To make the storytelling effect and the information processing of our brain more insightful, an example is given below . They are two passages from a story. Read them and think about what you think happened:
Joey's big brother punched him again and again. The next day his body was covered by bruises.
Joey's crazy mother became furiously angry with him. The next day his body was covered by bruises.
The first passage leaves little to the imagination: Joey has been beaten by his older brother, leaving latvia phone number list him black and blue. The second example, however, is less clear-cut. Our brain automatically assumes that Joey's mother has beaten him, leaving him covered in bruises the next day. But if you read carefully, it is not described anywhere why Joey has bruises or what his mother did when she was angry. Yet our brain automatically sees a cause-effect relationship between the first and second sentence, while it is not necessarily there. This automatic thought pattern is the core of the success of storytelling.
When we are presented with information in a story format, our brain subconsciously assumes that we have received all the important information. It is also assumed that there is a causal relationship in the story (one thing leads to another), because most stories are told in chronological order.
This -incorrect- starting position of our brain fills in holes or ambiguities in the story in a logical way, for example with a causal connection (Joey was beaten by his mother). This automatic, unconscious process in the brain also sees causal connections where this is not actually the case. A pitfall of our brain that marketers eagerly exploit.
Ok, here's an example
I am not going to share a success story from a well-known company, but a story from my own experience. Last week my mother-in-law called me and asked: “Maud, I read on Facebook that you are going to travel for six months for a KRO program.” I raised my eyebrow and wondered where it went wrong in my Facebook message.
I had indeed posted an update after I had called the editors of the TV program De Rekenkamer. This received quite a few likes and reactions, after which I made a joke about six months of free travel at the expense of the KRO. In my opinion an over-the-top reaction, which no one would fall for, because who gets to travel for six months for free and then go on TV to tell why people love all-inclusive vacations. But when I read my reaction back I understood where it had gone wrong: my mother-in-law was suffering from the storytelling effect. Between the lines she saw a causal relationship that wasn't there.
facebook storytelling
The storytelling effect is everywhere
Wherever stories are told, the storytelling effect takes place. Even in places where you don't expect it, like in my case unconsciously in a Facebook message. Of course, good online marketers, communication specialists and copywriters use storytelling to penetrate our brain.
Think of an AXE campaign where a man is harassed in front of a crowd of women after taking AXE. Or all those car commercials where they make you look sexy, cool, or whatever if you drive the car in question. And Dove tries to make us think through storytelling that we become more confident if we put on Dove. None of them claim a cause-and-effect relationship, but they know that our brain does that for them. Smart. Very smart.
The only way to arm yourself against the storytelling effect is to realize that your brain has pitfalls. The first step in the right direction is to read this article, which will help you recognize it better and have less influence on you. But hey, sometimes it's nice to dream away in the fairytale world of marketers. As long as we don't have to buy anything.