Sharing Your Brand Story

I hear from clients all the time that have exciting ideas about new communications tools they want to develop to help tell the story of their organization. Websites. Videos. Campaigns. You name it. And it is exciting when I get to help them develop these ideas into real brand assets. These are the projects that can turn a message into a story and drive people closer to understanding and supporting an organization’s mission.

To pull off these projects, there is important work that comes first and it involves a tough look in the mirror. To translate a brand’s story into a compelling work of art – either on video or some other medium – you must first spend the time examining the elements of the story.

All stories start with a Character. In a brand story, the Character answers the question, “Who are we?” It is the opening line in any introduction about your work. Name the organization and follow that with a sentence or two about what you do and why you do it.

All stories end with a Resolution. In a brand story, I like to put the Resolution up front by answering the question “What do we want?” It communicates to audiences the purpose of the organization; the large scale change they seek in the world.

Stories exist to communicate a broader Lesson. In a brand story, this is where we share with audiences why they should care about your mission. It answers the question “Why does this matter?” and typically is where an organization fits their mission into a larger context.

Any good story has some Conflict that the character must overcome. In a brand story, this is where audiences hear about the problem your organization seeks to solve. In some ways, it refers back to the Resolution, and answers, “Why don’t we have it now?”

Lastly, all storytellers share the Journey of those in the story getting from one circumstance to another. In a brand story, the Journey refers back to the Resolution, and answers, “How do we get it?” This is where organizations share their vision for the work that needs to be done to get to the better world they seek.

All stories can be summed up as the Journey a Character takes to overcome Conflict and arrive at a Resolution, for the purposes of a broader Lesson. Brand stories are like any other story and by using the common elements of a story for the purposes of brand identity, we can develop a narrative that can then be used as a lens through which all organizational messaging can flow.