[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2014\/09\/17\/brands-need-to-stop-advertising-and-start-storytelling\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2014\/09\/17\/brands-need-to-stop-advertising-and-start-storytelling\/","headline":"Brands need to stop advertising and start storytelling","name":"Brands need to stop advertising and start storytelling","description":"Traditional advertising campaigns just don't make the grade anymore. Here's why storytelling is so much more powerful.","datePublished":"2014-09-17","dateModified":"2024-04-12","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/rich-taylor\/#Person","name":"Rich Taylor","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/rich-taylor\/","identifier":79,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4047d1e3d612728a5321afcca6b9fd94b552f95ba7293c54a03db680789385ea?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4047d1e3d612728a5321afcca6b9fd94b552f95ba7293c54a03db680789385ea?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The Future of Commerce","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/logo-foc-schema-app-1.png","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/logo-foc-schema-app-1.png","width":172,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Fashion-Technology-FTR.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Fashion-Technology-FTR.jpg","height":375,"width":1200},"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2014\/09\/17\/brands-need-to-stop-advertising-and-start-storytelling\/","about":[{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/marketing\/content-marketing\/","name":"Content Marketing","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Content_marketing","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q558685"]},{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/marketing\/customer-engagement-marketing\/","name":"Customer Engagement","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Customer_engagement","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q5196451"]},{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/marketing\/","name":"Marketing","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Marketing","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q39809"]},{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/marketing\/marketing-general\/","name":"Marketing","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Marketing","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q39809"]}],"wordCount":613,"keywords":["Brand Marketing","Customer Engagement","Marketing"],"articleBody":"Advertising has helped many brands become category leaders. Brands such as Coca-Cola, McDonald\u2019s, Kellogg\u2019s, General Motors, Microsoft and more have produced ad campaigns that have made their products household favorites.So what could be wrong with following proven advertising techniques such as theirs? Plenty.More than ever before, people are tuning out advertising campaigns. The traditional approach to \u201ctelling is selling\u201d and using creative techniques to grab consumer attention really don\u2019t work anymore.Storytelling: McDonald’s vs. ChipotleLet\u2019s consider the stories of two fast-food brands.McDonald\u2019s is an iconic brand known for its advertising. According to Kantar Media,\u00a0McDonald\u2019s spent $963\u00a0million\u00a0on advertising in 2013. The most ad spending of any restaurant chain. \u201cBah dah dot dah dah \u2026 I\u2019m lovin\u2019 it.\u201dAnd how is this campaign helping McDonald\u2019s business? Global sales increased just 0.2 percent and comparable sales in the U.S. decreased -1.4 percent in the 4th quarter and -0.2 percent for the year .Nearly $1 billion dollars in advertising to stay top of mind with fast food eaters and McDonald\u2019s lost ground with U.S. consumers.As a result of this McDonald\u2019s has announced a number of executive changes, including the departure of the U.S. Chief Creative Officer who was instrumental in creating the \u201cI\u2019m lovin\u2019it\u201d campaign.Here\u2019s McDonald\u2019s real problem: their story isn’t a good one.The press, healthcare professionals, filmmakers, foodies and many other influencers who shape consumer attitudes and opinions have framed McDonald\u2019s story as \u201cunhealthy and bad for you.\u201d The hard truth is eating too much McDonald\u2019s isn\u2019t good for you. And how their food is prepared and processed concerns many people.Now let\u2019s look at another fast food company that isn\u2019t spending much on advertising at all, but has a much better story that is winning over consumers.In 2013 Chipotle spent just $9.7 million dollars on U.S. measured media. Chipotle has the fastest growing sales in the fast food category. Sales increased 5.6 percent in 2013 and revenues increase 17.7 percentThis simple headline directs a story that talks about fresh, high-quality raw ingredients, classic cooking preparation and an environment where food served fast is not \u201cfast food.\u201d In my opinion, this is a powerful way to illustrate how a good story can drive brand growth. McDonalds spent 100x more to jingle their way into our heads. Yet Chipotle\u2019s simple and powerful story is striking a chord and driving rapid growth.Chipotle is not trying to out advertise McDonald\u2019s. They have embraced a smarter strategy \u2013 tell a better story.If McDonald\u2019s were my client I would advise them get back on story. To re-establish their rich legacy and roots as a company committed to delivering a simple menu of great tasting, high quality food prepared fresh and consistently.Somewhere along the way McDonald\u2019s has lost sight of the brand\u2019s core story. \u201cCheap\u201d replaced \u201chigh quality\u201d and \u201cfresh.\u201d And clever advertising replaced delivering a clear and meaningful story that connected with customer needs and values.For brands like Chipotle, traditional advertising isn\u2019t the path to faster growth. They recognize that people love a good story. And they understand how a story well told stirs people\u2019s emotions and inspires them to talk about, share and try new things.Why not challenge conventional thinking? Stop advertising and get your story right.\u00a0 A clear, focused and meaningful story will engage consumers far more effectively, and efficiently, than another jingle, clever tagline or traditional ad campaign.  Tariffs. Supply chains.Customer expectations. C-suite expectations. Everything you need for retail success, none of the fluff.Download the market analysis\u00a0HERE."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2014","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2014\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"09","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2014\/\/09\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"17","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2014\/\/09\/\/17\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Brands need to stop advertising and start storytelling","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2014\/09\/17\/brands-need-to-stop-advertising-and-start-storytelling\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]