The art of storytelling is as old as Methuselah, maybe older. A parable is a bit younger as a concept and aims to teach a lesson or make some point. It is in many ways an analogy.But uses contemporary, easily understood references and beliefs to make a point. All parables are stories, although all stories are not parables. A parable invariably works at changing a belief or behaviour. The reason why it works so subtly, perhaps, is because it diffuses the guilt associated with the behaviour it is trying to modify by using an identifiable scapegoat!
Now if you look at successful brands, the users all have a story to tell- and they are invariably parables.This is how I works: The problem, the search, the failures and finally the solution. Stories have plots, actors, subplots and happy endings. All testimonials are stories, but all testimonials are not real life stories. Do we really believe a famous actor uses a banyan or undergarment of a not so famous brand?
To be a parable, there has to be lesson to be learned. The tear jerker Google Pakistan TVC uses actors to tell a story but this one’s a parable. It’s not just a story. The brand is the hero as it helps bridge a gap. It has a moral to the story and Google is the facilitator.
Most TV ads have a sequence of events that is needed as a script. They do have storylines, but they are not real brand stories. Some will demonstrate their brands ability to attract the opposite sex in herds! Its pure hyperbole. But the annoying thing is even hyperbole will work, if it’s a story that told well. And it does not make wild promises.
Dos Equis Beer creates a magnum opus form nothing. Do watch “The most interesting man in the world” series. Sheer wit, tongue in cheek and a character that is loveable. It does not promise that the brand can make you like the protagonist, but the associative brand use is enough.
Good brand stories are open ended (read extendable). The character is larger than life, someone whose life you can admire and would like to emulate. Or generic enough for you to replace. The characters usually have some quirk that sets them apart. The stories have coherence and leaves you with a clear single minded message, so you know what you are supposed to do.
So, if you are selling real estate, get your home owner to tell their story. But let there be a plot. How a couple “found” their perfect home through a series of misses and close shaves and finally how the brand came through for them. Your audience loves gossip and interesting details! So don’t leave out the juicy bits.
Cedric Serpes is Associate Professor at
The Goa Institute of Management.
Of late he has been confirming all rumours
and denying all facts about himself.
