Crafting Your Business Through Your Brand Story: Lesson From Famous Authors

“English words are like prisms. Empty, nothing inside, and still they make rainbows.”
– Denis Johnson

What draws you to a story? What grabs you by the collar and creates a connection with you? What makes you care? Something that is raw, real, and able to cut through the noise with gritty authenticity. When good storytelling comes to mind, remember the great author and storyteller Denis Johnson. Just as Johnson’s characters pull you into their chaotic, heartfelt worlds, your brand needs a story that creates a visceral connection with your audience (the main character). Whether you’re finding your way through unpredictable challenges or offering a glimmer of hope in a crowded marketplace, the heart of your brand lies in the story you choose to tell.

Brand storytelling is not just a tool to use in today’s marketing climate. It’s what ties your origin, values, and mission together. The crafting of a powerful story transforms your business into something more, not just a technical skill, but an expression of belief, conviction, and connection, which makes it a powerful prism of reflection. Storytelling, whether in literature or branding, takes the seemingly empty words, the raw materials, and refracts them through the lens of your business, casting a beautiful palette of color that resonates deeply with your audience.

The Difference Between “Brand” and “Branding”

Before delving deeper into brand storytelling, it’s useful to understand the distinction between “brand” and “branding.” After reading a novel, think of the emotional experience a reader has. That is your brand. It is the perception that people have of your business overall.

Branding, on the other hand, is the visual and verbal. The elements that shape the experience: your logo, the color palette, the tone of voice—basically, all the “cover art” and design choices that influence your audience’s first impression.

Your brand is the feeling left behind after someone interacts with your product, and how they expect your business to shape their experience in future interactions because of that feeling. Think of George R. R. Martin creating an entire fantasy world in A Song of Ice and Fire that beckons adventure and high stakes before you even turn a page, hundreds upon hundreds of characters and complex storylines to follow with even the most mundane and minute details of the world being followed. This is a great example of a brand, because you know generally what to expect each time another sequel comes out (eventually, ha!). You’re confident it will leave you with those familiar Game of Thrones feelings.

Branding is the strategy through which all of the above is communicated and kept alive for the audience. In continuing the Martin analogy, think of the spin-off books, shows, world maps, interactive websites, lore, and all that makes up the popular Game of Thrones culture. You can pick it apart piece by piece and reveal the carefully curated strategy behind it all to keep the audience aware of its cultural relevance.

Consider the different styles in which Poe, Hemingway, or other famous authors communicate with their readers. Poe’s works are rich in mystery and atmosphere. He draws readers into his world of psychological depth and tension, filled with Romantic ideas and Greek and Roman metaphors to develop that tension. Hemingway, in contrast, is known for his clean, unembellished prose, and he focuses on direct storytelling. Readers opening a Hemingway book to be greeted with a series of long sentences wouldn’t be blamed for double-checking the name on the cover. Your brand must similarly project the right tone and atmosphere to your audience, depending on the narrative you wish to build.

To further explore the difference, feel free to check out our glossary page on Brand vs. Branding.

The Building Blocks of a Brand Identity

Just as a great book has compelling characters, vivid settings, intricate plots, and draws the reader into caring about the world, your brand story and identity are made up of various parts that work together to tell your story. These parts include your origin story, mission, vision, values, and brand personality. Let’s take a look at how each part fits into your overall brand narrative:

The Origin Story

Every great author starts somewhere, and every brand has an origin story. Whether you started at a school newspaper like Stephen King or faced seemingly insurmountable odds like many entrepreneurs, your origin story is a vital part of your brand identity and ought to be out there for the world to see. But even though your beginning is important, it shouldn’t be the entire focus of your brand storytelling.

Just like authors who craft twists and turns in their stories, your brand storytelling should address the ever-changing needs of your audience, and this is vital. Your origin is significant, but your early followers or investors want to know about your ongoing evolution and how you handle today’s challenges that will matter most to your customers, and ultimately, your business. In today’s market, businesses absolutely cannot afford to dwell on the past—your story must continually evolve to stay relevant.

An origin story might look something like this: you started your business with a small loan from a family member or maxed out a credit card, risking it all to chase a dream you always had. This is a great hook, but as with any memorable character arc, your customers want to see how your business has grown and what’s next in the journey. Vince Gilligan’s Breaking Bad comes to mind, a compelling story of how seemingly terrible people turned good and good people turned bad (looking at you, Walt). But it was the journey and the character arcs that kept the audience invested in its relevance, not just the beginning. Your brand story needs these same layers of development, constantly growing with new challenges to overcome.

