Raise your hand if you like a good story.
Who doesn't, right?
Storytelling has been a fundamental part of our collective human experience since we were prehistoric cave dwellers. It's how our ancestors passed on their knowledge, traditions, and history. And how we've entertained ourselves and each other for millennia.
So, it's no surprise that it would be used in marketing, to resounding success, well before it became the 2010s buzzword everyone loved to hate. For instance, John Caples' iconic 1927 ad "They laughed when I sat at the piano" is classic storytelling.
As it happens, most stories — from ancient fables to modern day blockbusters — follow one of several formulas. And you can apply these to web pages, blog posts, social media, and other marketing literature too.
Here's a look at five tried and tested storytelling formulas you can use to engage, persuade, and delight your customers.
Problem-Agitate-Solve
Problem-agitate-solve is the classic copywriting formula. As the name suggests, it's made up of three parts:
Problem
This is where you identify what your audience has been struggling with, typically by asking a question they're sure to answer "Yes" to or making a sympathetic statement
Agitate
Amplify the problem. You could do this by explaining why the problem is serious and laying out the consequences if your audience ignores it. Or you could tell a personal anecdote that illustrates the point
Solve
Offer up an easy, straightforward solution. Of course, the solution will usually be your product or service
Some of the most successful ad campaigns of all time were built around the problem-agitate-solve formula. Why? Because it's simple, versatile, and proven to work.
In this ad for Pepsodent, for instance, legendary copywriter Claude Hopkins starts by stoking the audience's jealousy towards people who have beautiful teeth: "You see the results on every hand — perhaps in teeth you envy."
He then ups the ante by explaining how tartar leads to tooth decay, and why traditional toothpaste is ineffective.
By the time he's telling you how tartar formation helps "millions of germs" breed in your mouth, you're probably running your tongue over your teeth and grimacing in disgust. So when he presents Pepsodent as the solution, you can't help but feel relief.
This product, the ad continues, is scientifically proven to fight tooth decay and give you a better smile. How could you possibly not want to give it a try after what you've just read?
Before-after-bridge
This is a variation on problem-agitate-solve.
As with problem-agitate-solve, you start by presenting the problem. But instead of agitating it, you go on to show your audience what life would be like if the problem were solved. Then, you explain how you got from before to after.
The before-after-bridge structure works especially well for case studies:
Introduce the subject of the case study, describe how they were struggling, and why
Describe how things changed after they started using your product or service, ideally with measurable results (for example: 'by using our software, Outstanding Prints Ltd cut manual admin by 30%')
Explain how the subject of the case study got from before to after: why they chose your product or service, and how it helped them achieve the results you've just talked about
That said, before-after-bridge also works well in shorter formats.
For example, in this tweet by Canva, the first sentence paints a picture of after — effortless creation of curved text — with the before implied. The second sentence then presents the bridge: a video guide that walks you through the process of creating curved text.
The three-act structure
If you've ever watched a play, movie, or TV show or read fiction, you've seen the three-act structure in action:
You introduce the cast of characters
A problem rears its head
There's a confrontation and everything is resolved
Blog posts naturally lend themselves to this: you can set things up in the introduction and work through the problem in the body of the post, leading to a resolution in the conclusion.
But it can also work well for case studies and social media posts, especially if you do video content.
Freytag's Pyramid
If you're feeling a bit more adventurous — or your message is more complex — you could try Freytag's Pyramid, a more elaborate version of the three-act structure.
Freytag's Pyramid was created by Gustav Freytag, an 18th century German novelist and playwright. Freytag studied Shakespeare and ancient Greek tragedies, and realised they tended to unfold in five stages:
The audience is given the background and context
The characters face a series of unfortunate events
Things come to a head
The characters deal with the fallout from the climax
The story reaches its resolution
The hero's journey
Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, the Harry Potter series...
Some of the biggest epic franchises of our time follow the hero's journey, and there's no reason why it couldn't work for your brand too.
The hero's journey goes like so:
The hero is called to adventure
They face a series of tough challenges which they have to overcome, or tasks they need to complete
Eventually, they come out victorious and return home in triumph
Done well, the hero's journey can be very powerful.
AirBnB's Belong Anywhere campaign, for instance, put hosts front and centre and made them the heroes of the brand.
This worked on two levels. It showcased the unique benefit of renting an AirBnB, that is getting to experience your destination like a local. At the same time, it tackled a major objection head on: the anxiety of staying at a stranger's house in a place you're unfamiliar with.
Nike took a similar approach in 1999. Except this time, the hero wasn't the brand, but one of its most iconic endorsers: basketball legend Michael Jordan. The ad is a reel of career highlights, with Nike's logo and the "Just Do It" slogan only appearing at the very end.
And we all lived happily ever after...
Stories activate the same areas of our brain that would be activated if we were one of the characters. They can make us feel happiness, sadness, love, pain, fear, anger, or even hunger. So it's not hard to see what powerful tools good stories can be when it comes to persuading customers to take action.
Next time you refresh your website copy, write a blog post, or craft a series of social media posts or videos, try one of these formulas on for size. You'll be amazed at how much a good story can resonate with your customers and make them feel connected to your brand.
Need help crafting compelling brand stories?
