“Good storytelling encourages people to stop, pause and think”

“The greatest art in the world is the art of storytelling.” - Cecil B. DeMille 

A story plays an important role – be it from a strategy viewpoint to conquering the mission, there are various layers to a story. It is the interactive art of using words and actions to reveal the elements and images of a story while encouraging the listener’s imagination. 

With evolving time, the presentation and style of storytelling has changed – from Amar Chitra Katha to films and Reels, everything has changed. As a marketer, it requires to be a storyteller at some point or another because it is necessary for the growth of the brand and the company.

For a better point of view on how storytelling is important and how it impacts brands and consumers, Adgully brought together some leading industry experts, who shared their views on storytelling potential in a panel discussion during CMOs’ Charcha, which was held in October 28, 2021. 

Moderated by Kapil Arora, CEO & Co-Chairman, 82.5 Communications, the panellists included:

Anjana Ghosh, Director - Marketing & Business Development, Bisleri International

Rajesh Krishnamurthy, Business Director - Consumer Products Division, Himalaya Wellness Company 

Ruchika Gupta, Chief Marketing Officer, Luminous Power Technologies

Commencing the discussions, Kapil Arora asked the panelists to narrate their journeys in storytelling and what have been their key learnings.

Speaking about her journey, Anjana Ghosh said, “Storytelling is an eminent part of communicating strategies and product values to the consumer, and specifically in our category. Unfortunately, it is the lowest involvement category, hence communicating with the consumer is has been always a challenge because what you are, after all water is water, and at times, we do not know what to say or communicate to the consumer.”

She added, “In the water trade, it is the retailer who actually influences your decision. We have been successful all these years because we are the only brand who also advertises in this category.”

According to Rajesh Krishnamurthy, “Storytelling in the Indian context is a lot more relevant, because we are used to listening to good stories since our childhood. In the journey of the Himalaya, we have seen both success and failure. And if I look at the success of stories, we realise that an important characteristic of good storytelling is being insightful. Consumers always like an insight that seems to be an interesting story. Another characteristic is that the stories will also need to engage the audience over a period of time. Hence consistency matters. If you look at our epics like ‘Mahabharat’ and ‘Ramayana’, they have a certain amount of consistency. Moreover, stories have to evolve with the way the consumer trends are changing.”

On the other hand, Ruchika Gupta observed that the role that advertising is playing is different for different brands. Advertising was always meant to provoke.

Good storytelling is when we encourage people to stop, pause and think, said the industry experts.

These are edited excerpts. For the complete interaction watch below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5reAWYuV00