Video storytelling: Build your brand to excellence
Abigail Beardsley – Hug Media
Video storytelling: Build your brand to excellence
When you’re trying to find your footing in a saturated market, it can be challenging to know where to start. Too often, when business owners communicate about their company, they go for the logical answer. Whether it be the quality of their product or the need for their service, it’s easy to get lost in a sea of promotional content relaying similar, if not identical, messaging. Forbes suggests using the story first, product second method to build your brand – we agree, putting storytelling at the forefront.
Brand storytelling is a unique way to get your message across in a way that engages real and unique audiences. When we meet clients, we like to ask the questions “what sets your business apart?” and “what do you want people to feel when they think about your brand”. Because at the end of the day, we’re all humans looking to connect— whether that be to other people, our selves, things or brands. It’s the stories we tell that allow this.
Embrace your story
Finding your story can be simple or extremely difficult, depending on who you are and what you do. Ask yourself: how did you get to where you are today, what sets your business apart, what are your values and what do you want people to feel when they think of your company.
“There might be a company that has just as good logistics as you do, so you need something that sets you apart. This is where stories come in. This is where emotion comes into play. It’s really important.” — Antonio, Director of Hug
One of the biggest misconceptions around brand storytelling is that it has to focus on the origin of the company. Although this can be a great way of communicating what you’re all about, other avenues work just as well, if not better. You could tell a story that highlights your company ethos and values or the problem your product or service is remedying, and this could be from the perspective of the Director, employee or even a customer.
Whichever path you decide to take, it needs to align with your brand, be unique and have feeling. Most importantly, it needs to be memorable.
The power of video
There are several ways to communicate your brand story – speak it, write it, show it – each with their own set of pros and cons.
As a form of storytelling, video is a powerful medium for many reasons. Firstly, it moves, creating an illusion of action in real-time. Video replicates reality in a way that other mediums can’t, and that promotes deeper understanding and connectivity from your audience.
It was Auguste and Louis Lumière who first showcased the power of moving image with their Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat in 1885. As the parable goes, the video was so lifelike the audience ran out of the room in fear – believing the train would crash right through the screen.
While audiences aren’t running from screens anymore, the possibilities of video go even further in the 21st century. The creative opportunity of video – plus the equipment and tools now available – can enhance messaging into something spectacularly meaningful. Curated images edited together can build moving stories like no other medium. Not to mention, music welds feeling, motion and speed inspire, and vibrant colours capture attention.
We may be biased (we hugging love video!), but we think it’s the best way to tell stories!
Hug storytelling
When we talk to new clients, they often don’t know what their story is. When you’re a business owner or someone close to the brand, it can be difficult to look at it from an outside perspective. This problem is much more common than you’d think but easily remedied with fresh eyes. It’s our job to find interesting angles and flesh them out to create the best stories that not only speak to your brand but also your customers.
If you’re struggling to find your story, talk to people – employees, customers, friends or film nerds. An outside perspective is always valuable.
When Invacare first came to us, the focus was brand awareness. They needed a story that highlighted the message: we make our products so our customers can excel.
The more time we spent getting to know the ins and outs of Invacare, the more we saw the authenticity in their company ethos, ‘Yes you can’. Invacare takes care of mobility so their customers – from Paralympic athletes to everyday people – can focus on the stuff that matters (reaching their goals). We knew these stories were the ones Invacare’s prospective customers needed to hear.
The central idea of the #bornwithit campaign is your disability does not define you. Starring Rheed McCracken, the campaign follows his story from teenager, born with cerebral palsy, to Paralympics star. It’s a story of determination that continues to inspire. Through Rheed’s narrative, we were able to capture the essence of Invacare: that every product is made with customer passion in mind. The sidekick that every hero needs.
