Submitted by

Prachi Mohan 14P033

Rishabh Sood 14P039
Srishti Jain 14P050
Devang Nahar 14P075
Diksha Mahajan 14P077
Shakur Mirzadah 15AU01

Topic
Essential elements for brand storytelling and the use of social media as a
channel for brand storytelling

Purpose of the study

A brand story is more than just content and a narrative of the brand. The
story goes beyond whats written on a website, the text in a brochure or the
presentation used to pitch to customers. Your story isnt just what you tell
people its also what they believe about you based on the signals your brand
sends. The story is a complete picture made up of facts, feelings and
interpretations, which means that part of your story isnt even told by you.
Everything you do, each element of your business or brand, from the colors
and texture of your packaging and business cards, to the staff you hire is
part of your brand story and every element should reflect the truth about
your brand back to your audience. If you want to build a successful,
sustainable brand that will garner loyalty, and if youre lucky become loved
you have to start with a story.
With this project we would try to evaluate the effect of various elements that
help a brand tell its story and how technology and digitization is impacting
brand storytelling as well as brand experience. There has been a lot of
activity recently due to the rise of use of social media and smart phones, this
project will help us understand how brands are changing ways and finding
new ways in order to communicate better and to continue to remain relevant
in the technologically charged environment. This project will also help us
study the successful elements of brand experience and storytelling.

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Justification of the study

The best brands are built on great stories
Ian Rowden, Chief Marketing Officer, Virgin Group
Business Brand Storytelling Combines Several Essential Aspects

Who you are

What you specifically do

How you solve problems

How you add value and care

How you engage and contribute

Brand storytelling helps create:

A COMPELLING BRAND STORY STRATEGY

BRAND NAMES, PRODUCT NAMES, BOOK TITLES & TAGLINES THAT HEL
P YOU STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD

UNIQUE MARKETING STRATEGY

With so much that storytelling does for the brand and the business it is
important to study its impact and what has an impact on it. As part of our
brand management it only justifies us to study an important aspect in the
creation of the most iconic brands.

Significance of the study

Dont give them 4, give them 2+2 Andrew Stanton, PIXAR Animation.
This study will be an essential Endeavour towards understanding and
utilizing the elements of brand storytelling towards building a brand and
engaging customers, and the overall impact of storytelling on the tangible
and intangible aspects of brand value. The findings of the study will help a
marketer know what tools to use and in what amounts to deliver a proper
brand story, and what impact can be expected out of it, if any.

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Brand storytelling is almost as old as buyer seller relationships, but recently,

the term has garnered a lot of focus.

In a study on writtent.com, the

following findings were published:

1. Every 60 seconds, 700,000 Google searches are performed.
2. 5.3 trillion ads are shown online each year.
3. The average consumer processes 100,500 digital words daily.
It is thus quite possible that owing to the plethora of content consumers are
fed online and offline, several isolated marketing messages are ignored.
Brand storytelling might serve as a way to bind the customers to a particular
message, and thus increase engagement. The findings of this study can
therefore be quite beneficial to marketing managers.

Literature Review
Brand Experience: What is it? How is it measured? Does it affect
loyalty?
J. Joko Brakus, Bernd H. Schmitt, & Lia Zarantonello (2009).
Brakus et al. (2009) distinguished several experience dimensioned and
constructed a brand experience scale with four dimensions: affective,
behavioral, intellectual and sensory. Through six studies, the authors show
that the scale is valid and reliable. The results showed that there are
different affects of brand- experience and personality on loyalty and
satisfaction.

Furthermore,

the

results

revealed

that

direct

affect

of

experience on loyalty is higher than it is on satisfaction: on the other hand,

the direct affect of brand personality on loyalty is lower than it is on
satisfaction.

Reframing brand experience: The Experiential meaning of

Harley-Davidson
Sharon Schembri (2009).
This ethnographic research of more than three years focuses on consumers
experience of Harley Davidson in Australia based on social, cultural and
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political relationships relating to brand consumption. The results show that

the Harley Davidson Experience comes from within a social context and
community and a sense of belonging play a significant role: consumption in
this context is a socializing tool and Harley Davidson brand is a symbol of
socialization. Moreover, informants revealed that the experience of HarleyDavidson is share emotion, where repetitive symbolic rituals define a way of
life and create common values that bind the members together.

