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On August 25, almost a month before the official first day of the new season, Starbucks declared fall.

It didn't matter that it was still reaching record temperatures. It didn't matter that the leaves wouldn't fall for weeks or even months. It didn't matter that the corn mazes were still only knee high.

All that mattered was that Starbucks fans wanted fall. They really wanted an escape from the hellish summer most of us experienced.

So Starbucks created the perfect fall alternate universe where you can wear a scarf and look at the leaves and drink a PSL without sweating through your face mask.

And if you think this campaign was shot with a raised eyebrow and a look at the calendar, you are clearly underestimating the ability to tell your customers the story they want to hear.

Good marketing sells the transformation rather than the product itself. You frame it as a solution to a problem. Things were bad before. But now that you have or have done this, your post-condition is much better.

But if you want really good marketing – like marketing that sells out pumpkin mousse cold brew coffee every time I try to buy one – you need to turn that conversion into a story.

People connect with emotions and stories. So if you set up your marketing to tell a story, especially a story that your customers want to see themselves in, you're going to rake in the pumpkin spice … um … I mean the sales.

This is especially important during the holiday season when everyone is trying to sneak into your customers' wallets. Your best chance of being one of the lucky few is to bond with your customers. Build a connection through storytelling.

If you're still not sure how to build a story around your product, we're here to help. We've broken this process down into three steps and have a few examples that you can take inspiration from.

(And if the smell of pumpkin spice in the air starts putting you on the vacation promotion stress, just download ours FREE Retirement Plan for Vacation Marketing 2020.

We've set out when to prepare for the big holidays by the end of 2020, exactly what you need, when to have everything ready and when to start your promotions.)

Find out what your customers want

The first step in creating a great story about your product or service is knowing what your customers want. What story do you want to see yourself in?

The best way to find out is to turn to your trusted customer avatar worksheet, which defines exactly who your ideal customer is.

When you have completed your CAW, you will know exactly what your customers want and are interested in, what they are afraid of and frustrated with, and what types of media they are consuming.

When you've completed the before and after grid shown next to the CAW above, you will know how your customers are feeling before you become a customer and how they should feel after purchasing your product or service.

With all of these resources and a good understanding of your ideal client, you should be able to easily create a story that shows the transformation.

If we look at Starbucks as an example, they knew how bad their customers wanted fall. They understood the frustration of the hot weather or the fear of the current social chaos.

So they wrote a story about the fall of the new season (the pun was just a lucky coincidence) and focused their marketing efforts on creating a relaxing, enjoyable fall experience.

And their biggest marketing push (apart from the drinks themselves) was the fall hotline they set up.

Customers could call and hear the sounds of fall long before the real season hit them. Not only did this hit the exact pain point, but it also created a narrative about the transformation.

They knew exactly what their customers wanted and delivered it in their marketing efforts.

Decide how your product or service fits

Once you know what your customer wants, the next step is to decide how your product will fit.

In some vacations, you may offer a great gift that will charm and impress your loved ones.

Or, if you're like David's tea (similar to Starbucks), you may be providing a calming environment and a joyful experience.

Whichever way your product fits, make sure that action stays at the center of your marketing story, and keep it as consistent as possible across platforms and content.

You can see David & # 39; s Tea using the same language: "This heartwarming mix gives you all the cozy feelings" on both the product page and the Facebook ad.

By keeping your story the same across platforms, you can not only be sure of reaching all of your customers, but also cement your customer's emotional response.

For David & # 39; s Tea, prospects who saw the ad and thought, "Oh, I need some coziness in my life", won't be surprised by another message when they get to the landing page.

Create a story in which your customer is the main character

The central idea in creating a marketing "story" is that your customer is the star. You want the news to be focused on the customer and how they are feeling and changing, rather than your product.

You can see here with this BarkBox copy that they have gone even further with their story than the other examples, going so far as to toss their customer's dog (arguably the real customer, but maybe not the one with the ultimate purchasing power) into it Story about a beautiful autumn trip.

Anyone with a dog (and a heart) will be instantly drawn into the story and see themselves and their furry best friend on this car ride.

And then when they read through the rest of the product description, they are still in that relaxed, happy emotional state and are brought closer to the products through expansion.

And who wouldn't be enchanted by a sweater with a mouse?

No matter what your story is, make sure you make your client the main character. Star them, and they'll make a better connection with your brand and the product you're targeting them with.

By creating an emotionally-charged story that fulfills your audience's desires, you can be confident of avoiding the noise of the season and cementing your customers' love for you and your brand.

And if you want to feel better prepared to put your vacation marketing story into action, download ours Pension plan for vacation marketing 2020.

What could be nicer this Christmas season than having your marketing campaign under control before the start of the season? Well, maybe a PSL … but that could just be me.