BRAND BUZZ

SELLING POWER OF STORIES IN SPIRITS BEVERAGE BRANDING THE

WRITTEN BY

DAVID SCHUEMANN

Creating a narrative that engages your consumer and embraces their lifestyle will build brand loyalty and bolster your bottom line.

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he power of storytelling in consumer engagement is undeniable, but often deciding how to develop your spirits brand’s story presents a more difficult challenge. In the following article I’ve outlined some keys to developing killer stories that will appeal to your consumer, grab their attention, and engage their imagination. The goal of telling effective stories about your brand should always be to lead your consumer from initial awareness to trial, and ultimately to brand advocacy.

GUIDELINES FOR CREATING A KILLER STORY

1 .DEVELOP YOUR BRAND’S ESSENCE. Create a succinct one or two sentence encapsulation of the most important guiding principle or attribute of your brand, then build your story from there. Concentrate on what sets your brand apart. Are you a small-batch, handcrafted producer? A more established producer with years of experience and credibility? WWW.ARTISANSPIRITMAG.COM  

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.KEEP IT REAL.

.KEEP IT SIMPLE, NOT TECHNICAL.

Your story must be truthful. A phony or contrived story will be quickly discovered. Today consumers have unparalleled access to information via the internet, social media and apps which provide endless sources for fact checking.

Your story should not be a thesis on your locale, or overlycomplex distilling nuances. Instead, choose the elements of your brand that are simple, differentiated from your competition, engaging, and most of all compelling for your target consumer, their beliefs and how they live their lives.

4 .RELATE YOUR BRAND TO YOUR CONSUMER’S LIFESTYLE. Do your homework — understand how your consumer thinks, their passions, cultural beliefs, why they choose the spirits they buy, where and how they consume them, and then provide them with a story that will resonate strongly with these considerations.

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