Storytelling In E-Commerce – What’s Beyond A Sale?

E-commerce is hard. While the Flipkarts and Shopifys of the world are doing everything in their power to get sellers on board as quickly as possible, being successful at selling is a completely different paradigm. Think about it – Amazon added as many as 4,000 new sellers on their platform EVERY DAY in 2021 (Source: independent research by Finbold). While that number may have lowered slightly, the competition is still immense. And consumer attention – shrinking. While one is beyond your control, the other takes a little nuance to solve.

In e-commerce, where innovation and customer engagement are paramount, storytelling has emerged as a cornerstone for success. And when you’re looking at crafting stories that go beyond a sale, think of these four pillars to get you started with great storytelling and consumer engagement.

Be Human

The concept of humanizing brands through storytelling finds its roots in consumer psychology and brand perception. In a seminal paper on “Brand Leadership”, authors Aaker and Joachimsthaler emphasize the importance of creating a brand narrative that transcends the product itself. 

Make no mistake – processes will always have their place in business. CX, stock inventory, pricing, discounts, supply chain – they all have their place in being successful in e-commerce. It is important to optimize for every single one of these. Optimizing for consumer affinity however – forging a human connection with your customers – can go a long way in igniting their imagination and acknowledging the gap you fill in their lives. Some do this with copy on their packaging, some with descriptions in their listings, and some with a video on their digital storefront. It’s not a binary decision anymore; it involves considering all of these and then some.

Give them a reason to believe

What do you reckon is the first thing that a consumer looks for when making a purchase on e-commerce? Reviews. Building trust is paramount in the world of e-commerce, where customers may be skeptical of new brands or hesitant to make online purchases. Storytelling that revolves around a reason to believe doesn’t just help you cut through the clutter – it reinstates confidence.

Is there a recipe to building trust? World-renowned expert on an explosive new era of trust and technology – Rachel Botsman thinks so. In her book “Who Can You Trust”, she outlines four key traits that you can borrow when you’re shaping your narrative – Competence, reliability, empathy, and integrity. By building your narrative around either one, or all four of these traits in your storytelling, you craft a narrative that becomes a powerful tool in establishing credibility and giving your audience a reason to believe in your brand.

Oprah Winfrey’s impactful use of the Amazon Influencer Program to support small business owners with empathy and integrity.

The Customer Is Your Storyteller

Dr. Jennifer L. Aaker’s work on “Dimensions of Brand Personality” posits that emotional connections are pivotal in brand-consumer relationships. But how do you arrive at making these emotional connections? The answer lies in the way your consumer feels – the void they feel without your USP, the joy they feel when you fill that gap.

When you start to bring together a focus group to understand your customers, remember to distill out your customer’s needs and how your business impacts it. Every single persona can give you a facet to spark a narrative. When you look for stories in your customer’s needs, you automatically get a lot closer to leaving a mark and ultimately making a sale.

Don’t sell a product – sell an experience

Your customer’s bottom line almost always boils down to value. Now, while the value you offer can range from anything between a gap in the market that nobody else seems to fill as well as you, to perhaps even something as crude as pricing, perceived value is where storytelling can be a game changer. When you sell an experience, you automatically elevate the perceived value of your product. 

HBR’s editorial on the experience economy shows how staging experiences can lead you to have a differentiated offering – ultimately making a strong case for brand loyalty. In your storytelling, craft an experience that extends beyond the checkout page. Consider how your product enhances the daily life of your customers, solves a problem, or brings joy. By selling an experience, you create a lasting impression that resonates with customers, fostering brand loyalty and encouraging repeat business.

Weaving Success with Storytelling

In e-commerce today, the power of storytelling emerges as a strategic weapon to cut through the noise and connect with consumers on a deeper level. Affinity optimization, understanding the customer as your storyteller, giving them a reason to believe based on competence, reliability, empathy, and integrity, selling an experience, harnessing the story arc, and transforming challenges into narratives all contribute to the art and science of e-commerce storytelling. Discover how Red Bangle’s creative expertise can elevate your brand’s storytelling through immersive videos and visuals. As you navigate this intricate landscape, remember that every product has a story, and every brand has a narrative waiting to be told.