3 reasons why SaaS should use storytelling in content marketing

It's not easy to make people interested in your product. More and more startups appear out of thin air. They have the people, the money and the stack to dominate the market in just a few months.

However, there's one tool that's still widely unpopular among SaaS content marketers. One that turns the hustling alongside your competition into a creative journey that inspires you to develop your product even further.

That tool is called: storytelling.

 

Your brand has its story – even if you don’t know it (yet)

Let me introduce you to a wild concept:

I believe every piece of content can be turned into a story.

Whether it’s a social media post, blog post, YouTube video or billboard - each of those things can turn from mediocre to good with a little bit of storytelling.

 

And big brands already know that.

 

Though the stories your product has might not be visible at a first glance (even if you’re the SaaS owner), I bet your brand there are at least a couple of them. 

 

The main challenge is finding them, incorporating them into your content strategy and… sharing them with the rest of the world!

 

Easier said than done? Well, if it was a piece of cake, I’d be quickly out of the job. 😉

 

Nevertheless, I hope my blog will make it easier for you to find your SaaS stories and turn them from simple anecdotes to captivating, cheeks-burning storytelling. 

 

But before we do that – let’s start with the basics. Or the “Why?”, as Simon Sinek would say.

 

In this text, you’re gonna see 3 strong reasons to make storytelling a crucial part of content marketing strategy for your SaaS.

 

Let’s get to our first reason right away:

 

Storytelling wraps brains around your brand – literally

As humans, we react to stories on both physical and psychological levels.

Hearing a great story activates many areas of the brain. Our brain activates processes regarding emotions arising from sounds or those involved in the movement.

What’s even more incredible is that the brains of a storyteller and a listener start to synchronize, as the story unfolds! The connection gets stronger, as the listener is getting more engaged in the story. 

Another study revealed that reading a story engaged a part of the brain responsible for making predictions. It is very tempting to know what will happen next. So our brain tries very hard to discover as much as it can from the content of the story to get an answer as soon as possible and satisfy the urge.

Basically, humans are programmed to pay more attention to stories.

 

How can we use it in SaaS content marketing?

People like it when a story captivates them. The allusion, hidden contextual cues, and a sense of being a part of the mystery are all very enjoyable.

When you tell stories to your audience, you give them this exact satisfaction.

By incorporating storytelling into your content marketing, you allow your customers to discover your product one story at a time. 

But most importantly – you make them think about your brand and connect with it emotionally. They start to care about your products. Not because you bombarded them with some content marketing wizardry and manipulation techniques. Instead, you offered them a reason to care.

But what if your product is more complicated than that? Wouldn’t it be better to just stick to the simple communication of its features?

Well, straight talk might seem like a great idea in this case. You don’t want to overcomplicate things more than they already are, do you? But – once again – science proves it to be the wrong approach.

Storytelling makes your communication more memorable

Do you remember the last time you heard a great story?

Not just a regular story that you might hear near the water dispenser.

Rather – the one that made your palms sweat. Or the one that raised your heartbeat. Or maybe the one that made you cry hysterically. Or laugh till your belly hurt.

Even if you don’t remember the time and place the story has been said to you – there’s a high chance you remember the story itself. 

And you’re not alone! One study has found that people are 63% more likely to remember stories than statistics. Hard data and straight facts are not things our minds cling to easily. You’ve probably experienced it last time you had to sit at a particularly boring meeting, during which last quarter’s financial report has been presented. 

Yup, you remember exactly nothing from this meeting. 

And that’s no surprise. As humans, we tend to remember things that made us feel something. If the feeling was strong enough – we want to tell others what made us respond emotionally, as it may arise those same emotions in our conversation partner.

The same rules apply to marketing, especially - content marketing. Creating emotional stories and sharing them with your audience makes them think about the story - and your product! 

And if your story is GOOD-good - your audience will want to share it with others. Hence, positive word-of-mouth will be spread about your SaaS. And that’s a few steps away from becoming viral!

Seems like a good perspective, doesn't it?

Want to write a GOOD-good story? Check my other blog posts on how to create stories that your audience will fall in love with.

By the way, have you ever noticed the way people talk about brands? Usually, nobody mentions any particular brand of shoes, drinks, or electronics, just for the sake of it. Usually, a story is associated with the brand. It's the emotional connection with this brand’s product or service that makes us talk about them. 

Or maybe their ad is just a great reason to talk about:

 

 

When marketing your SaaS, talking about all the marvellous things your product is doing will NOT do the trick.

Why? Because standard marketing gibberish is boring!

To become memorable, you must put your customer's mind to work.

Show them all the great things they can achieve by using your product or booking your service. Make their palms sweaty and their heartbeat faster when they see themselves using it.

Just tell them a good story.

 

Creating stories makes you less tired of marketing your business.

Sometimes, talking about your brand can make you feel crazy.

If you’re the only one to manage content marketing in your company, there are at least a few channels you need to update regularly. Just to name a few most popular:

• Your business’ website
  
  
• Company’s blog
  
  
• Social media profiles
  
  
• Email marketing

And you know it takes work and dedication to succeed in any of them. 

Let’s imagine you need to update all of those channels for a whole week. Let’s also visualize that you have not found my blog and do not know a thing about storytelling.

That’s almost a week of… repeating yourself. Same old descriptions of features, same talk about benefits of your solution. Same polished but meaningless marketing.

But there is a way out of this vicious circle. It’s called – you guessed it – storytelling.

Focusing your marketing and content strategy on finding ideas that resonate the most with your customers, and creating stories based on them – makes your work 100% more interesting. 

It wakes up your creativity and faces you with the challenge of discovering more things about your audience. It makes you look at your product from a different perspective. And finally - it increases your chances of making an actual impact with your content.

By using storytelling, you can imagine your story’s hero using your product, resolving their struggles, and becoming a better person. Embrace the excitement it brings you and use it in your writing. 

 

Conclusion: Is storytelling good for content marketing?

If you want to engage your audience with your content and make them think about your product without much effort on your end? Yes, storytelling is definitely for you, and you should incorporate it into your content marketing strategy ASAP.

On the other hand – if you feel a huge amount of cringe and do not feel comfortable making up stories and imaginary situations – then that’s okay too. Maybe this method is entirely not your cup of tea.

Or maybe there are still some questions unanswered, that confuse you and stop you from creating your first stories?

If so, I encourage you to check out my other blog posts and find your answers there!

 

BONUS: a storytelling challenge!

Remember all the synchronizing of the brain stuff? The more excited you are about telling stories about your product, the more your customers will enjoy it as well.

Let me invite you to a small challenge: write an exciting story about your product.

Not just plain, simple “who we are” BS.

Share something personal about your business. Let your customer know one of your secrets. Make it captivating and as unique as your company is. 

Don’t worry! Nobody will see it, so the sky’s the limit. 

Do you feel captivated and excited to share the next part of the story with your listener? Are you enjoying telling it to your customer? If so, you’ve done a great job. 

And if you want me to read the story - feel free to hit me up on Twitter or via email: kuba@storyangled.com

I'll be over the moon if I can get to know you and your SaaS better!

 

Take care 🤹‍♂️