Brand experience formation mechanism and its possible

outcomes: A theoretical framework
Imran Khan Zillur Rahman
Nowadays, both managers and academicians have started seeing consumers
as rational, as well as emotional, decision makers. Because of this,
companies have started reinventing marketing and engaging consumers
through experiences. Experiences provide platforms that are linked with
various aspects of a brand. However, these experiential platforms might also
bring about changes in traditional marketing thoughts which are based on
functional features and benefits. It is important for marketers to comprehend
the formation and delivery of well-managed experiences. Keeping this in
mind, the present research focuses on an emerging area in the field of
marketing and branding concepts: brand experience. The primary objective
of this study is to identify the pertinent antecedents and consequences of
brand experience through the literature. With an extensive literature review,
this study offers a series of research propositions, from antecedents to the
consequences of the brand experience, which clarifies the understanding of
brand experience formation and its possible outcomes. Finally, a theoretical
framework representing the proposed relationships is also presented. The
managerial implications of brand experience are discussed in order to
develop a marketing strategy.

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Exploration of brand sacralization among the young adult

consumers in the context of emerging Asian market
Juhi Gahlot Sarkar Abhigyan Sarkar Abhilash Ponnam
The purpose of this paper was to uncover various factors that make the
young consumers in emerging Asian market devotees of brands and sacrilize
brands giving rise to a phenomenon called brand sacralization where the
individual consumer considers brand as sacred as religion. Another objective
of this research was to investigate the acculturation process taking place
among the young adult consumers in emerging Asian market. The concept of
brand sacralization has been defined to bring theoretical sensitivity.
Grounded theory method has been used to collect, analyze and interpret the
data collected through semi-structured depth interviews. Data analysis
reveals various underlying dimensions of brand sacralization and various
actionable

antecedents

and

consequence

of

brand

sacralization.

Originality/value Value of the article lies in developing a grounded theory

framework for brand sacralization that can guide the marketers doing
business in emerging markets to build a strong brand that the consumers
would sacralize.

Consumer Based Brand Equity Conceptualization &

Measurement
Christodoulides, George and de Chernatony, Leslie/2010
Although there is a large body of research on brand equity, little in terms of a
literature review has been published on this since Feldwicks (1996) paper. To
address this gap, this paper brings together the scattered literature on
consumer

based

brand

equitys

conceptualization

and

measurement.

Measures of consumer based brand equity are classified as either direct or

indirect. Indirect measures assess consumer based brand equity through its
demonstrable dimensions and are superior from a diagnostic level. The paper

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concludes with directions for future research and managerial pointers for
setting up a brand equity measurement system.

The impact of storytelling on the consumer brand experience:

The case of a firm-originated story
Anna Lundqvist,

Veronica Liljander,

Johanna Gummerus

and

Allard van

Riel/2013
Stories fascinate people and are often more easily remembered than facts.
Much has been written about the power of stories in branding, but very little
empirical evidence exists of their effects on consumer responses. In the
present study, we investigate how a firm-originated story influences
consumers brand experience, by comparing the brand experiences of two
groups of consumers. One group was exposed to the story and one group
was not. An existing brand was used in the study, which had not been
launched in the focal country. In-depth interviews were conducted with
individuals in the two experimental conditions. The comparison revealed
remarkable differences between the two groups. Consumers who were
exposed to the story described the brand in much more positive terms and
were willing to pay more for the product. The study contributes to brand
management research and practice by demonstrating the power of
storytelling on consumer experiences. The results are also important from a
managerial point of view. They demonstrate how brand stories can be used
to create and reinforce positive brand associations. A review of past research
in combination with the findings demonstrates that more research is needed
on the effect of stories on consumer brand responses.

How to Use Digital Storytelling in Social Media:

Show you Brands Human Side

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People connect with people, not brands. So to connect with your

customers, show your brands personal side. At the same time, dont
share too many personal details. Remember: social media isn't your
diary. Whatever you choose to share, make sure youre comfortable
with the whole world knowing.

Share your Brands Story

People dont buy into brands -- they buy into the story behind brands.
Just like you use your website & blog to tell your brands story, do the
same thing with social media. Reinforce your brands message & the
things that you stand for. For example, if youre an organic grocery
store like Whole Foods, known for a focus on natural products & overall
health, then use social media to share information that suits that
message. Every piece of content you post, no matter how simple or
small is a way to reinforce the story youre communicating. Doing so
builds credibility for your brand & makes your content relevant.

