2014 seemed like the year of fundraising through storytelling -- and we definitely witnessed some killer campaigns.
Now that 2015 is in full swing, we asked eight entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) to share their top predictions for socially minded storytelling, especially in light of some of the big brand stories of the past year. What makes a viral ask really stick? And does the success of certain cause campaigns mean that all brands are going to have to step up and do good?
Their best predictions are below.
1. Building trust is the new cornerstone of successful storytelling
title="Brock Stechman" src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Brock_Stechman1.jpg" alt="Brock Stechman" width="140" height="140"/>
This year has been a big one for trust issues in the media. People want to work with brands who have social concerns beyond their own profits. I think we’ll continue to see these two issues come together. We all want to work with high-integrity companies that demonstrate those values. Big brands are being more socially mindful, and we can expect to see that even more.
2. More light-hearted, cause-driven campaigns
ALS is a serious and pretty depressing subject. Conventional non-profit marketing wisdom would suggest that an appropriate campaign for raising awareness would have been just as heavy and serious as the subject at hand. However, the opposite was the case. The Ice Bucket Challenge could not have been more light-hearted, jokey and (dare I say it) fun.
Some might have thought this was inappropriate, but that is a fairly simplistic way to look at the situation. Participating in the challenge didn't mean you were making light of a serious situation. Rather, it was leveraging light-hearted fun to make a serious message more likely to spread. People don't share things that are bleak, they share things that are optimistic.
Brian Honigman, BrianHonigman.com
3. A focus on global health
I predict that we'll see an increasing focus on the global health issues plaguing our world in 2015. This year saw a lot of coverage on the ebola crisis in West Africa, but that seemed more about fear-mongering than telling the social story. Still, it has created an increased interest in global health issues that has been sorely lacking in more developed nations. I believe 2015 will be the year in which the human, personal stories of those afflicted by disease around the world comes into clearer focus. With organizations like the Gates Foundation pouring huge sums into global health, there will be more personal stories about global health that are unearthed. I believe these stories form the perfect basis for viral campaigns geared at raising awareness and solving these problems.
Brewster Stanislaw, Inside Social
4. More active engagement
I anticipate that causes in the future will likely diversify the types of ways people can participate in global initiatives. PewDiePie’s Charity is a great example. The clean-water fundraiser specified different types of calls to action including directly donating money or helping boost views for a select video -- and it worked. They raised $446,462 to help provide more people access to clean water.
5. User-generated video submissions
Going into 2015, user-generated video will continue to play a strong role in socially minded campaigns. Brands and for-purpose organizations will continue to encourage consumers to submit short-form videos as part of larger campaigns. This engaging and authentic content can then be distributed across diverse platforms, like Youtube, Tumblr, Instagram and more for increased engagement from a broader audience as well.
6. An emphasis on the emotionally compelling
title="Michael Seiman" src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Michael-Seiman.jpg" alt="Michael Seiman" width="140" height="140"/>
Stories will never cease to be a part of the human experience; it's how we make sense of the world around us and connect our emotions with our thinking. Socially minded storytelling will go in two routes: the been-done clichés, and the emotionally-compelling, well-told stories of humans overcoming. Those in the second camp will demand more attention.
7. Partnerships with stronger connections
title="Zach Robbins" src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Zach-Robbins.jpg" alt="Zach Robbins" width="140" height="140"/>
Social minded storytelling is most effective when users can easily see an authentic connection between the brand and the cause: when the partnership makes sense. As brand storytelling gets increasingly personalized, companies can no longer have a successful campaign by just supporting a good cause. The connection has to be clear and real to the user, or it could be perceived as disingenuous.
8. Solving big problems through sharing
title="Emerson Spartz" src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Emerson-Spartz.jpg" alt="Emerson Spartz" width="140" height="140"/>
This last year has taught us that people are willing to spread social causes if they feel like they’re solving problem through sharing. For someone to say “I want to go tell everyone in my entire network on Facebook about this,” this sharing has to feel like it accomplishes something. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is a perfect example of giving audiences the ability to make a meaningful impact through sharing. My prediction for 2015 is that campaigns will incorporate this kind of low-friction problem solving into how they craft their social storytelling -- giving the like, tweet and share buttons real solving power.