Mission, Vision, Values (MVV): The Heart of Brand Messaging

Your mission, vision, and values (MVV) are the core themes of your brand storytelling. Think of them as the underlying message that drives every chapter of your business story. Going back to the Poe example, think of how he weaves layers of meaning into his stories, quite fitting as we head into the spookiest time of year. Likewise, your MVV should shape your brand narrative, providing direction and purpose.

Mission

Your mission is the driving force behind your business’s existence. Why are you in business? What do you want to accomplish? This is the “what” and the “why” of your story. Much like how Poe’s characters are driven by obsession or the unknown, your brand’s mission defines what you’re striving for and why it matters.

Vision:

This is the “where” of your story. Where do you want to go? Where does your brand aspire to be a few years down the road or far into the future? What does the world look like when you get there? Your vision is about the future you want to build for your customers and your audience at large. It is that guiding light, much like the distant goal a character in a long epic seeks. Your vision might be to revolutionize your industry or to lead your community toward a better future. It can vary in size and scope, depending on your business and the needs of your customers.

Values:

This is the ethos of your business, where it stands, and guides all your decisions. Like Jesse Pinkman’s moral compass in Breaking Bad, your values determine how you operate. Whether you prioritize innovation, customer service, sustainability, or something else, your values provide structure and consistency in every part of your brand storytelling.

Your MVV should be woven into every aspect of your brand’s narrative. From the products you offer to the way you communicate with customers, each action should reflect your core mission, vision, and values. To explore how MVV shapes your brand identity, check out our page on Mission, Vision, and Values.

Voice Identity

Every author has a unique voice, and your brand should be no different. Your voice identity is how your business “sounds” to your audience, whether through blog posts, social media updates, or customer service communication. Is your tone reflective like Poe, or engaging like King?

A strong voice identity differentiates your brand and also builds consistency across all your platforms. When your customers hear or read your content, they should instantly recognize it as yours (remember brand identity from before). For example, Stephen King has a way of instantly setting the tone with his voice. Whether you are reading The Shining or It, you know you’re in King’s world from the first sentence. Your brand should be just as obvious through the tone and style of your communication.

As short story writer and essayist Steve Almond once said of his common collaborator Cheryl Strayed, “We are all, in the private kingdom of our hearts, desperate for the company of a wise, true friend.” It is important to develop a brand voice identity that not only reflects your values, but also resonates and brings that connection to your target audience. You wouldn’t expect Dolce & Gabbana to use the same voice as Abercrombie & Fitch. You wouldn’t expect Hemingway’s direct, efficient prose to speak to his readers in the same way Poe’s florid, verbose, gothic language might. Your brand should match your audience’s expectations and desires, but above all, connect to them like the company of that wise and true friend.

Brand Personality

Your brand personality is the character you embody as you tell your story. It is the essence of who you are as you craft your brand narrative. Like the protagonists in your favorite novels, you can be relatable, aspirational, or even complex. Just as Steinbeck’s characters are known for their earthy realism and Twain’s for their satire and wit, your brand should have a distinct personality that attracts your audience and speaks directly to them.

Is your brand presenting itself as an authoritative expert in a field? Is it warm and inviting? Your audience develops an emotional bond through the way you curate your story, which helps identify your brand personality. Consistency is key for your brand personality. Imagine reading a novel where the protagonist keeps changing with no explanation (some might think of the Twilight Saga)—it would be jarring and off-putting. The same goes for your brand. Any inconsistency can cause confusion, limit your audience, increase doubt, or, even worse, erode trust.

How to Get Your Brand Story and Identity In Form

Every story has an intended audience, and so does your brand story. Your target audience is crucial in shaping the tone and direction of your narrative. Your customers, very much like readers of a novel, should feel that your story speaks directly to their needs and challenges, and we’ve spoken about previously.

Personas for Target Audiences

Personas are yet another iteration of your story’s characters. These are fictionalized representations of your ideal customers, and they come in all shapes and sizes. They are typically developed based on data and research, just as a novelist might create characters that show and possess real human emotions and experiences. Your personas should always reflect the behaviors, pain points, and characteristics of the audience you’re aiming to attract.

Vonnegut’s characters are frequently ordinary individuals caught up in supernatural, bizarre, or surreal circumstances beyond their control. Similar to that, your personas should be real people grappling with unexpected challenges beyond their control, searching for ways to get to the right solutions. You can craft a brand story by understanding the plight of these personas, their goals, and ultimately craft a message that connects with your audience by addressing their struggles and aspirations.