Work Narrative into Updates

One of the best ways to tell a story is to do exactly that -- tell a story.
You can do this on Facebook by turning your status updates into
miniature blog posts. But its not just Facebook that's conducive to
digital storytelling. Even Twitter, with its 140 character limit, can be an
awesome tool for telling stories. In fact, working within a character
limit just encourages creativity.

Share Consecutive Posts to tell a Broader Story

Another way to share a story on social media is to use consecutive
updates to tell the story, from beginning to end. The play-by-play
creates anticipation -- which is the best way to make a story
captivating.

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Incorporate Elements of Story into Posts

The concept of "story" is so basic, it can feel hard to break down &
understand. So if creating stories feels complicated, focus in on the
basic elements of stories & try to incorporate them in your content. For
exampleo Relatable Characters- Part of the reason you want to share a
personal side of your business (see point #1 above) is that it
makes you relatable. Every good story has relatable characters
with personalities & interests. Make your brand that sort of
character by letting your audience in. Likewise, creating regular
personalities in your narrativesoffice personnel, company
mascots, etc.is a good way to build people your customers find
engaging.
o Stories with a Beginning, Middle and End- One of the most basic
building blocks of a good story is pacing -- first this happens,
then this, then this. Beginning, middle, end. Use this sort of
narrative arc any way you can.
o Conflict- People like drama! And stories are most compelling
when they include conflict & resolution. So whether youre
sharing about the flood damage affecting your facility or behindthe-scenes challenges in developing products, sharing details
about the conflict associated with your work will draw readers in.

The Five Act Formula of Brand Storytelling

ACT 1: Introduction
ACT 2: Rising Action
ACT 3: Climax
ACT 4: Falling Action
ACT 5: Resolution

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Research Objectives
The Research objectives are broadly as follows
The purpose of this research is to analyze the overall impact of storytelling
on the tangible and intangible aspects of brand value. How brand experience
and brand value correlate. Also to understand what the impact of brand
storytelling and brand experience on the brands perceived image.
How brand storytelling impacts the perceived brand image
Does brand experience impact brand value positively or negatively

Hypothesis Development
1. Does brand storytelling impact the perceived brand image?
2. Is social media an effective tool for brand storytelling?

Research Methodology and Data Collection

1. for Primary Data:
The primary data was collected through the survey method that is
questionnaire development and responses are obtained by floating the
questionnaire developed using Google form to social networking websites
and sending it to email ids. For this purpose questionnaires were prepared in
such a way that all necessary data would be collected.
Our target segment includes respondents from both the working as well as
non-working people to diversify the responses. This will diversify the portfolio
and give us the clear idea about the purchase behavior of people towards
mobile phones. The respondents will also include people from different
income group, age group which will further give us inputs about their
preferences.

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2. For Secondary Data:

To prepare this project report, we collected external data generated from
general library research sources, textbooks, trade journals, articles from
newspapers, and internet websites. To prepare this project report, we
collected external data generated from general library research sources,
textbooks, trade journals, articles from newspapers, and internet websites.

Outline/ flow of the study

The study would consist of:
1. Literature review: Review of relevant literature as secondary research. This
would include examples of brand storytelling, studies conducted in the past
and the generally accepted definition of terms.
2. Hypothesis development: Based on the findings from the literature review,
specific hypotheses will be developed for further research.
3. Primary Research: Primary research would subsequently be carried out,
most probably with the help of surveys, within identified limitations.
4. Data Collection and Conclusion: The findings from the Primary Research
would be collated and processed, and inferences would be drawn out of
them, to assess the implications of the results.

Deductive
Approach

Descriptive
Research

Online
Survey
Questionnai
re

Data
Analysis
and
Inferences

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Questionnaire

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Validity of the questionnaire was established via a Cronbach Alpha rating

of 0.805. KMO matrix was used to validate the data collected.

