“Tell us your story at...”

“Dude, remember the time you made a bong out of yer mom’s Secret deodorant? Hey man, you ever find the dog?”

Story: “1. a narrative, either true or fictitious, in prose or verse, designed to interest, amuse, or instruct the hearer or reader; tale.”

First brands had to have a website. Then a blog. Followed by the turning over of Quicktime movies so consumers can make ads for them.

Now comes the request for stories. They’re not the only ones of course, but brands like Volvo and Secret deodorant are the latest to ask for our experiences, like this one:

“My secret is I use Secret Deodorant, and I am a guy.”

If it was supposed to be a secret, would you also leave your name like Cory did? (And if this is Wild Pack of Family Dogs’s Cory, I love how honest you were then bro, really.) But since it probably isn’t, I think people will laugh at this – and indirectly, the brand. Because it runs counter to their dramatic mission statement:

“Look into the souls of strong women, whose candid secrets reflect their character - flaws, frailties, intelligence, nerve and wit. Are you strong enough to share your secret?”

Um, Cory was – and he’s a guy. So much for character and women. Anyone else chuckling at this revelation?

Look, it’s an admirable attempt to open up a dialog between your customers, granted, but is this just a new spin on the old “Dear Penthouse, I never thought this would happen to me...”? In a consumer-generated focus group kinda way, sure seems like it.

Important word in any of this: story. Something that is amusing, entertaining or compelling. Which means I don’t feel like sorting through 50 posts all the same on how Secret ‘really works,’ or ‘how mom passed down her love of Secret roll-on to me.’

Compelling, or thinly-veiled brand selling points?

Tell me you used Secret to put under the tire of the car you lifted with one hand to rescue the dog that was trapped underneath – then I’m reading.

And that’s where another potential problem lies – in the lie. Works for fiction, not for testimonials. Even if it’s boring, I still need to believe that what you’re saying is true, especially if I’m going to ever connect with your brand. So the challenge for the brand becomes how do they get compelling stories that also ring true?

The Devil’s Advocate POV might say this is just another flavor of the month tactic for them to try without taking advantage of any consumer insights they come across. How many brands demonstrate a huge disconnect between what they think consumers want and want consumers really want? Why would this situation be any different?

I’m not saying every story needs to involve a bong, the family pet and your best friend. Boring can still be compelling. Do the stories if you want, just make sure they connect with the brand in a way that rings true.

Tags: advertising, Secret, brands, Volvo