We love stories. If you listen closely to your daily conversations, stories play a considerable role. We intrinsically know that story adds interest and memorability to our communication. Yet, we often under-utilize storytelling in our marketing copywriting. 

It is a huge mistake not to tell a story with your marketing efforts. 

At its core, a story is simply a hero who finds themselves in tension (something that should be but isn’t) and seeks to find a resolution. It doesn’t have to start with “In a land far away” or “Once upon a time.” 

The hero can be your customer or your business, but try to focus on the customer; after all, what you do is about them. 

Depending on your audience and voice, your story can be an origin story, a drama, or a comedy. 

How to unstick your story:

If you are having trouble imagining how to turn your marketing copy into a story, here are some simple tools that help.

AIDA Framework

AIDA stands for Awareness, Interest, Desire, and Action. You build general awareness of your brand by talking about who you are. Then you create interest by demonstrating the problem your audience has. Desire creates an emotional connection to your brand by showing how you solve the audience’s big problem. Finally, you call the reader to action to take the next step. 

Pain-Agitate-Solution

The Pain-Agitate-Solution construct is even more straightforward. You define your audience’s pain; what expensive problem are you solving? Then you twist the knife a little bit – this is the drama. How much worse is it than your reader imagined? Finally, you bring them a solution they can’t live without. 

If you aren’t using story in your marketing efforts, consider starting. Find the tension for your hero and then show how your business is the resolution.