The Irresistible Power of Storytelling in Financial Marketing - guest post by Mike Symes, Chief Executive of Financial Marketing Limited.

One of the biggest challenges facing financial marketers today is how to create content that cuts through the clutter of a media-saturated world. The challenge facing most clients is they feel increasingly overwhelmed by an unrelenting bombardment of disconnected messages.

Clients are changing how they consume content and the sheer number of channels available has served to amplify the level of competitive noise. But how do you rise above the incessant Tweets, LinkedIn pulses, infographics, videos, articles and ads and get your voice heard?

The Messaging. Simply. Doesn’t. Stop.

So, stop. Then consider a different way of capturing and creating content that your audience will want to consume and will genuinely value.

The main issue we face is not necessarily being found but being found interesting. The great news for financial marketers is that there is a highly effective solution to this dilemma.

People love stories.

Stories help people learn, absorb, remember and share information and ideas with velocity. They have the power to motivate, persuade and inspire. They encourage sharing, dialogue and debate. They deliver a strong emotional impact and form a powerful currency in human relationships. And as they are told and re-told by others they gain power through advocacy.

Stories are intrinsically relatable. They are just as much about the context as the content, allowing the audience to apply analogous situations to their own personal and professional lives. The thing is you can tune out noise but you can’t put a great story down!

Storytelling is a way of gaining a deeper engagement (after all we have the audience’s attention from the beginning to the middle and right through to the end) and we are hard-wired to find out how things turn out.

In a world in which Buzzfeed style linkbait and soundbites are losing their currency and impact, telling stories in a unique and interesting way is your best chance of outshining the competition. I believe it’s your only chance.

I look forward to meeting you at the Clear Path Analysis event on 6th April, ‘Designing a Content Campaign for Institutional Finance’ when I will share some thoughts and stories on content strategies and tactics that transform impact and drive influence. Register your interest in this event.