How to become A Brand Storyteller

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What do Brand Storytellers do?

A Brand Storyteller typically needs to:

• Write and produce strong digital and print content through dynamic human stories; bring to life an organisation’s work through purposeful storytelling, inspiring diverse target audiences to engage with the enterprise mission
• Understand the fundamentals of storytelling (engaging character, trajectory, hook, authenticity/details and calls-to-action) and marketing copywriting trends on various media to fulfil organisational objectives and generate business results
• Understand why, how, and which story assets to use and combine - text, images, audio, and video - thereby learning to create an audio-visual experience, using your mature eye/ear for best practices
• Understand the company’s overarching programming, fundraising, communications, and advocacy goals
• Build expertise with online platforms: content management systems for web, e-newsletter services, and social media
• Detect newsworthiness from the point of view of the audience; ask questions that can generate valuable responses and foster trust with story subjects
• Operate equipment, such as a DSLR camera, video, audio recorder, and microphones; use editing software - image, audio & video, post-production
• Use databases or other appropriate solutions (hardware or software) to design and maintain a story bank; properly tag and archive content to enable staff to locate crucial stories and images
• Use expert skills with online platforms to create content management systems for web, e-newsletter services, and social media; use web analytics and tools to monitor and measure social media
• Incorporate and balance the objectives across departments to supervise the production of strategic, engaging stories
• Liaise with internal and external partners to coordinate and oversee the entire process of collecting, producing, and distributing a story
• Create strategic communications plans that cover the stages starting from research through to measurement/evaluation; develop content strategies to meet enterprise goals
• Create editorial calendars and re-purpose stories across different platforms
• Be agile, strategic, and creative enough to take a project across the spectrum of storytelling - collecting stories in the field to dressing them up for diverse strategic aims, staying true to the brand strategy, while experimenting with innovative approaches and a new language
• Be comfortable using digital media, best practices in web editing, and style guides to foster efficiency and standardisation
• Pinpoint opportunities to gather content from the field to sync with editorial content strategy; plan trips with the communications, camera and other teams and coordinate all the field teams as they gather stories to enliven the brand
• Deliver packaged content and stories to support marketing strategies
• Edit the company website to keep it current, relevant, and engaging for key target audiences and to ensure key performance indicators are in place to create digital engagement
• Collaborate with colleagues to optimise storytelling to yield more online subscribers and donors
• Support senior management and communications in presenting key messages and points or editorial pieces at conferences and industry events
• Create, manage, and update the content calendar in consultation with marketing, fundraising, and communications departments and teams
• Undertake some HTML web coding to optimise the website and email marketing and carry out image editing using appropriate software for social media purposes

Typically, Brand Storytellers work independently and are not tied to a cabin or an office but free to choose or change their working space. What is essential is to have a tranquil location that facilitates concentration to write once the period of research and brainstorming is over. Brand Storytellers may prefer working in private offices or any other site free from distractions. Brand Storytellers who work for corporations, publishing companies, and news agencies may need to travel locally or to other cities for interviews.

In-person jobs tend to cluster in areas with a concentration of significant media and entertainment markets or business hubs. However, with improved online communication and connectivity, Brand Storytellers may set up their work desk almost anywhere. Many choose to live and work away from cities and travel as needed to meet with clients and publishers or conduct research and in-person interviews.

Since freelance writers are paid per assignment, they put in as many hours as needed to meet a deadline, which means working on evenings and weekends to create a piece fit for client approval. Many freelance writers run their own business, working flexible hours, and most routinely face the pressures of juggling multiple projects or continually looking for new work.

Beginning Brand Storytellers may write for smaller businesses, local newspapers, advertising agencies, and not-for-profit organisations and even take credit for their work.

If you work with an online publication or screenwriting, your deadlines are shorter, and you must collaborate with other professionals, such as video producers and editors.

Many storytellers are self-employed. They sell their original written content to book and magazine publishers, news organisations, advertising agencies, movie, theatre, and television producers. Brand Storytellers may be employed on a project basis and paid regularly during that term.

Brand Storytellers are generally used by:

• Advertising Agencies
• Movie, Theatre & Television Production Houses
• Private and Public Companies
• Travel & Tourism Companies
• Healthcare Institutions
• Educational Institutions

Professional associations and organisations are crucial for those interested in pursuing professional development or connecting with like-minded professionals in their industry or occupation. Membership in one or more adds value to your resume while bolstering your credentials and qualifications as a Brand Storyteller.

• Staying focused and committed over periods as long as three years or more, waiting to get noticed by the audiences and employers
• Inconsistent income, which necessitates taking on a side job, such as copy-writing, journalism, publishing or editing, and balancing the two in terms of time and energy
• Overcoming writer’s block without losing focus
• Spending several days working alone continuously
• Lack of job security as a freelancer, as success is linked with your talent and networking on the one hand and the subjective approval of employers, fluctuating public opinion and market trends, and on luck on the other hand
• Tight deadlines that vary with the project
• An intensely competitive field where excellence is a must
• Not suited to individuals who prefer to work within a set of guidelines as there is no one way to tell a story

Formal internships are not a prerequisite to successful storytelling. Instead, informal experience and practice are your best teachers. Volunteer to tell or read your stories at your library or bookstore, at childcare centres and in nursing homes. You could also sign up to train in theatre groups or at community centres.

