What is a Digital Story?

Beginning in the 1990’s at the start of the media empire, digital storytelling has been a way of portraying a message to an audience across digital media platforms on a daily basis. American director and screenwriter Andrew Stanton defines storytelling as “knowing that everything you’re saying, from the first sentence to the last, is leading to a singular goal, and ideally confirming some truth that deepens our understanding of who we are as human beings.”

On a digital level, storytelling allows you to connect with your target audience by letting them experience the similarities they have with your brand. When your audience understands where you come from, the obstacles you're facing, and the efforts you are making achieve your 'why,' they develop empathy for your brand.

“What is Digital Storytelling?” By University of Guelph Library

5 Steps to Succeed in Digital Storytelling

1. Point of View

Having a main point of view that the audience is going to be able to put themselves in place of to understand the message is the first, and maybe most important step of digital storytelling. You want a character/idea that is relatable to YOUR target audience in some way – whether that be fictional or real.

Camera lens to represent point of view and perspective in digital video storytelling.

2. Plot

You can’t have a point of view without giving the main focus of the story a plotline to follow. You’ll want to make sure that the plot is engaging – grabbing the audience’s attention within the first 10 seconds – while also having a relatable ending to tie into your brand’s mission. Be creative! Hidden messages that come full circle for an “Ah Ha!” moment are really effective.

Plot diagram outlining the exposition, initial incident, rising action, climax, falling action, and conclusion of a digital video story to map out storytelling

3. Storyboard

Once you have your characters and plot set, it’s time to brainstorm the story you want to tell. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “storyboard” as “a panel or series of panels on which a set of sketches is arranged depicting consecutively the important changes of scene and action in a series of shots (as for a film, television show, or commercial)” Sketching out what each scene should look like in order to effectively tell the story will make the final two steps a breeze! Below is an example of what your storyboard could look like.

If you are conducting interviews as part of your story, a concept known as logging is extremely helpful in pulling out the most effective and important quotes that stick out and help to guide the story.

Storyboard example using sketches and descriptions to map out a digital video story as an effective storytelling tool

What is Logging?

“Logging” refers to the process of selecting what footage you would like to extract from the source media and deposit on your local hard drive to be manipulated further in the editing process. Logging also allows you to add descriptive comments to clips that may be helpful to editors using your logging files to recapture your project in the future when video compression standards improve, such as video timecodes.

Logging interview clips will make the final editing process extremely easy, because you will already know which quotes you want to pull and exactly where they are in the video. Logging before writing the script allows you to make the script about the subject of your video, rather than making the subject of the video work around your script.

4. Collect Materials

Images, B-roll, and audio are going to have the most impact on your audience. These elements set the tone you are trying to convey. Having all of these materials before the final product is put together will make it easier to stick to the story, and base it around what you know you will be able to give to the audience. That way, the story is cohesive and there are no random elements that do not make sense.

Polaroid photo materials collection to use in digital video for effective storytelling

5. Final Product

Although production value is an important factor in an engaged audience, as long as you stick to your message and story, you don’t need the fanciest equipment or the biggest team behind you to be successful. Anyone can shoot video on their cell phone and edit right from their computer using easy to use paid programs like Adobe Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, or other free software such as iMovie, PowerDirector, or Splice.

Adobe Premiere Pro editing software used to create final product of a digital video story

Why is Digital Storytelling Effective?

Giving something for your audience to relate to makes them remember you, and want to support you and your business. Perfectly stated by Cyberclick, “Your story doesn't even have to be related to your product–the whole point is to make it so interesting and attention-grabbing that viewers will be begging to know what your brand is about. Do this, and people will be actively searching for your ad!”