The Art of Storytelling

 It’s the 21^st century- the “Age of Rampant Materialism.” Driven by the vagaries of consumeristic tendencies, the age has seen a splurge of entities, new and old alike, trying to find a niche in an increasingly cluttered world of brand multiplicity.

Evolving lifestyle choices of consumers due to increased globalisation and rising incomes has resulted in an overabundance of brands in the market, the ultimate result of which is – ruthless competition. While new players are trying to find a foothold in the market, already established brands are innovating and renovating to retain their position of eminence.

 

Story telling is a technique brands use as an innovative tool for product promotion.  A marker of  identity in this era of mass production, story telling upholds what can be termed as “brand individuality”. For a given line of product, what makes one brand distinct from the other.

 

When it comes to luxury brands, Chanel is an apt example. Chanel’s well designed website epitomises the fine art of story telling. Encapsulating 24 chapters, with each chapter narrating a distinct story (be it “The Diamond” or “Paris By Chanel”), the website subsumes the reader into an idiosyncratic experience, enrapturing the mind with its appeal to a sense of class and  priceless sophistication. The brand by appearing elusive allures the reader to the “privileged” Chanel brand experience. A perfect marketing technique. 

However, it has its downside: exclusivity can often become synonymous with exclusion. 

 

The enlightened customer of today doesn’t seek exclusion but wants to become a stakeholder. He/She seeks participation and information driven transparency, gloats at the earliest sign of innovation and exercises intelligent decision making choices based on user experience and peer review.

The story telling techniques being adopted by brands today increasingly focus on personalised user experience, uniqueness and quality. There is a heavy reliance on social media and digital marketing techniques, which further amplify the personal experience. It is no more about “possession of luxury” but about “availing the pleasures of the entire user experience”.  Its not so much about products establishing your classas it is about them establishing your identity. 

And so we have niche luxury brands like Hourglass paving their way into the claustrophobic cosmetics market. Combining beauty with luxury, with an array of colours and organic ingredients, the brand has found a voice among the echoes of many.

 

At the core of all this lies the important role played by IMAGINATION. Imagination fuels creativity: the modern customer seeks cultural richness and taste. Any successful marketing strategy calls for capitalising on this demand for a rich aesthetic personalised experience rather than a simplistic appeal to class exclusivity.