In the previous episode I’ve explained that there is a huge difference between a target group and an audience. And I’ve advised you to translate your target group into a description of your audience. In this episode we’ll move on to the next phase: The Audience’s Journey. To understand the audience’s journey as a great tool to get insight in your audience’s content needs, you must know about the ‘monomyth’, where this audience journey is based upon.
The hero’s journey by Joseph Campbell
During my search for things marketers should know about creating content, I stumbled upon Joseph Campbell, an American literary scholar who specialized in comparative mythology and religious studies. He focused on the similarities between various myths and religions and discovered that they can all be traced back to one basic story, the “monomyth”. Campbell described this in his book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, and called it the “hero’s journey”.
He found that there is a basic structure to all stories, all over the world, in all cultures and across all eras. Campbell suggests that this monomyth even existed before man started using language to tell stories. The hero’s journey is about the transformation, growth, and development of a hero. You could also see it as the “coming of age” of the main character. On his journey to adulthood, the main character is challenged on various fronts.
We can always identify three phases: the departure from the known world, the adventure in an unknown world full of challenges, and then the return to the known world, more mature and experienced. The monomyth is a way of telling a story.
It’s the ultimate way of making a story a success. This became clear in the 1970s when George Lucas relied on the hero’s journey as the basic structure for his Star Wars films. The film was an international success, and soon Hollywood realized that the structure of this film was an important factor to its success. Nowadays, you’ll recognize this journey in almost every blockbuster.
To understand this story structure framework, you’ll find all the steps of the hero’s journey in Finding Nemo below. Finding Nemo is the hero’s journey of his father, Marlin. If you were planning on watching this movie in the future sometime, I’ll have to warn you for spoilers. Then again… if you’re familiar with the hero’s journey, every blockbuster you are going to watch in the future is spoiled anyways 😉
THE DEPARTURE
1. THE ORDINARY WORLD
Marlin lives in a coral reef with his only son, Nemo.
2. CALL TO ADVENTURE
Marlin watches Nemo swim out into the open ocean and get caught by divers.
3. REFUSAL OF THE CALL
Marlin is afraid of open water and doesn’t swim after Nemo out of fear.
4. MEETING THE MENTOR
Marlin meets Dory, who gives him courage and advice.
THE ADVENTURE
5. CROSSING THE THRESHOLD
Accompanied by Dory, Marlin starts his big journey in the open sea.
6. TESTS, ALLIES & ENEMIES
Marlin and Dory meet the “vegetarian” sharks (who look like friends but are not) and the pelican (who looks like an enemy but is not) who brings them to Nemo. Then Marlin loses all hope for Nemo being alive.
7. THE APPROACH TO THE INNERMOST CAVE
Dory gives Marlin hope again by finding Nemo. Marlin has to overcome another fear and swim back to save Dory from the jellyfish.
8. THE CENTRAL ORDEAL
Marlin is stung by a jellyfish and almost dies.
THE RETURN
9. THE REWARD
Marlin has survived death and is reunited with his son Nemo.
10. THE ROAD BACK
Another challenge: Dory gets stuck in a net.
11. RESURRECTION
All lessons learned need to be applied: Marlin has to let Nemo go again and has to trust things will work out well.
12. RETURN HOME WITH THE ELIXIR
Marlin and Nemo come back home and apply the lessons they’ve learned. Everybody lives happily ever after. Until Dory goes missing, and a new journey begins…
Now that I have spoiled all the movies you’re about to watch in the future, you can just as well use this newly gained knowledge for your benefit. Maybe you were not aware of it yet, but the hero’s journey is the exact same journey as your audience’s journey. Your audience is going through the same stages as the hero in a movie is going through. And this insight will tell you what content your audience needs at what moment on its personal quest.
THE DEPARTURE
1. THE ORDINARY WORLD
The ordinary world of your audience can be described based on their situation or mindset, in which you as a brand do not register but can soon. [read episode 1 for more detail]
2. CALL TO ADVENTURE
What triggers make your audience move? What makes them look for more information (that you as a brand can give them)? Get insights from search, sales, and other data. You’ll retrieve a list with a lot of topics. Try to categorize them afterwards.
3. REFUSAL OF THE CALL
What makes them stop looking for more information? What demotivates them in the journey on this subject?
4. MEETING THE MENTOR
The audience is willing to accept tips and advice. Someone with experience can help them. Who can help them? Someone from your company? An employee? An influencer? Clients?
THE ADVENTURE
5. CROSSING THE THRESHOLD
The audience realizes that they need/want more information and they cross the threshold. No need to fill in something here.
6. TESTS, ALLIES & ENEMIES
Your brand is being tested now: “What do others say about this? Who else can give me this kind of information?” This is all about the ‘content competitor’. Not only your product competitor but look for the information your audience comes across when they are looking for information on the topic.
7. THE APPROACH TO THE INNERMOST CAVE
If your brand survived the test, your audience is open to change and is starting to trust you. What can you do to convey them to trust you?
8. THE CENTRAL ORDEAL
It’s now or never. Your audience wants one last reason to convince themselves.
THE RETURN
9. THE REWARD
You’ve made it. Your audience trusts you.
10. THE ROAD BACK
The audience now wants to be kept informed about new topics from which it can learn or get inspired.
11. RESURRECTION
The audience feels enriched with the knowledge and information it was provided.
12. RETURN HOME WITH THE ELIXIR
The audience can move on with the new information/knowlegde/experience they’ve been given.
Do it yourself
Now it’s time to do it yourself. Start with the ordinary world of your audience. It is, of course, possible that you have multiple audiences. For this exercise I’d advise you to start with one, or two. And make sure it is an ordinary world without a trigger. Read episode 1 to understand how and why. Then follow all the steps of the audience journey to gain insight on your audience’s content needs. If you want to master the audience journey, you can follow the online course ‘The Audience Journey’. It comes with examples and access to an online community of people working on their content strategy.
Carlijn Postma will be a speaker and trainer at WeContent Festival 2022, the first and only outdoor content marketing event in Europe that combines the best of information and fun. In her masterclass, Carlijn will teach you ‘How to create a sustainable content marketing strategy. And why that is more effective than any campaign’. Get your ticket now, before prices go up.
