And lastly, on this topic too, I feel like sometimes marketers fall into this trap—and we might get some hate mail on this, and that's totally fine—but going back to this is not just a creative exercise.

If you want to be a movie maker, go to Hollywood. We work in marketing, and our job is to drive relevance and ultimately market share for our brands. And that means sales. And so when we think about consumers, they are in or out of market for our product or service. This is the Les Binet and Peter Field stuff, right?

The long and short—some are easily moved, some are not. But there's always two buckets of consumers. And especially in TV, you know, it's a great storytelling medium, but sometimes brands can go too far and only focus on that emotional side, forgetting that we're working in a channel with broad reach. We should also be practical and helpful to consumers that are in-market so that they choose you over your competitors.

Brands that are airing TV messages with no voiceover or that aren't getting full credit for their spot—we talked about that a couple of weeks ago, you know, ensuring that we know early what brand we're talking about—they aren't giving practical ways for consumers to transact with that brand or insight into where to buy. We're leaving money on the table. The art of storytelling in TV is a balance, and it's an and, not an or, to being available and practically helpful to those in-market.

Rob: To bring it back to the hero's journey, how often as marketers do we say, "Product as hero"? You know? And you think about, well, if you have a hero, then who is the villain, right? Who's the villain in the situation? And even identifying that on your creative brief, right? Like, what are we fighting against? Not just what you're fighting for, but what are you fighting against? And then how do you demonstrably show that journey that hero is going on in terms of demonstrating the product's effectiveness, not just the features, but the benefits, right? Like, those are all parts of the journey as well.

Angela: Absolutely. And I think a lot of marketers, when they're at a phase where they know they need to add more story, it can be scary for them. They've maybe been really practical in market, A/B testing different messages and understanding what drives that immediate performance. This is part of the reason—not the only one—but a piece of why we built pre-testing into our offering. Originally, it was panel-based audiences and animatics. Now it's AI-based with our ScriptSooth product.

To ensure that story is going to drive in-market consumers to action, we have a lot of options, right? When we come to story, what will resonate with that core audience and drive, you know, broader relevance.

Rob: I mean, clearly, I should have pre-tested my yogurt story before I told it. So I agree, you know, pre-testing is great. And it really does help remove the risk. Because stories should be bold, right? They should be engaging, but you want to make sure you're telling the right one.

Elena: Sometimes I think it's harder to tell a simple story, but a lot more effective. I noticed one of the Super Bowl commercials this year for—I think it was for Dunkin'. It felt like they had a million different stories within the same ad. And I think other ads that were more singularly focused just resonated a lot more with me. Like, we can only follow so many different plots.

Rob: I love that. It also holds true for what you say about the product itself—not just the storyline that's introduced, but focusing on one simple thing and not trying to say, "It can do this, it can do this." That’s just a classic fail. And again, yeah, you're right. Simple, simple, simple. It's a good thing.

Angela: When you think about story across your channels, think of the channel and its superpower. So TV as a broad reach channel, for example, hits a lot of people. So what’s that highest-order universal benefit that pulls in the most relevance across a broad group of individuals? And then go from there.

Elena: Well, speaking of brands that do this well and commercials that do this well, I wanted to end with some examples. And lucky for us, there are a lot of great ones to choose from, but we each just prepared one today. So, Ange, do you want to get us started?

Angela: Yes! I'm starting in the insurance category with Progressive and their “Parentamorphosis” campaign. I think probably more people know this as the "becoming your parents" campaign, featuring Dr. Rick. Love this—it’s engaging, it’s memorable. Instead of simply pushing their product, Progressive taps into this insight that at some point, we all start turning into our parents.

I'm doing that. I know I am. Especially after buying a home. And by taking this insight and dramatizing it in an exaggerated yet playful way, the campaign just instantly connects with homeowners who recognize behaviors in themselves or in others. And I think what really makes this campaign particularly effective is the episodic storytelling nature of it. You know, instead of these one-off disconnected ads, they’ve built this ongoing narrative where audiences get to see different “patients” experiencing their own versions of the same problem.

And that repetition reinforces the campaign's humor and makes the brand messaging feel fresh with each new version or installment. Viewers don’t just remember the joke—they get to anticipate the next chapter, just like they would with a beloved sitcom character. And to my point earlier, we're not only storytelling, we're also offering practical ways to connect with the brand for consumers who are thinking that it’s time to shop for insurance. So they’ve done a great job there.

Rob: It’s a great example, and the episodic nature of it, too. Just the idea has legs, right? The story has legs, and yeah, it’s a great example.

