If you’ve got a great product or a killer service why do you need a brand story? You only have to look as far as your local cafe or boutique fashion labels to see that all brands are not created equal, and what usually separates the successes from the failures is a good story.

The story makes the product better

The Versalette story from {r}evolution apparel actually makes the product better in the eyes of the consumer. When she buys a Vesalette she can tell herself a story about what she believes is important. She can send a signal to the world about her values and she gets to be a trendsetter into the bargain.

Any business or brand can add a meaningless ‘me too’ tagline under their logo, but if it’s just pixels filling up white space what’s the point? If your story (not just the words your write, but your staff, values, user experience and so on) doesn’t make what you do better, then you’re missing a huge opportunity to help people care enough to invest in you.

Image by Lynda Giddens.