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Analysis of Hypothesis 1
Brand storytelling positively impacts the perceived brand
image

Suppose you were ignorant of the history and

innovation and general customer loyalty surrounding
Apple. How would Apple fare then? (5 being the highest)

Apples unintended storytelling

44.9% people have given Apple the highest rating as a brand
However, when asked to rate Apple, had they been unaware of its
history, innovation & general customer loyalty, only 8.7% still gave
Apple the highest rating (only 19.3% retention)

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 This shows how the history, innovation & awareness of the customer
loyalty of Apple as a brand has helped build the Apple brand through
unintended story telling

Pick the best campaign from the following:

E Commerce: Impact of different Types of Brand storytelling

This question explores the impact of different types of storytelling for
different brands in the same industry (E commerce here)
Flipkart, being an online marketplace, used the element of trust in its
marketing communication, as part of its storytelling, to connect with its
target audience
In contrast its competing firms, Amazon & Snapdeal, used variety and
emotional connect respectively as its focus of brand storytelling
The consumers rated the Flipkart ad campaign to be the best amongst
the 3
Brands in the same industry can build their brand image using brand
storytelling as part of its marketing communication, the success of
which will depend on the connect of each with the customers

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Rank the following ads (1 being the best)

Different types of Brand Communication

The

last

question

explores

how

different

kinds

of

marketing

communication, including brand storytelling, mild storytelling, humor,

product details & celebrity endorsements impact brand image
Here, the Google ad gets the maximum votes as the best ad campaign,
where in the brand used brand storytelling and established an
emotional connect with its audience
Yippie & Alpenliebe got the lowest votes as they communicated the
core benefits of the brand, without humor or emotional connect with
the customers

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Recall the little kid in the 'jalebi?' ad (90's ad). Which

cooking oil was shown in the ad?

Correlation between storytelling & Brand Name recall

This question attempts to explore how brand storytelling could
overpower the communication of brand name
Sometimes there might not be a correlation between the richness of
the story and recall of the brand name
We used the iconic Jalebi ad to explore this facet of brand storytelling
However 55.1% of the total respondents were able to recall the correct
name of the brand, for the other respondents, the storytelling
overpowered the brand recall
One-way Anova test confirmed that brand storytelling positively impacts
perceived brand image. (Sig. Value > .05)

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Analysis of Hypothesis 2
Brand value is positively correlated with brand experience

Suppose the option you picked in the above question

ceased to exist, how would you rate Starbucks, if you
initially rated it 5/5?

Starbucks: Brand experience value

The 1st question, asking people the best thing about Starbucks, apart
from the coffee, is just exploratory
The 2nd question shows how the rating changes if the perceived best
element of the brand experience is revoked, everything else remaining
constant

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 Only 5.5% of the respondents still rated Starbucks to be the highest

even after their most important brand experience element was
revoked
This primarily indicates the importance of brand experience to the
overall brand perception
One-way Anova test confirmed that brand experience positively impacts
brand value. (Sig. Value > .05)

Conclusion
Brand storytelling positively impacts the perceived brand
image
Unintended brand story telling can also positively impact brand
image as in the case of Apple
Brands in the same industry can build their brand image using
brand storytelling as part of its marketing communication
Brand storytelling that uses an emotional connect better impacts
brand image
Brand storytelling can, in some cases and to some extent,
overpower brand recall
Brand value is positively correlated with brand experience

Recommendations
Brand storytelling is a powerful tool in creating brand image and
should be used by companies to create an emotional connect with the
consumers
Brand experience also positively impacts brand value and hence
companies should focus on creating an experience around their brand
to increase perceived value of the brand

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Limitations
o Small sample set due to paucity of time
o Quantitative methods and statistical tools could be used for future
research by testing with a large sample size
o Bias could have occurred due to male female ratio

Future Scope
Future research can be done by segregating consumers on a
demographic and psychographic basis like region, income etc
Further understanding and impact of digital elements in storytelling

References
1. The

Brand

story,

Accessed

on

25 th

September,

2015

http://thestoryoftelling.com/brand-story-services/
2. What is brand storytelling, by Deborah Shane, Accessed on 25th
September

2015:

http://smallbiztrends.com/2015/05/what-is-brand-

storytelling.html
3. Why storytelling matters: A data driven answer, by Jasmine Henry,
Accessed

on

25th

September

2015:

http://writtent.com/blog/storytelling-matters-data-driven-explanation/
4. Using storytelling to strengthen your brand, By J-P De Clerck, Accessed
on 25th September 2015: http://www.i-scoop.eu/using-storytellingstrengthen-brand/

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