Brand Storytelling

October 23, 2025

GoodStudio/Shutterstock.com

How can my brand utilize storytelling techniques to connect with consumer audiences?

Brand storytelling is most effective when a brand understands its missions and personality, and consistently and authentically infuses it into every aspect of the brand. From products to social media posts to partners, the brand's story should be evident.

Part of what can help propel a brand's narrative is the right use of creators and influencers. For instance, e.l.f Cosmetics launched a short "true crime" mockumentary film to engage and captivate different demographics in a fun and surprising way. This effort resulted in 14.5 million organic views and a 54.1 percent YouTube view rate.

Further, Public Good's Melissa Anderson, Nestlé's Rene Lassauzet, and Trane Technologies' Sarah Wike, shared recommendations on how to utilize storytelling techniques to connect with consumers, such as considering the brand's angle, evaluating media investments, and determining KPIs. Doing these steps helps determine how the story is told, develop a tight strategy, and create brand differentiation.

Mike Siegel, SVP of marketing at ALSAC/St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, said it best at an ANA event, stating, "Storytelling is how we show up in the world." Siegel went on to say that data can help inform how the narrative is told, explaining, "Know your target audience. Our challenge is the fact that is our target can start from toddlers to the end of life. So, we market truly to everyone. We have to make choices, but we try to drive those choices based on data. Getting behind the why is important to us. We tailer the messaging to the type of motivations that people have for giving."

Below are resources on brand storytelling.

Best Practices

Your Brand Storytelling Checklist: Everything You Need to Craft Your Brand's Story. ANA, April 2025.
Brandtrust, a research and brand strategy consultancy rooted in the applied behavioral and social sciences, explored the essential elements of brand storytelling, and how brands like Domino's and TOMS have successfully leveraged these principles. By developing a strong storytelling arc, crafting impactful headlines, and utilizing visuals strategically, brands can cut through information overload and foster deeper connections with consumers.
Storytelling in the Age of AI. ANA, February 2025.
In today's saturated digital environment, successful brand storytelling requires a delicate balance between artificial and human intelligence. With content creation reaching unprecedented levels - 2.5 quintillion bytes of data generated daily - marketers must find new ways to stand out while maintaining authentic connections with audiences. The solution lies in treating AI not as a replacement, but as a dance partner in a carefully choreographed tango between technology and human creativity.
From Storytelling to Story-Living: How Technology and Creativity Reshapes Brand Experiences. ANA, January 2025.
At the ANA's Marketing Tech Momentum conference, VML's global chief experience design officer Kaleeta McDade delivered a compelling perspective on the evolution of brand engagement, tracing the journey from traditional storytelling to what she calls "story-living."
How to Tell a Story That Matters. ANA, September 2024.
If you look at any great story, there are elements they all have: a main character, a want or need, a plot, tools the character uses, and most importantly, conflict. Conflict is the engine that drives every story, and the best storytellers not only have compelling conflict but highlight the conflict. The conflict can be internal or external, but it's the most important element in every story. From Darth Vader to the Joker, every great story has that agent of conflict. The key for any brand is twofold:

Understand the brand is a tool the hero/heroine uses to overcome the conflict. The brand is never the hero.
Find the one conflict your target consumer faces and show how your brand helps them overcome it.

Boosting In-Housing ROI: Harnessing the Power of Creative Storytelling. ANA, May 2024.
As brands increasingly bring creative functions in-house, they gain greater control over their storytelling, boost efficiencies, costs, and accelerate their time-to-market. This approach provides a cohesive platform for developing creative concepts that can scale across channels, whether it's brand marketing, social media, or e-commerce.

Examples

Mike's Hard Lemonade Uses Branded Merch to Spark Social Conversation. ANA, October 2025.
Mike's Hard Lemonade's in-house team, Green Street Studios, launched a social-first campaign celebrating hard work with humor, giveaways, and custom merch — driving engagement and awareness through storytelling and community participation.

