We use stories to define our world, and justify our actions. Stories guide us - the Bible, fairy tales, political campaigns, movies and T.V. use stories that define our beliefs and reinforce our choices. These stories can bring us together, but can also separate us.
To create change, we must understand the key stories of our audience: the stories Americans are living - how they see themselves, their goals, what challenges they face, and what allies and resources they have. These stories vary by class, age, race and geography, can change over time, and are affected by the currents of a changing political climate, the economy, major news events, and popular culture.
Any calls to action must inhabit our audience’s stories, and must be delivered by characters and voices that are allied to the archetype of our audience.
Unearthing these narratives is subjective, and cannot be determined only via data mining or surveys. It requires experts in storytelling to interpret and refine the captured narratives, then provide them to content creators as guidelines for creating and testing messaging. This must be done in iterative but constantly refining cycles, like a piece of creative writing that evolves from a rough draft to a final edit.
My work does not rely on demographics, how people vote, or political views. Instead, I focus on narratives: what stories are people telling themselves to justify their actions, and what role do they play in that story? I then look to deliver messaging within the realm of the target audience’s story.
Focusing on narratives allows us to cut across demographics, political affiliation, and spiritual beliefs. It also provides tangible goals for content creators to aim their messages, based on the shared human need to believe in our own stories to make choices in life.