Become a better storyteller

We all know creatives are great at communicating visually, but how do you go with storytelling? For design ideas and concepts to be understood and remembered, you really need to become confident at both.

We’ve all heard that saying - “A picture is worth a thousand words” - but is it memorable in a world that’s saturated with images? The only way your audience will remember your work is for them to connect with the story.

So how do you create a story that’s memorable for your audience? I have two pieces of advice:

1. Make it relatable for your target audience, AND

2. Ensure the story connects with the image

The reason why it’s important to include both together, is because one influences the other in how memorable it is. Humans are highly visual people, yet we also seek connection. It is this connection between visual storytelling and the language of storytelling that gets people to remember you.

This is true across all areas in your business - from how you talk about your work with your clients and customers, how you present your work verbally, news pieces, social media posts and content on your website (just to name a few).

You might even find that your stories will differ, depending on your audience - and that’s good! You want it to be specific to who you’re talking to!

Let’s look at the elements of a successful story

Customer or client is the hero

Make them the center of your story. What problem do they have that you can solve?

Make it relatable

Use real people or situations that your target market will relate to. Tell them the story of the problem they’re already living.

Make it engaging

This is where you talk about the process of how you solved their problem. Take them on a journey.

Make it believable

People aren’t stupid. They can see through a sales pitch or an ad. Base your story on real people and don’t over complicate it.

Bigger purpose

This is where the magic happens. It’s about making the story connect with just the right amount of detail. Leave some gaps so the audience can see themselves in the story, too.

Empowerment

If you follow all of the steps above, the reader will feel empowered to make a decision. You showed them how you could solve their problem.

Repeat

Keep going! Be consistent putting content like this out there. Keep telling stories that are relatable and ensure it always connects with the image.