Storyboarding experience is handy to have. You could avail of student internships that magazines and newspapers may offer to pen stories, carry out research, or hold interviews, all of which foster publishing experience. You could also contribute articles to smaller, perhaps, lesser-known publications to introduce yourself to the public. Working on online publications will also build up your knowledge of computer software and editing tools so that you can creatively combine text with graphics, audio, video, and animation on any other related job you take up.

If you are a songwriter or a playwright and studying at college, you may be able to have your work set to performance in college theatre or a music programme. Online blogging is another valuable tool to earn writing experience if you have online access. Blogs succeed based on the quality and strength of your work, the novelty of your perspective, and the size of your potential audience and may translate into paid work. Familiarity with web publishing technologies (WordPress, Drupal) is handy. Remember that if you have strong writing skills, you can succeed no matter your background. More than five years of professional writing and editorial experience is the norm, and you may need to present a portfolio of various writing pieces.

There is no standardised requirement for an aspiring Brand Storyteller to fulfil in terms of academic qualifications. That said, a bachelor’s degree in English literature, or creative writing, media and communications, or journalism is helpful. Often, English literature degree programs include a course in creative writing, which is of interest and use to aspiring Brand Storytellers. Other humanities subjects you could major in include history, the classics, a foreign language, or a cultural subject. Studying and working in the theatre and other performing arts are other avenues that are close to storytelling. Given the erratic nature of earning an income through storytelling, an academic degree is a valuable backup.

You can opt from a range of in-person and online courses and workshops to help you build and refine your storytelling skills, including screenwriting.

Storytelling does not need mandatory certification. However, some professional associations may offer certified credentials to authors and writers, demonstrating their competence and motivation and making them more attractive to employers.

Successful certification programs seek to serve and protect the public welfare and are responsible for investigating individuals who practice outside the program’s Code of Ethics. By protecting the general interest, professionals earn trust and respect, which are the most critical elements in securing their future.

Career progression is driven by performance, experience, and the acquisition of professional qualifications. Employees with consistently high levels of performance may be eligible for promotion every two to three years.

As you take on more complex writing projects and complete them according to client expectations, you will build your reputation. You will also improve your chances of getting published in more prestigious publications, working for famous cinema, television, theatre production companies, or larger corporations.

Working as a Brand Storyteller, you will hone your skills of identifying stories and correcting writing errors to take up an Editor’s job.

Experienced Brand Storytellers may find Public Relations work in corporations and non-profit organisations. If you wish to freelance and remain self-employed, you can contribute to newspapers, magazines or journals, or write books.

Given that online publications and services are growing more sophisticated and numerous, Brand Storytellers can take advantage of the growing demand for their services, especially if they have web and multimedia experience.

Expect intense competition for most job openings, given that many people are attracted to this occupation. Writers and authors who have adapted to online and social media and are comfortable writing for and working with various electronic and digital tools should have an advantage in finding work.

Practice makes perfect should be a Brand Storyteller’s motto, and constant reading and writing are the ideal training to gain popularity, earn success, receive critical acclaim, and perhaps earn writing prizes based on your talent and hard work.

That said, continuing professional development (CPD) is the holistic commitment of professionals towards the enhancement of personal skills and proficiency throughout their active careers through work-based learning, a professional activity, formal education, or self-directed learning. You can enrol in peer workshops where fellow members provide critiquing sessions, particularly useful for new writers to improve their work based on constructive feedback from writing groups and organisations. Membership in a professional writing organisation enhances your employability.

Focus on acquiring greater experience in writing, creating a portfolio that represents your best and most diverse work. Being a published storyteller will gain you plenty of credit.

Learn about graphic design, page layout, and multimedia software, as it is likely you will use online media to tell your stories. Receive training in using computer software and editing tools to combine text with graphics, audio, video, and animation. Those working for films must have an understanding of screenplay, camerawork and editing. There are numerous CPD courses, seminars, and workshops out there to help professionals in the field.

CPD allows individuals to upskill continually, regardless of their age, job, or level of knowledge. It prevents practical and academic qualifications from becoming outdated, enables individuals to identify any knowledge gaps, and allows professionals to progress to a new specialism.

Writing for Success

As an aspiring Brand Storyteller, a crucial ally is your capacity to handle rejection without being discouraged. You must have excellent networking abilities on the one hand and the discipline to work alone without supervision on the other.

To build your story, you must have the knack of building a rapport with your interviewees/story subjects and asking questions that can draw out meaningful answers from them. Then you must convey them clearly and in an engaging manner. You should be at ease working with intermediate to advanced-level sound and recording equipment.

It takes a village to generate a compelling and inspiring story, and you must be an expert at collaborating with internal and external partners to collect, produce, and distribute it.

People remember stories 22 times more than just facts. Land Rover’s 70th anniversary campaign illustrates that the best stories may not always be a company’s own, but those of their customers and fans.

Given the human fascination for stories, brand storytelling has gained in popularity as it engages consumers and compels them to buy your idea, product, or service. As a Brand Storyteller, you would use your imagination, knowledge, and skills to advance the company’s mission, elevate its profile, and even raise funds by creating a broad genre of short and long pieces for diverse platforms. Brand Storytellers dress complex issues in the garb of exciting and accessible content for various audiences, narrating stories about a company’s vision that includes its work, successes, plans, personnel, beneficiaries, and more.

A successful novelist makes readers connect emotionally to their stories, which are often complex and narrated through many voices. Businesses want just this effect with the stories they tell their stakeholders. Be sure to construct clear narratives based on specific messages a company wishes to convey, either externally or internally.