As we study today’s media landscape we’re seeing a change in how messages are being communicated to the audience. In the past, messages were pushed towards individuals with lots of bells and whistles, guarantees and professional approvals but all that has changed. The audience wants to be involved, they want to engage and interact with a compelling message whether its a brand, product or service.

Companies have taken notice and they’re coming up with content strategies that will attract they’re targeted audience through creative and innovative ways thanks to the various communication platforms available to them. However, what I see is that the technology is just a cog in a much larger system. Marketing and advertising the usual way just doesn’t cut it anymore. People are not easily swayed especially within the online social ecosystem where messages can be picked apart, something that can negatively affect a campaign. In order to reach out to potential consumers, today’s marketers and advertisers need to be storytellers.

Storytelling can be quite effective when getting a message across because you want to get that emotional reaction and have it cross through multiple mediums. What captured the academic in me is the study of Transmedia storytelling and how technology effectively compliments the concept.

At first, I wanted to purchase a book and just read on the subject but I wanted something more and that’s where MOOCs come in. A MOOC stands for Massive Open Online Course and it’s basically a class that you can access online either paid or free and sometimes receive a certificate for completing. For this particular topic, I chose the MOOC The Future of Storytelling from a fledgling education site called Iversity where class interactivity, socialization and global accessibility are readily available and the best part—it’s FREE!

I really enjoyed the class and the academics, scholars and presenters went in depth about the concept of storytelling and how it can be achieved successfully. The first class began with the history of storytelling and the course ended with how media technology such as video games, social media, geo-location and augmented reality are the new tools in creating new forms of stories. I and the thousand of other students from around the world participated in this lessons through the class forum, Facebook and YouTube.

If you’re looking to continue your education but don’t have the money or time to go to a local school then MOOCs are a great alternative. I look forward in participating in another class. Unfortunately , this class is closed but I’m sure it will become available again soon. Iversity isn’t the only MOOC site you can attend, there are others that share the same academic teaching styles. Check out my blogpost, Free Online Education Is Available For All Media Enthusiasts, if you’re interested in checking out other MOOC websites.

Related articles

• The Future of Story Telling (vinitadhondiyal.wordpress.com)
• Transmedia: Jeff Gomez Shares Three Digital Storytelling Rules (geobrava.wordpress.com)
• Once Upon a Time: Storytelling Hailed as Must-Have Branding Strategy (benchmarkemail.com)
• Should you start a MOOC? (themarlincompany.com)
• Tap the Power of Storytelling (forbes.com)
• Creating Content People Care About (ydtsocialzing.wordpress.com)
• Chasing Trends in Education (donteattheshrimp.com)
• Today, Content is King. Start 2014 Off Right by Participating in a Free MOOC on Content Strategy for Professionals by Northwestern University (virtual-strategy.com)
• Turning a MOOC Into a Meta-MOOC (Participatory) Experience (hastac.org)
• What’s a MOOC? (whyleadnow.com)