At MP Storytelling, one of my intentions, my goals as a business is to help people tell impactful and engaging stories that connect with audiences.
I’m going to talk about an awesome story related to this year’s biggest film, Inside Out 2. In addition, I have 3 storytelling takeaways you can use for your small business or brand.
Inside Out 2 was undoubtedly the big winner of the summer movie season. It’s made over $1.6 billion dollars, global and domestic box office combined. It’s the 9th highest grossing film of all-time, recently surpassing The Lion King. The film came out in mid-June, and still has showtimes at my local theater almost 3 months after its release date.
Subscribe to the MP Storytelling blog
Why is Inside Out and Inside Out 2 so popular?
People love the Inside Out films because it’s a different type of animated movie: a story about a young person’s mental health. It highlights Riley’s story of her experience with new feelings like anxiety and challenges with others like embarrassment or boredom.
They’re popular films because it’s about something we can all relate to: the emotions in our head. It’s an animated film marketed and made for kids and young adults, but the film is really for everyone. Inevitably, people will take their sons, daughters, nephews, nieces, and older folks will take their grandkids too.
The Inside Out films go beyond their popularity as an immersive story about a young person’s mental health. I learned reading this New York Times article titled, “How ‘Inside Out’ and Its Sequel Changed Therapy,” that school counselors, therapists and psychologists have used the characters from the films as a way to talk about emotions with children.
It provides a visual framework for mental health professionals to discuss specific emotions. One phrase in the article that stood out to me was the film’s characters helped make “abstract concepts concrete.” Mental health professionals were able to connect with children or young adults and provide a successful treatment to help them get through a challenging time or situation at school.
Why mental health professionals love it too
These films have come at a time when people are paying more attention to their mental health and emotional well-being. With more ways to communicate than ever, it’s essential for us to know how and where to talk with people.
For educators, staff and caregivers in 2024, they want to recognize children’s sensibilities, not repress them. The Inside Out films encourage people to embrace their personalities. It encourages people not to make their feelings into enemies and understand all feelings are there for a reason, and our good for us in moderation (anxiety, too).
Inside Out 2 in particular may be so popular because it speaks to young people who have had experiences with anxiety, but don’t know how to talk about it with others. Feelings of anxiety and depression can lead to loneliness and feeling like no one will understand how they’re feeling.
These films are changing lives, impacting how young people feel across the US everyday because there’s now a visual roadmap for dissecting feelings. There’s an easy, simple story to refer to where someone can find a more logical, and tempered approach to deal with the thoughts behind an emotion.
Subscribe to the MP Storytelling blog
Finding value for your business or brand through Inside Out’s storytelling
The film’s story has resonated so well with its audience, its impact goes beyond its value as just an entertainment product people watch. It’s helped professionals provide a way to talk to kids, and find a constructive way through mental health issues.
How do we find a little bit of that, or should we even look for that when thinking about telling a story for our business or brand? If we’re just trying to get out everyday content, no, then an Inside Out-style story isn’t for us.
But, if we’re thinking about creating a story around a product to help us sell, or a story about a customer impacted by our work, then we can tap into some of those storytelling secrets from the film.
Three storytelling takeaways from the Inside Out films
- The biggest storytelling secret is one I’ve already mentioned, but can’t emphasize enough. Making abstract concepts concrete is essential if we’re to succeed with any business story.
We have to provide a way of showing our value to people in real, practical terms they see everyday. The specific story we tell and how we connect with our audience will be different for every one of us, but the same principles still apply. - Finding a story that people can relate to. Inside Out and Inside Out 2 are stories that have such a broad audience because everyone relates to having thoughts, feelings, an inner monologue in their head.
I love talking about the value of storytelling on an Instagram post or a YouTube video, but sometimes what people relate to is content about my cats. Share content or stories about things you know people universally love, and then find a way to tie it back to your business. - Embrace our personality. Just as the Inside Out films encourage young people to understand and feel their feelings, I encourage you to put a signature part of yourself into your brand.
People do this in different ways, whether it’s putting part of themselves into the logo or name of their business. Maybe its having a signature item with some history behind it like a family recipe. It’s a little different for everyone.
Telling a quality story over and over again helps set us apart from competitors. If we feel comfortable going on video to tell our story, even better. People remember faces, especially the same one they see from a particular business.
Beyond the brand: storytelling with confidence
The stories we tell people for our business go beyond our direct goals of selling a product, growing our awareness to get new clients or customers, or building trust in our business.
It can impact people in ways we may never know about. It connects and touches them to do something else in their lives that’s meaningful. The creators of Inside Out or Inside Out 2 did not intend to change children’s psychology, but have impacted it because that’s what kids and young adults relate to. It’s what they connect with.
I hope these insights and takeaways can support you in telling a great story for your business or personal brand.
If you’re thinking about how a story could benefit your business, let’s hop on a discovery call. I have the experience and expertise to create an impactful story for your audience.
Thanks again for reading! Till next time.
Subscribe to the MP Storytelling blog
MP Storytelling LLC 
Leave a comment