If You Want To Be Understood, You Have To Be Remembered

Lisa Dawson:

So many communications professionals are talking about a subtle shift they’re noticing in the comms world. It’s not that the landscape is flooded with content, because that’s been true for a while. And it’s not that comms is becoming increasingly important to business strategy. Even though it’s undervalued, that’s not new either.

What is taking center stage is storytelling. Company leaders see clearly in spaces that are flooded with AI-generated content that good storytelling is more necessary than ever. The reason why is deceptively simple: if you want to be understood, you have to be remembered. And if you want to be remembered, you need to tell a story people want to hear and care about.

It’s not a fluke that people are over twenty times more likely to remember information when it’s delivered as a story rather than as facts alone. Every brand needs a story to set itself apart in a landscape of too much content and not enough of it good. Companies need a story that an audience can hold onto. This goes way beyond mission and vision statements and brand positioning. This is about companies focusing on meaning and driving content in every direction that supports their narrative.

Some people will say that storytelling is marketing, but it’s not. Storytelling is indeed firmly rooted in communications. Marketing drives visibility, Storytelling builds understanding. That isn’t to say that good storytelling doesn’t affect driving awareness, generating leads, and growing revenue. It just does it differently, and it’s much harder to measure. It’s continuous, not finite, it’s far-reaching and not limited to a campaign, and it’s tied to reputation, not just reviews. The differences are there if you look for them.

The internal audience is one of the most important and should never be overlooked. Employees aren’t just part of a company’s brand; they are the most credible and influential channels a company has. Early in my career, I worked with an experienced and talented communicator who evangelized the importance of internal communications. He was passionate and steadfast in his belief that all communication starts internally and radiates outward and that every employee’s opinion reflects the brand. He promoted this message in every leadership meeting and usually it fell on deaf ears. Even for me, the message didn’t always land. Now, years later, it does.

But back to storytelling. The word got serious airplay a few months ago when the Wall Street Journal ran its piece about the value and popularity of corporate storytelling. We all know it matters now, given the broader context of AI. Content creation is faster, cheaper and more watered down than ever. Many brands now sound the same: polished, correct, and entirely forgettable. In response, companies are actively investing in storytelling and trying to cut through the sloppy noise of AI-driven content to add a distinctly human voice to their communications.

At its best, a story does tree things:

1. Creates clarity. Companies often have multiple priorities, different lines of business, multiple messages and more than one audience. A well-defined narrative aligns all of that and neatly answers the universal question: why do we exist, and why should anyone care?
2. Builds trust. No one needs reminding that we’re operating in a low-trust landscape. Forces beyond anyone’s control right now are influencing how little trust people have in companies and brands. A good, clear story makes a brand feel human, and in a skeptical market, that’s everything.
3. Drives consistency. Fragmentation deteriorates a brand. When leaders, teams and channels unintentionally tell different versions of the story, it weakens the brand. A strong, cohesive story is a unifying thread.

In a crowded, fast-moving, and increasingly automated communication environment, the brand story is one of the few lasting differentiators a company has. It’s the story people carry with them when you’re not in the room. As a company, now is the time to invest in your story. Tell it well and tell it often.

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Lisa Dawson is a Texas-based communication leader and professional writer.