Angela: What’s yours, Rob?

Rob: I didn’t watch the Super Bowl, but I did watch the commercials after the Super Bowl. And I loved the title of this one, which you don’t normally get the title of a commercial, right? But this one just—when you read it in the press—it just screams "story." It’s called The Call of the Mustaches.

This was for Pringles, right? You see the example of the gentleman at the party who blows into the Pringles can like it’s some sort of call-to-arms horn. Again, great product involvement. Can’t do that with a bag of chips, right?

And then all of a sudden, around the world, these mustaches start leaving faces and they go on an epic journey. They fly through the cityscape and into the stores to gather the Pringles and try to save the day. And I just love that ad. I’m excited to see what they do with that because I think they should do more with it if they haven’t already. It’s just so inherent to the brand. It has this wonderful wink to the mustache we all adore and love now over the years. And being able to do something so epic with it and create an adventure to watch—it was fun to talk about afterward. So, a great job of storytelling.

Elena: Yeah.

Rob: It was a sad ending though. That’s the only thing they did. The mustaches ended up getting foiled and they hit the window of the hero. I don’t know—maybe that was the one little element, or maybe that was the surprise. I don’t know. But the person did end up getting their Pringles, though. He ran into the store. I think so. There you go.

Elena: Yeah, the consumer was the hero, I suppose, at the end of that one, getting the Pringles. Yeah. I think that’s such a great example of just—they might’ve done the best job of any brand with distinctive assets in a commercial. They’ve got their unique logo. What a great idea to focus on the mustache because that is so distinct. And then their packaging—once again, using it as a horn. I know in the past, they’ve had people’s hands stuck in it, and like, that’s just the packaging alone—it’s such a great distinctive asset for Pringles.

Rob: I think for me personally, where something like that goes wrong—because, ironically, Little Caesars did the Eugene Levy eyebrow popping off his head—fine, but that’s just gross. And I don’t connect it to the brand. And that was borrowed interest, you know, where Pringles didn’t borrow anything. It was their brand and you liked it.

Angela: We had a lot of facial references during the Super Bowl, didn’t we? The eyebrows, the mustache, the tongue with Coffeemate—it was a lot of face stuff.

Rob: It’s true.

Angela: Yeah. Elena, what’s yours? We were both using humor.

Elena: Yeah, mine is more emotional. And I think maybe it’s just because of my personality. I’m kind of sappy. When I watch the Super Bowl ads, I usually tend to prefer more of the emotional ones—the ones that hit you in the feels more than humor. And I don’t know which is riskier for a brand when you’re telling a story, because humor can really fall flat, but emotion can also fall flat.

I think there maybe were a few of those ads this year during the Super Bowl where they were trying really hard to play on heartstrings, and maybe it just didn’t connect to the brand, or it just didn’t feel authentic to us. But one ad that I think is an excellent example of storytelling is back in 2016—it was centered around the Rio Olympics. It was from P&G, called Thank You, Mom. I don’t know—have you seen this ad?

Angela: I think I do remember this.

Rob: Describe it.

Elena: They open on different scenes of a mom and their child, going through trying situations in life, and then flashbacks of the past and the future, showing their mom supporting them at the Olympics. And they have this iconic line: "It takes someone strong to make someone strong." So they’re showing how your mom is there for you when you’re little and how, in some of the situations you go through, you just need your mom to carry you through.

Angela: I know, I tear up just when you’re describing it. I don’t even have to see it.

Elena: Makes me tear up as a mom.

Rob: Did the mom have a mustache?

Elena: And then a mustache flew off of her face. End mom.

Angela: Oh, but they showed real clips of Olympic athletes hugging their moms in the stands. It’s like—you could be in a traumatic situation when you’re little, like there were some pretty shocking scenes, like a car accident that really got your attention, but then you see them standing about to compete on the biggest stage. The common thread is their mom—needing that support system and having them always be there. And yeah, it definitely makes me cry whenever I watch it, but it’s a good cry. Moms are the best. Obviously, it worked. It was memorable.

Elena: Alright, well, I thought we could end with something fun today. I came up with a game. It’s called Name That Story. So we just talked about how powerful stories are. So I’m hoping that this game helps confirm that. I’m hoping you can guess these, and we can prove that a great story really is memorable. So I’m going to give you a few details, and then you’re going to guess the story.

Rob: Okay. Star Wars.

Elena: That’s actually not one of them, but yeah, that would have been a good one. Alright, first one.

