The art of telling stories has always been present in the trajectory of humanity, and to this day it is a very valuable resource, whether for entertainment or for transmitting important teachings from generation to generation.
In recent times, with an increase in the number of corporate courses and training offered online, we have also seen the growth of a new trend: the use of storytelling in e-learning.
Using this strategy, the teaching-learning process can become more dynamic, interactive and, why not, more fun — even when approaching highly complex subjects.
To keep you up to date, we have prepared this special content with everything you need to know about storytelling and how to successfully apply it to your corporate education strategy. Check it out!
What is storytelling?
As the translation of the term already indicates, storytelling is nothing more than the technique of telling stories, arousing the interest of the reader or listener through the use of elements that enchant and generate identification.
This way, it is possible to transmit knowledge in a more captivating way, creating a genuine connection with the audience. However, for this tactic to work, it is important that the story has four essential features:
- A main character: or the hero of the journey, who must arouse interest and empathy so that everyone follows his path and roots for his success;
- The environment, made up of all the locations and scenarios in which the hero's story takes place;
- A conflict, which will arouse interest in the story and must be resolved by the main character;
- The message, which contains the famous “moral of the story” and must be presented in language appropriate to the public to have the expected effect.
As a result, you will have at your disposal an initiative with high persuasive power that can be applied in different contexts, making e-learning content more interesting and pleasant to consume.
How can your company apply storytelling in e-learning?
Considering that the lessons transmitted through stories are absorbed and memorized more easily, storytelling can be used successfully by companies in any market segment. And in this topic, we'll tell you how this happens in practice!
Imagine that you need to prepare corporate training to explain new work processes, present software or equipment with a complex operating system.
Simply presenting these concepts theoretically or through static online presentations filled with a lot of text would certainly be boring for everyone, wouldn't it? Well, storytelling can be a good option to transform this scenario!
Using an interesting, light and objective narrative, it is possible to create a character who has the same doubts and difficulties as employees and develop a learning journey set in the same workplace as these professionals.
Another advantage of virtual activities is that they can be accessed more than once throughout the training processes, allowing content to be reinforced and doubts to be resolved more easily.
In addition, the e-learning material can also include audiovisual resources such as animations, soundtrack and voiceovers, as well as gamification tools, such as challenges and quizzes, which will help to make the story even more attractive, motivating and promoting engagement. of the participants.
Speaking of audiovisual resources, an excellent solution is to use training videos. And it is about them that we will talk about in the following topic. Follow along!
Tips for using storytelling in your corporate videos
After learning more about what storytelling is and how this tool can make a difference in transforming your e-learning into an integration and engagement experience. With that in mind, here are some tips on how to put this project into practice through corporate videos.
1 – Have a clear goal in mind
What will be the central theme of your video? What do you want to teach your employees? Although these are simple questions, the answer can make all the difference in building the story of your audiovisual material.
Therefore, defining the objective of the e-learning project should be the first step — and one of the most important — in your planning. From there, you can define the format of your video, the most appropriate language for your audience and the best story to keep them involved and engaged.
2 – Think about your target audience
At this stage of your planning, you must carry out an in-depth and careful analysis of who your audience is, that is, what is the profile of the employee who will participate in the training and will have access to the e-learning materials produced by your company.
For new employees, for example, it is interesting to have videos that help them feel welcome and part of the team, with a complete onboarding action that includes a dynamic presentation of the company's infrastructure and culture as a whole.
On the other hand, for teams that are older and will undergo training to familiarize themselves with new processes, work routines or equipment, the interesting thing is to have creative videos and language that can be absorbed effectively.
3 - Choose the type of video that best meets your objectives
It is important to highlight that, whatever the objective of your corporate training, there is a type of video that will perfectly meet your needs. And below, we will list some options that can be developed using storytelling resources:
- Success stories, with stories of projects that contributed to the organization's growth or the trajectories of employees who stood out in the company told in a humanized and engaging way;
- Documentaries, which allow enhanced use of storytelling tools to narrate the company's trajectory from its founding to the present day — a good choice for onboarding or celebrations;
- Videos for corporate TV, which have the central objective of promoting high-quality and creative internal communication, with content used in training, information about products, goals, results and other data that help keep employees always well informed.
4 – Structure your itinerary well
Once you've defined the best type of video and the most appropriate language to spark your teams' interest, it's time to build the script.
This is the time to decide what the story you want to tell will be like, assess whether it is in line with your planning and choose important elements, such as the construction of the scenario and the audiovisual resources needed to help convey your message.
Remember that the script is the guide for the development of your video, so it deserves special attention, right?
5 - Invest in a company specialized in corporate video production
Last but not least, being able to count on all the technology and know-how of professionals who know the potential of audiovisual materials and know how to execute them is also very important!
We at Take5 know that creating truly thought-provoking stories that add real value to corporate training can be a challenge for many managers. And that's why we offer the best solutions in corporate education to insert storytelling resources into your company's e-learning with quality, creativity and success.
Contact Us with us and Speak to one of our experts to find out more!