These Award-Winning Campaigns Leveraged the Art of Storytelling. ANA, September 2025.
Storytelling is forever. No matter how technology advances and changes the way people consume information, work, and even socialize, the power of effective storytelling will never become obsolete; if anything, a compelling narrative can help brands stand out in a sea of sameness and boringness. If people feel connected to a brand and product, a brand will stay relevant. This article presents award-winning campaigns that leveraged storytelling.
How Fidelity's Podcast Connected with Everyday People and Drove Stellar Business Results. ANA, September 2025.
Money Unscripted marked Fidelity's debut into the video podcast space, offering authentic financial storytelling that resonated with real people. The podcast featured everyday guests — not paid talent — sharing personal financial journeys, followed by expert insights from Fidelity professionals.

How Mack Trucks Drove Brand Love with a Bulldog. ANA, August 2025.
Jim Leon, director of brand management at Mack Trucks, and Kate MacNevin, global CEO at Stein, highlighted how their two organizations shifted Mack Trucks' marketing strategy from product-focused messaging to emotionally driven storytelling, aiming to deepen its connection with truck drivers and fleet managers.
How NMDP Uses Storytelling and Strategy to Drive Life-Saving Action. ANA, August 2025.
Ryan Peña, senior marketing manager of member recruitment at The National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), shared how his organization transforms emotional stories into measurable outcomes through data-backed targeting, influencer testing, and performance-driven campaign optimization.
Verizon Reaches First Responders with Purpose-Driven Campaign. ANA, July 2025.
Verizon Business Group utilized purpose-driven storytelling and use cases to target first responders for its campaign.
Storytelling Masters Launch B2B Workshops with 329 Percent Lead Growth. ANA, June 2025.
National Geographic partnered with Marketbridge to launch the Storytellers Collective, a new B2B offering providing storytelling workshops led by National Geographic Explorers. For the first time in decades, the iconic brand needed to generate awareness for an entirely new business line targeting director-level professionals in HR, learning and development, and internal communications. Through a 90-day multi-channel campaign featuring National Geographic's stunning content and Explorer interviews, the company achieved 21,500 website page views (up 183 percent year-over-year), 309 total workshop leads (up 329 percent versus baseline average), and positioned storytelling as a valuable business tool.

Developing B2B Brand Storytelling: Qualcomm's Approach. ANA, April 2025.
During a session at an April 2025 meeting of the ANA's Brand Management Committee, computing technology company Qualcomm and its agency partner Transmission shared their approach to brand storytelling, advocating for it as a critical strategy for B2B marketers.

Webinars

Marketing Touchdown: How the NFL Grew Latino Fandom Through Inclusive Storytelling. ANA, September 2025.
In this webinar, get an in-depth look at Por La Cultura, a 2024 ANA Multicultural Excellence Award winner in the Sports/World Cup category, developed by the NFL in partnership with Chemistry Cultura. This campaign was designed to grow the NFL's Latino fanbase by authentically highlighting the cultural impact of the Hispanic community both on and off the field. The campaign aimed to expand the league's reach and engagement with Latino audiences through compelling storytelling, strategic media partnerships, and community engagement efforts. From a nationally televised "Hometown Heroes" spot to activations with all 32 NFL clubs, Por La Cultura successfully increased positive brand perception, deepened fan engagement, and delivered powerful results.

American Heart Association: How Inclusive Storytelling Saves Lives in the AAPI Community. ANA, May 2025.
In this webinar, get an in-depth look at the Today You Were Ready campaign by the American Heart Association and ADMERASIA, a 2024 ANA Multicultural Excellence Award winner in the Small Budget category. This initiative addressed the low confidence and participation of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women in hands-only CPR training, a critical issue exacerbated by the lack of culturally competent health care resources available to them. By leveraging emotionally resonant storytelling, multilingual content, and a strategic media approach, the campaign successfully engaged underserved communities with life-saving education. Learn how this small-budget campaign made a big impact and became a model for culturally inclusive health awareness. Discover how it continues to expand as part of the Nation of Lifesavers movement. Don't miss this powerful case study on inclusive marketing and public health innovation.

