360DigitalInfluence

Who doesn’t love a dramatic finale to a TV series? I’m particularly partial to Top Chef and Top Chef Masters finales where finalists on both shows are often faced with the challenge of preparing a complicated bevy of courses intended to tell stories about who they are as chefs. Such challenges speak to favorite childhood memories and what inspired contestants to become professional chefs. The personal stories are often incredibly moving and include pictures and/or videos of the chefs as children and in their first professional kitchens.

I could not get enough of Chef Hubert Keller as he transformed viewers back in time to his parents’ European bakery, where I could practically smell the baguettes baking in the oven. I even imagined myself harvesting clams with a young Rick Moonen and his father, inhaling the salty air of the New York seashore where they talked about life and their futures. Watching and hearing these esteemed chefs share their heartfelt stories not only made them more accessible (after watching weeks of cutthroat competition), but also prompted me to seek out more information about them and how they were inspired.

In my quest for chefly knowledge, little did I know that Bravo TV had already provided me with biographies of all of the chefs, recipes, blog posts by several of the judges and chefs, photos, recipes, recaps and the ability to live chat (using Cover it Live) with other fans during the show. Like Bravo TV, many brands and organizations are embracing different forms of storytelling to better connect with their potential customers and incorporate more human elements into their outbound communications.

Some ideas come to mind:

• Leveraging passionate leaders or employees — Videos, conversational, informational blog posts and photos, as examples, can help in humanizing an organization and have the potential to add value to customers. I’m especially impressed by how many small businesses are leveraging social platforms to connect their products directly to consumers who are seeking such information. Additionally, Silicon Valley stalwarts like HP and Apple frequently remind consumers that their organizations were founded in garages, often striking a cord with many entrepreneurs and techies who are rising from similar circumstances. Further sharing these relatable stories in a variety of ways can speak to an organization’s roots and products without injecting ego.
• Demonstrating a new way of looking a product or service from the end user’s perspective — Companies such as Blendtec not only inject humor into their communications, but cause many to think about something as mundane as blending in new and interesting ways. Did you know that online sales of Blendtec’s blenders increased five fold when the initial Will it Blend? videos were introduced? They’ve since acquired a cult following by “blending the unblendable” — items such as glow sticks and iPhones - and generating positive buzz in the process.
• Brands and organizations can build trust by providing accessible customer service or introducing team members in a conversational way — Travel companies, utilities and many airlines are tearing down the walls of the perceived “ivory tower” by directly communicating with customers via Twitter and other social platforms. Government organizations also have a great opportunity to become more accessible to those they serve by directly communicating with the general public via social platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. San Francisco’s @SF311 is a great example of government being responsive and proving itself as a resource.
• Amplifying customer voices to help in telling your stories — Crowdsourcing ideas for new products and services, live chats, surveys, polls, user generated content, contests and more offer brands the opportunity to perform consumer research while connecting with their most passionate fans. Incorporating consumer feedback in key decisions and sharing the end results with target audiences can be a win-win for both consumers and organizations, too.

While Top Chef contestants continue to inspire me, I’m impressed with how Bravo TV is engaging with fans like me via creative storytelling. With that said, I’m interested in learning more about what stories inspired you to engage with a brand or organization. What’s your story?