Nostalgia's Role in Storytelling - Iconic Brands Get It

Great article on Ad Age - General Mills Brings Back Green Giant, Cheerios Kid In Nostalgic Appeal

Obviously, digital media is allowing us to tell stories in a whole new way - not only personal stories, but brand stories. And, iconic brands know they have a history with consumers.

I think it's really smart how these companies are leveraging nostalgia in telling the brand story - and in telling new stories, such as in the Cheerios example.

These brands are highly commoditized - which green beans do you buy? Likely the cheapest.

But maybe not if you have nostalgic memories of your mother making dinner (using Jolly Green Giant green beans).

Maybe you have an emotional connection with the character and associate those beans with family dinners.

This type of storytelling can be very powerful, especially when you've been hearing the story since you were a child.

It's interesting how, sometimes, being innovative means looking to the past.