Telling Stories To The World
Joining the dots is a powerful, personal experience that helps us to understand ourselves and the world that we live in. We understand our place in the world once we understand others’ – it’s why we travel – and storytelling is the simplest, yet most powerful, way to join the dots.
Stories are the truest form of communication. Handed down through generations, stories told to us help us create and define our own existence. We read books, watch films and swap tales, creating the fabric of our own society in the process. Our stories develop our own points of reference – the ties that bind – through common and shared experiences which become the stories for the next generation.
An emotive experience, storytelling is a simple process that drives engagement with your destination and increases growth.
The Science Of Storytelling
Stories are transformative – they show us how to access a different experience or perspective of the world than our own. We’re instinctively open and receptive to the message and meaning that’s being shared. It sparks a response in the brain, in which the listener’s brain mirrors the patterns of the storyteller’s brain, generating an empathetic response that’s both emotional and physical.
A good story takes us beyond telling to showing and helps us to relate to the human condition. It gives us a ‘Wow’ moment of connection – a good story gives us the goosebumps. Geotourist’s technology supports the storytelling experience, with users getting lost in the moment while knowing exactly where they are. They’re listening to information that real people are sharing with them – that brings an intimacy that’s hard to replicate, without anyone stepping out of their comfort zone.
Scratching The Surface
Cognitive psychologist, Jerome Bruner, suggests that we are 22 times more likely to remember a fact when it is enveloped in an engaging story. Good storytelling evokes feelings, leading to increased interest, brand loyalty and culminates in a willingness to part with money to feel a part of the story with physical keepsakes or experiences to bank in the fond-memories folder.
Where do you start? What are your destination’s unique selling points? Storytelling around your destination is your opportunity to showcase the many different aspects that create a whole picture. The more emotional touchpoints you create, the greater the opportunity to resonate with visitors and potential visitors on an emotional level.
Can you measure a feeling?
How DO you measure something that is defined by words like experiential, fun, unexpected, aspirational, local, relevant, innovative, creative and consumable?
You track engagement, such as comments, views, likes, shares, and when things return to normal, you look for bookings and arrivals.
Meet Your Visitors On Their Terms
Most destinations have room for more than one type of visitor and are actively seeking to attract many different market segments and personas at once. Storytelling empowers destinations to finely nuance messaging for different market segments, increasing their opportunity to touch visitors on an emotional level.
And for the right-now?
People can’t travel, but they need to dream – your stories are the fuel for their daydreaming and escapism. Once people can move freely and without restriction, they will plan, book and stay again.
The Coronavirus has pulled the rug out from under the travel industry’s feet, however it has also created a seismic shift in how people are behaving. Simply put, people are not used to people any more. How are you going to encourage them back?