Message Maps

George R. R. Martin says that he has a whole team of people who help him keep track of who’s who, what’s what, and when’s when. He has complex plot lines and maps drawn up to bring life to his fantasy world of Westeros. In pop culture, you might hear people speak of these worlds as if they are true history. And much like how Martin uses maps to ensure all his key messaging is aligned and consistent across his books (even if he might be using his Game of Thrones shows as market research for his real ending), your message maps should ensure your brand story stays on track, delivering the right message at the right time.

Your message map should include key points for each of your personas to discuss. Always address their unique challenges and show how your brand speaks to those challenges and offers realistic solutions. This ensures that whether you are writing an email, posting something on social media, or fixing copy in a blog, your brand story is clear, consistent, and follows those “plot lines” you’ve taken the time to organize.

Content Ideation: Brainstorming Your Storylines

What do The Great Gatsby, To Kill A Mockingbird, and One Hundred Years of Solitude have in common? They all started with a great idea. Every novel starts as a seed that eventually grows into something much more complex and beautiful. The same applies to your content. Content ideation is this process. It is the process of generating and developing ideas that align with your brand’s story, oftentimes starting with something as small as seed. It’s like the brainstorming sessions authors have when creating characters, plot twists, and settings. And much like authors, you might have the entire concept of your content all in one go, or it might be a series of piecing together parts to make a whole.

To keep your content relevant and fresh, it’s important to seek inspiration. Engage is collaborative ideation sessions, pay attention to and research industry trends, and explore angles that resonate with your audience. It’s crafting a new story arc in an ongoing series. You stay you, but you adapt to new challenges and opportunities while staying on brand the entire time.

But it doesn’t stop at just brainstorming. No! It’s about tapping into what your audience cares about, just like a great author connects with their readers’ emotions and desires. Going back to Stephen King, one of the most prolific American writers in history, who once famously said his secret to writing so many books is “I try to write six pages a day,” the constant ideating of content is what will help you speak to your audience’s needs and emotions, crucial for engagement. King knows what will resonate with his audience, and every good idea he has that would resonate with his audience gets ideated, worked into an idea, and eventually into his next book.

Check out 13 Ideation Tips to Boost Your Content Marketing Strategy for inspiration.

Storytelling Techniques

Great authors know that the best stories are the sum of many parts and not just taken at face value. In brand storytelling, this can be equated to demonstrating through case studies, real-world examples, and testimonials rather than simply starting your business’s features.

Use the active voice and be concise. Show, don’t tell. A few well-placed, potent sentences often say more than paragraphs of information. Whether you’re posting a blog or creating a video, remember that brand storytelling is about guiding your audience through a journey, one that has a clear beginning, middle, and end. Follow the thread from beginning to end.

Here are some key storytelling techniques to consider:

• Show, Don’t Tell: Let your audience experience your brand (as we mentioned before) rather than just hearing about it.
• Active vs. Passive Voice: Active sentences are simpler, more engaging, and direct, and are better for search engine optimization.
• Conciseness: Say more with fewer words, similar to the above point.
• Hero’s Journey: Your customer is the hero, and your brand helps them overcome obstacles.
• Narrative Thread: Keep all your content organized with a clear beginning, middle, and end. It is a story, so make it a story.

The Outcome of Great Brand Storytelling

What do you get when your brand’s story is well-told? They remember you, the same way you remember all the best books you have ever read. They stick with you, become a part of you, and you recommend them to others. Great brand storytelling, likewise, leads to:

• Stronger Brand Sentiment: Your audience feels the connection to your brand. It is not just a logo.
• Increased Trust: Customers trust brands that demonstrate authenticity and consistency. 
• Thought Leadership: You establish yourself as a leader in your industry, much like a celebrated author sets the standard in their genre that can last decades or generations.
• Loyal Followers: People want to be a part of something meaningful. When you tell a good story, your audience becomes invested.

Let’s Write Your Story Together

Remember: your brand’s story is waiting to be told. Whether you’re just starting or looking to refine your narrative, great brand storytelling will always set you apart from competition and create meaningful connections with your audience. Think of Content Workshop as your trusted editor (unlike George Martin, who still uses WordStar 4.0 on a computer from the ‘80s)—we’re here to help you craft a story that not only resonates but drives results for you and your business.

Ready to bring your brand story to life? Let’s get rolling. Contact us today to learn how we can help you develop a compelling brand story and enhance your digital presence through our brand identity services.