Breaking Barriers: The Power of Inclusive Storytelling in Brand Marketing with Subaru. ANA, April 2025.
In this webinar, get an insightful look into A Beautiful Silence, the Grand Prize winner of the 2024 ANA Multicultural Excellence Awards in the People with Disabilities category. This award-winning campaign redefines inclusivity in outdoor spaces, showcasing Subaru's commitment to telling stories centered on the unifying experiences of being human. Subaru wanted to create a powerful commercial demonstrating that regardless of race, gender, or ability, everyone can share in the beauty of our national parks. Learn how Subaru, in partnership with the National Park Foundation, is working to break down barriers to access while reinforcing its commitment to purpose-driven storytelling. Discover how this impactful initiative generated 18.8 million impressions, sparked conversations on accessibility, and resonated deeply with today's experience-seeking audience.

Tools

Video Script Template. ANA/Demand Metric.
This template was designed to outline the key components of a storytelling framework that will guide your video's direction. This template will help you define the title, story, hook, why, what, how and what of your video.

Training

Brand Storytelling and Effective Digital Consumer Connection (Full Day). ANA.
All brands have stories to share, and effective storytelling is all about knowing your audience in more detail - what they seek and what they respond to. This workshop focuses on providing the frameworks, insights, and best practices that will help you to optimize your brand storytelling. You will learn the key elements of storytelling and how digital technologies have influenced the way a story needs to be told today. This workshop will also show you how to use buyer personas to make your stories inspiring. This workshop is fast paced with ample opportunities for participation and interaction. It also offers an opportunity to explore creative options with feedback from peers. At the conclusion of this workshop, you will have an initial story framework that you may use with your brand. To register, contact training@ana.net.
Effective Communication, Presentation and Storytelling Skills (Full Day). ANA.
In this full-day interactive workshop, attendees will understand what the best speakers have learned from years of practice. Using the 10 keys to communicating and presenting, you'll learn how to connect authentically with an audience to present like a professional. You will practice proven techniques to enhance your stage presence, on-your-feet thinking, and engagement with listeners. Led by a Certified Speaking Professional, skilled presenter, and popular ANA workshop leader, this workshop is packed with exercises that will stretch and tone your speaking, presenting, and story-telling muscles. To register, contact training@ana.net.

Clarifying Your Marketing Message (Virtual). ANA.
In this training, participants will learn how to tell a compelling story through their messaging and leave with actionable concepts and tools they can immediately apply to real world situations. The workshop provides practical frameworks and models to understand and optimize story telling strategy to enhance overall customer experience build brand equity and drive better engagement and sales. To register, contact training@ana.net.
Turning Digital Data into Decisions (301) (Half Day). ANA.
Despite its pervasiveness, data analytics is still a mysterious "black box" to many marketers. Rows and columns of numbers that are supposed to somehow inform marketing tactics often lack the related insights necessary to drive business decisions. In this workshop, we will focus on using visual storytelling methods to explain the context of marketing data to outside audiences and/or internal stakeholders. This enables easier identification of issues in the customer journey, CRM, automation, campaign(s) and other initiatives designed to move customers through an engagement process. To register, contact training@ana.net.

The Marketing Knowledge Center actively connects ANA members to the resources they need to be successful. You can visit the ANA website to engage with the MKC in three ways.

Explore content to access best practices, case studies, and marketing tools. Our proprietary content includes Event Recaps, which share actionable insights from conference and committee presentations.
Connect with our ASK Research Service in real time for customized answers to your specific marketing challenges.
Stay on top of trends with Pulse issues, which explore how new technologies and innovations will affect marketers and consumers alike.

Source

"Brand Storytelling." ANA, 2025.