Once upon a time, there was a mysterious marketing strategy that could increase revenue, improve customer experiences, and lower acquisition costs — all while harnessing the latest innovations in machine learning and data analytics.
That strategy? Conversion storytelling, otherwise known as the key to transforming your digital marketing and, of course, driving conversions from ad campaigns. According to The Drum, conversion storytelling is “the art of developing and communicating an end-to-end campaign that flows from a targeted ad to a landing page experience through a combination of copy, images and sounds that are all cohesive, brand relevant and increase the probability of conversions.”
Still, the narrative doesn’t end there.
Gather ‘round to hear our tale of how conversion storytelling works, and how brands can use it to increase audience engagement across channels.
The impact of conversion storytelling on ROI
Instead of just listing facts and features or using stale, clichéd ad copy that your customers just scroll past, marketers should strive to reach consumers with more in-depth, emotionally resonant content that speaks directly to their interests.
As Stanford University reported, people remember stories 22 times more than they remember facts. And storytelling has been found to increase conversions by 30%.
Now, storytelling doesn’t have to involve writing a Shakespearean comedy or Tolstoy-length tragedy. But when it comes to marketing, it should hit a few key points, such as:
- Customer needs, interests, and behaviors
- Why your product or service is important, not just what it is and how it works
- Your brand mission, values, and community
- The entire lifecycle and customer journey (i.e. How did customers get here? What do they expect and want to see from your ad or landing page? How can you deliver that to them?)
By addressing these elements in your advertising content, you can increase the likelihood of grabbing people’s attention, inspiring them to convert, and, in the end, increasing ROI.
The importance of improving the ad-to-page experience
One of the biggest benefits of conversion storytelling is that it can create a more seamless transition between your ads and landing pages. After all, audiences encounter ads out in the wild, across multiple channels and away from the safety of your brand site. But once your ad piques their interest, you want to make sure you make the most of that opportunity and continue moving them along the customer journey.
Rover, for example, an app for finding dog sitters and dog walkers, sends frequent email newsletters that speak to pet owners’ real interests and pain points. Here’s one with the subject line, “How to know if [your dog’s name] is truly bonded to you,” that includes links to helpful articles and products.
If a reader clicks on that “Read More” call to action, they’ll be taken to the informative article teased in the email. And as they read that article, they’ll be provided with other links and recommendations for Rover products and services. It’s a much more effective strategy than just saying, “Hey, your pet might like this!”
The future of conversion storytelling in marketing
Just like storytelling can be both an art — incorporating human emotion, passion, and morals — and a science — using the building blocks of grammar and formatting to create a consumable narrative — conversion storytelling will need both going forward as well.
That is, it will use technological innovations like machine learning to automate data collection, analysis, and projection. But it will also rely on human intuition and creativity to find and construct impactful stories that have the power to influence real people.
Meaning, conversion storytelling isn’t going anywhere. It will be an integral part of the future of marketing. Especially as new channels, touchpoints, and devices emerge, audiences will crave opportunities to create genuine connections with others. It will be up to their favorite brands and publishers to help build those connections and nurture those relationships.
Ready to engage your audience with personalized messaging across channels? Jeeng can help. Contact us to get started with conversion storytelling.
