Visual storytelling definition
Visual narrative, in its turn, is telling a story through pictures, videos, GIFs, and other visuals.
However modern it may seem to be, in fact, it is not. The first examples of visual storytelling may be found in cave art. The hunting scenes explicitly tell the story of a prehistoric routine that we can understand without words millennia later.
Why does video storytelling work?
The short answer is: because our brains perceive visual information better than anything else.
Here goes the long one. Photo stories (for example, comics) with minimum or no captions make the viewer grasp the idea immediately without sorting out advanced vocabulary and reading between the lines.
Researchers declare different figures, but the idea is the same: the audience is much more likely to read the comics or watch the video till the end than read a text article or listen to a podcast.
Another important point — storytelling, even being used in marketing or advertising, appeals to each viewer personally. A storyteller makes an audience recognize themselves, as in a mirror. Such clips are not about profits, graphics, and logical conclusions, they are about each of us, and everybody is emotionally involved.
Last but not least — and this point logically follows the previous one — storytelling methods are about experience and full immersion into the created reality, so they seize attention much more effectively.
Storytelling ideas
There are no ready solutions when it comes to storytelling. The more creative you are, the better. Each story is unique and inimitable. But you can have a look at some examples and figure out how to tell a story visually in your case.
- Historical facts. Not some boring ones with lots of dates and names, choose the ones that can teach us something: the stories of success, ups and downs, as well as interesting trivia.
- Charity. Show your followers how beautiful our world is and how better we can make it together.
- Backstage or private moments. If you are a celebrity, people are used to seeing only what they are allowed to. Let them feel a little closer by sharing your more personal photos or videos.
- "Before and after" And don’t forget to include the whole story of transformation.
- Adventures. People are sick and tired of picturesque landscapes, they need some conflict and action behind them.
Sky's the limit!
Don't forget that visual narration is not a stream of consciousness. You still need a script to deliver your message clearly. As always with all other types of videos, try to keep your clip brief, as nowadays, the attention span is quite short. And consider post-production as well, as it might cost nothing provided you are using the right video editing tools and services, but make your project significantly better.