Rob: Harry Potter.

Elena: Okay, Rob, stop guessing. Just listen to the clues. Alright, two people from very different backgrounds fall in love. Their love story is cut short by an unexpected disaster. One of them makes it, the other does not.

Angela: No.

Elena: One of them makes it, the other does not.

Angela: Unexpectedly cut short by a disaster.

Rob: I’m going to go with Romeo and Juliet. It’s a disaster. So someone dies of illness or something, and it’s sad. And I’m going to cry.

Angela: Illness. Oh, okay.

Elena: It’s not an illness. It’s more of a... I guess you could say a natural disaster.

Rob: This is a very good story. Actually, not. It’s a sad story.

Angela: Oh, a natural disaster. Hmm. Can you call it a natural disaster? It wasn’t... Yes, there you go!

Rob: Oh, yeah. I think it’s—that’s deep on so many levels. Like, that just goes to show you that nobody actually cared about the boat, they just cared about Jack and whatever her name was. You know? It’s like, there was a Jack and Rose.

Angela: All the amount of times I’ve seen Titanic. Oh, okay. But no, that’s a great, great movie.

Elena: Alright, story two. A young girl pretends to be someone she’s not to protect her family. She trains in combat and proves herself against impossible odds.

Angela: Mulan.

Elena: Yes. There you go. And she’s crushing it. Alright. A young orphan learns he has extraordinary abilities. He goes to a special school to...

Angela: Harry Potter.

Elena: I did have that one in there.

Angela: That’s why she yelled at you. Stop guessing!

Elena: This one's fun. It’s a film. It’s such a great example of storytelling because this is actually a story within a story in the film. So a father is taken from his son at a young age. The son grows up seeking revenge against the person responsible. When he finally faces his enemy, he delivers an unforgettable line before fighting.

Rob: Holy smokes. Can you do that again?

Elena: Alright, a father is taken from his son at a young age. The son grows up seeking revenge against the person responsible.

Rob: Is this Star Wars?

Angela: No, it’s Gladiator.

Elena: No, it’s not. When he finally—here, I’ll give you a bigger hint—when he finally faces his six-fingered enemy, he delivers an unforgettable line. Do you not know what this is?

Angela: Goodness? I had “Luke, I am your father.”

Rob: Six-fingered enemy? What? I don’t know.

Elena: I bet there are people listening, like, screaming right now. How do you not know what this is?

Angela: Six fingers. Oh!

Elena: He delivers an iconic line: "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

Angela: Oh...

Rob: I hate that movie. The Princess Bride. I hate that movie. You know, I’m one of the few human beings that just do not find that movie... I do not find that movie funny.

Angela: No, I’m even...

Rob: I even rewatched it because so many people talk about how funny it is. I’m like, okay, I’m going to—because when I was younger, I watched it. So I’m like, I’m going to watch it again. I did it like two years ago. I’m like, I don’t, I don’t get it. And I actually even insulted people when I’ve said that before. Like, people take that movie that seriously.

Angela: I know. We just lost listeners because of you.

Rob: I know.

Elena: Alright, well, I like Princess Bride. Okay, let’s go, last one. We have one more here. Okay, a person finds himself stranded far from home. They have to survive using only their intelligence.

Rob: The Martian!

Angela: The Martian!

Rob: And you crushed it. I’ve never seen Mulan. Is that weird?

Elena: Oh, Rob, you gotta see Mulan.

Rob: I’ve never seen it. It just didn’t jump out. I think it was maybe that time when my kids were not that age or whatever, you know?

Elena: I’m surprised you didn’t watch it with your daughter.

Angela: And you’re a Disney buff.

Rob: She wasn’t into that one.

Angela: Or are you maybe not really a Disney buff? You just like the Disney parks?

Rob: I do like Pixar. They make some good movies. Toy Story. Actually, Toy Story is a fantastic example of the hero's journey. Because Woody originally was supposed to be a jerk. Did you know that? And this gentleman by the name of, who happened to be a part owner of Pixar, his name was Steve Jobs, came in and said, no, Woody needs to be nice. And so they changed it. They talk about genius, right? I mean, Steve Jobs, he gave us the iPhone and he gave us like the good version of Toy Story.

Elena: Huh? Well, he understood storytelling. Maybe the best of any founder. So there you go.

Rob: Way to close the loop on that one. Elena, you should be a host of like a podcast.

Elena: You talk about Apple enough that I'm now prepared. I know all the references.

Angela: She spends time on the weekends studying about it.