Advertising best practice, evidence and insights

What we know about storytelling strategies

Article • WARC Best Practice, January 2019

Provides guidance and reading on storytelling strategies, or the fashioning of events into a meaningful, relatable story for customers to identify with and remember.

National Safety Council: Prescribed To Death

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Silver, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

American non-profit organisation, the National Safety Council, raised awareness of prescription opioid overdose in the US with an innovative live experience, supported by a multimedia campaign.

Christie's: The Last Da Vinci

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Christie’s, the British auction house, set the record for a painting sold in auction when it sold the last known work by Leonardo da Vinci held in private hands, Salvator Mundi.

Sunsilk: Hair Talk

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Bronze, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Sunsilk, a haircare brand, connected with its millennial audience in Thailand thanks to its viral film which prompted the brands 13.1% growth.

Mcdonald's: The Flip

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

McDonald's, the fast food chain, celebrated women and the women's empowerment movement through a simple outdoor stunt that flipped the iconic McDonald's logo upside-down in the US.

Procter & Gamble: The Words Matter

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Procter and Gamble, a consumer goods company, proved that it cares about social issues in the US by launching a 19-minute documentary film covering the story of a P&G lab tech and vocal gay rights advocate who took up the fight for equal rights.

CALM: Project 84

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Silver, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

The Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), a UK charity, created a striking public installation to increase awareness of male suicide and suicide prevention.

Apple: Three Minutes

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Apple, a technology company, created an emotional connection with consumers in China by launching a film surrounding Chinese New Year, shot entirely on an iPhone.

GRAMMY Awards: Compton

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

The Recording Academy, a music recording company, promoted the GRAMMYs in the US by launching a film that showed the roots of 7-time GRAMMY award winner Kendrick Lamar, with the message that greatness can come from anywhere.

Bodyform/Libresse: Bloodnormal

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Shortlisted, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Bodyform, the feminine hygiene brand, used a digital film to break taboos and connect with women globally.

KASIKORNBANK: Friendshit

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Kbank, a bank, entered Thailand's popular culture with its online film, which also increased its mobile banking users from 5.6 million to 9 million.

New Zealand Lotteries: Lotto Imagine

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Lotto New Zealand, a Crown entity that operates nationwide lotteries in New Zealand, increased annual sales with an ad that featured two friends who split the winnings of a Powerball lottery.

Lysol: Protect Like A Mother

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Lysol, a cleaning products and sanitiser brand, increased sales of its products globally by launching an emotional campaign that showed the only protection stronger than Lysol is the protection from a mother.

McDonald’s: Ice Cream History In the Making

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

McDonald's, a fast food chain, partnered with YouTubers to authentically reach youth in Germany and increase sales of their dessert range.

Tennessee Department Of Tourist Development: The Colorblind Viewer

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

The Tennessee Department of Tourist Development, a state agency, installed Colorblind Viewers in its parks to help people see fall colors for the first time, generating more than 662 million earned impressions.

Levi's Circles

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Levi's, the denim brand, turned to its brand purpose and for the first time made it central to the campaign, leading to 10% growth in revenue in the key Americas market.

Audi/Vorsprung Durch Technik: Beautiful Cars With Amazing Brains

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Bronze, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Audi, an automotive brand, overtook BMW in the UK by launching two series of TVCs demonstrating how the beauty and intelligence of its cars overpowered speed.

Free Democrats "Dark Diaries"

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Free Democrats Party (FDP), a political party in Germany, rejuvenated its party by attracting young voters in Germany.

Toyota Motor Corporation: Start Your Impossible

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Toyota, the automobile maker, used inspiring stories to bring to life its vision for the future in its global 360 campaign, which also increased its share price by 11%.

Unicef: The Worst Soap Opera

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

UNICEF, the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, sparked change in the Dominican Republic through a campaign that revealed a dangerous loophole in the law, making child marriage possible.

Puma Suede Gully

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

PUMA Sports, a sportswear and equipment brand, increased sales in India by creating a street collaboration and music video that used rappers to engage youth and encourage them to pay a premium for PUMA.

Toyota Motor Corporation: Good Odds

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Toyota, the automotive brand, launched a global brand building campaign during the Olympic and Paralympic Games by creating a campaign that didn't feature any cars.

Fox Networks Group Latin America: Who?

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Fox Networks, the US multimedia group, raised awareness of its on-demand subscription service through a short film in Latin America.

Proximo Spirits: Hangar 1 Fog Point

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Hangar 1, a vodka brand, successfully increased sales in the US by uncovering different flavours of its vodka based on what water was captured in the making process, allowing it to be marketed as a collector’s vodka.

Verizon: First Responders First

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Verizon, a mobile phone network, encouraged people in the US to switch to its network by launching a film during the Super Bowl that connected 911 callers with first responders that helped save them.

Storytelling