A saying which hits the famous nail right on its head: “Those who tell the stories rule the world.” A short glance over the Atlantic is enough to determine the truth of these words: Donald J. Trump is president of the United States of America. This is particularly noteworthy since he as a businessman and political outsider has managed to become the most powerful man in the world. Taking a closer look at his campaign, it becomes clear quite quickly how he made it happen. His messages have been very well received by the American people. He uses techniques that work immediately in the human brain: stories! Now follows an insight into the dark side of storytelling.
Fear instead of hope: The dark side of storytelling
Donald J. Trump is a born entertainer. He has spent decades in public and knows how to arouse emotions. And this is the crux of the matter: Trump uses techniques which are set in the dark times of marketing – the opposite of storytelling. Whereas the idea of storytelling is based on empowering and encouraging the target group – in this case the voters – to help them achieve their self-realization, scaring the target group was an art of the dark marketing.
In this sense he created an extreme enemy image of America to scare his voters. He warned them of Hilary Clinton, “fake News”, and the Mexicans, and also presented a dystopic worldview, which would plunge America into ruin, if he was not elected. He let himself rise like a phoenix from the ashes and presented himself as the nation’s savior.
Posted By
Stefanie Möser
Categories
Brand Storytelling, Politics, Rhetoric