Storytelling and email marketing

Since we began the project of “storytelling and e-marketing” with Emailvision, I have given three presentations on the topic.  Nick and I co-animated one last Tuesday at MD Expo Paris, a large direct marketing show.  We talked about how the “Seven Rules of Storytelling” can be applied to direct marketing.

Our presentation was extremely well received.  The audience was very engaged, and their questions quite interesting and pertinent to the topic.

I realized again how much the storytelling message is resonating with all types of audiences!

People are interested in storytelling because it applies to so much of life.  Whether one is speaking of an individual, a company or a brand…all can benefit from learning to communicate through their core stories of identity.

When I think about outstanding leaders, outstanding brands or outstanding companies, I see many similarities in what they do, and in the way they should communicate.   They all create movements, engage followers, and provide visions of the future.

Great leaders, great brands, and great institutions have enormous clarity about who they are and what they stand for and where they are going.  The best way to reveal what they stand for is through their stories of identity.

So, why should we not apply storytelling to direct marketing, and to email marketing in particular?  It is an interesting and timely topic that I will explore with the team at Emailvision in the months ahead.

As I scan the web now for products and services that do a good job in telling their stories, I do not see very many.  As the Emailvision project unfolds, we will look for examples of good use of storytelling in email and social marketing.  I will analyze some of these examples in the coming months, along with our other themes.

In the meantime, if any of you see some good examples, please send them along!