The Importance of Storybranding

In the past couple weeks, we have been learning about storybranding and its importance in marketing. My group members and I led a class discussion on Thursday focusing on the second half of the book "Storybranding 2.0". The main concepts we touched upon were the inner and outer layers of both brands and prospects. Prior to reading this book, I had no idea that brands try to tell stories when marketing to consumers. However, I now understand that "storybranding gets to the heart of why your brand exists", as stated in the book.

Storytelling is a tactic, but storybranding is where the brand itself takes on a character. In order for a brand to successfully appeal to consumers, they need to have a thorough, deep understanding of their values and beliefs. This is known as the brand's inner layer. The ideal target market is one that has similar values and beliefs as the brand itself. This concept is interesting to me- is it always true though? Think about it. Every purchase decision you make, is it based on your beliefs and values? Does this concept hold true for low involvement, utilitarian products? For instance, when you go to the store to buy toothpaste, are you really thinking about your personal values and beliefs and lining those up with the beliefs of the brand you're thinking of buying?

I understand the general scope of the inner and outer layers, but I think this concept is a bit exaggerated in some cases. I think the idea of inner layers of the brand and consumers lining up is obviously ideal, but I can't imagine that this would happen with all kinds of products. I can imagine that with a high value product or service, such as a college education, prospective consumers (or in this case, students) look deeper into the brand's values and beliefs (the college's). For example, Catholic students with strong religious beliefs may choose to go to a Catholic college.

The concepts from the Storybranding 2.0 book make a lot of sense and are extremely strategic. However, I just don't know how realistic they are for certain brands. Even though consumers might not necessarily look deep into a brand's beliefs or values, it is a good starting point for a brand to accurately define itself and thoroughly understand where it stands in the marketplace.