Content Marketing: Do You Know How to Tell a Story?

Content is queen and she’s the most powerful piece in your Not for Profit marketing empire. But, it’s often hard to know where to start, what to focus on, and how to make sure you use her time, influence and investment effectively.

Award-winning digital strategy agency, ntegrity, has seen first-hand how powerful stories can be used to stimulate ideas towards actions for their many NFP clients, and we’d like to show you how it’s done.

In two, hands-on workshops in Melbourne on 30 September and Sydney on 12 October, ntegrity’s Strategy Director Tony Lee will be teaching how Not for Profits can harness the power of content to propel your organisation’s growth.

And, as a special gift to Pro Bono Australia readers, you can get 10 per cent off with our promo code: PBA10.

According to Tony Lee, without the resources to build great content, brands are left telling only half their story, and potentially risking bonds with prospective donors in the process.

Lee will walk through the strategies for shifting organisational culture and thinking to focus on original content, impact measurement and metrics for measuring success, seeking and creating meaningful content, and how to distribute this content across your digital channels.

There’s no denying that content is top of mind for most marketers. In fact, research from the Content Marketing Institute shows more than 60 per cent of marketers say they want to be producing more of it this year, but, half also say that creating engaging content is a challenge. It’s no wonder that only a third of surveyed marketers have actually produced a documented content strategy!            

So what is tripping content marketers up? Why is it such a challenge? Perhaps it’s the very simple fact that we’ve tricked ourselves into thinking that content is something that it’s not…

The truth is that content is nothing new! Great marketers, salespeople, leaders and influencers of all kinds have been harnessing the power of content since the dawn of time. They just gave it a different name: storytelling.

Psychological studies have shown that we are much more likely to both retain information and form an emotional bond to a person, issue or piece of information if we develop our understanding through stories.

When we’re forced to consume uninteresting information, part of our brain (Wernicke’s area) works to translate them into meaning. We must make efforts to interpret it, and understand how it applies to our lives.

But when we’re told a story, our brains do something remarkable: they bring details to life in our minds – the centres in our brain responsible for real action and sensation take charge. Our sensory cortex starts to imagine the tastes and smells of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, while our motor cortex responds directly to Forrest Gump bolting down the road until we’re almost there running alongside him. We’re not just sorting information – we’re living it.

Many studies have shown that information told as a story is also far more likely to be retained: it creates ‘anchors’, or, points in the memory that are easier to find again. When you ask someone to put themselves in the story, the effect is even more powerful.

With so many of our decisions made on an emotional level, stories are essential to draw us in and create these experiences and connections. The more we feel we’re part of the story, the more we’re driven to do more than simply feel – but also take action. For Not for Profits, this means that good stories inspire more giving.

It’s up to Not for Profits to engage their audience in relationships that create this kind of experience; to create imaginative and share-worthy ways to connect. So, if you’re a NFP marketer looking to take your digital marketing to the next level, the first thing you should know is  how to harness the power of a story to captivate and activate them.

Are you ready to become a content crafter to be reckoned with? Find out more and book your tickets here for Melbourne and here for Sydney.

Don’t forget to use the Pro Bono Australia Promo Code (PBA10) for a 10 per cent discount.

We can’t wait to see you there!