The Secrets of Good Storytelling
Your Best Story Is Already Hiding in Plain Sight You have probably sat through a presentation, scrolled past a brand post, or read an email that was technically fine (correct, professional, well-formatted), but felt absolutely nothing. No pull. No reason to keep reading. No memory of it an hour later. That’s what happens when information shows up without a story. Storytelling is not a nice-to-have soft skill. It is the core of every piece of marketing that has ever worked. Your ability to explain why something matters is what determines whether people tune in or tune out. The good news is, you already have everything you need to do it well. Here is the myth worth busting first: storytelling is for charismatic TEDx speakers, novelists, movie directors, and brand strategists with a thesaurus. It is not for the rest of us. That is simply not true. Your storytelling power does not come from a polished personal brand or a dramatic origin story. It comes from your observations, your language, and your lived experience. Some of the best stories come from the things you notice, struggle with, or say out loud without realizing they are profound. Stories you tell in passing, without hesitation, at a casual lunch. Your most powerful story might be hiding in plain sight. And that story does not need a dramatic backstory or a tidy arc to work; it just needs to be real. If you have ever Googled “storytelling framework,” you’ve probably encountered the hero’s journey, the three-act structure, the problem-agitate-solution format, and about a dozen variations. These frameworks exist for a reason: they give shape to ideas that might otherwise wander. However, real storytelling does not come from a fill-in-the-blanks worksheet. When you lean too heavily on a formulaic structure, your story ends up sounding like everyone else’s. The framework becomes a cage instead of a scaffold. Use structure as a starting point, not a finish line. Let it guide you into the story, then trust yourself enough to go off-script. If you are still pouring most of your energy into long-form, highly produced content, it might be time to reconsider. According to a 2025 report from SundaySky, short-form videos under one minute have an average engagement rate of 50%, significantly outperforming other video formats—and prompting brands to prioritize micro content in their strategies. This is not an argument against depth or quality; it’s an argument for meeting your audience where they are. A 45-second video that gets to the emotional core of your story will outperform a polished 10-minute production that takes three minutes to get interesting. Short does not mean shallow. It means intentional. Marketing strategy should be about more than just “do this to get these people.” When your content feels disconnected from your why, or even a little icky, it might be time to reconnect with the story behind the numbers. If you feel inspired by what you are saying, other people will too. Culture-first brands like Nike or Topicals, the skincare brand built around people with real skin conditions, understand this deeply. They are not just selling products; they are built around stories and experiences that resonate with a defined cultural group. As creative strategist, Cristina Jerome (formerly of Topicals), explains: “You can’t have culture-first marketing without a founder or brand story that aligns with the culture you’re trying to speak to. Without that alignment, the marketing feels performative.” If you don’t have a founder whose story naturally connects to the community you want to reach, Jerome recommends building genuine relationships with ambassadors from that community and letting those partnerships inform your strategy and storytelling from the ground up. When storytelling becomes a daily habit rather than an afterthought, you build consistency, connection, and credibility. That is how trust compounds. Here are three practical ways to start: Start a story bank. Use a shared doc or spreadsheet to log every quote, stat, or image that made someone smile, pause, or share. Tag it by theme and use it when you need content fast. Use AI. Have an AI tool rewrite existing content as a one-paragraph story that highlights emotion, purpose, and impact. Use it as a spark, not a finished product. Lean on visuals. A carousel is more than a photo dump; it’s a high-performing format used to explain, educate, and/or entertain. Pair strong visuals with a clear narrative thread and you have something people will actually stick around for. Here is the formula that actually works: emotion + logic = engagement. To find a point of genuine connection, ask yourself: What did you feel? What did you see? What did you hear? Let that guide your opening. Don’t underestimate humor! If you can get your audience to laugh, you have already bypassed the part of the brain that says, “I don’t trust this.” Once you have that emotional hook, support it with something logical, like a data point, a proof point, something that solidifies the emotion so the brain can hold onto it. The more stories you share, the more context and nuance you give your audience. They can fill in the gaps about who you are with accurate information, rather than something they saw online or read in a book 10 years ago. Use narrative to fill in the picture of who you are, what your product or service does, the value you bring, and how that connects to the real humans in your community. That is the beauty of storytelling: when you share who you are, your audience will want to be part of it with you. You don’t need a dramatic backstory, a massive production budget, or a perfectly crafted brand voice to tell stories that move people. You need honesty, a little structure, and the willingness to share what you actually think and feel. At Videre Creative, we help service-based businesses and solopreneurs find their story and build content that actually connects. If you are ready to make storytelling a real part of your
4 Ways to Make Video Part of Your Small Business Marketing Mix
It really can’t be over exaggerated: video is THE most shared form of content on the internet. By 2018, it will account for nearly 80% of all worldwide consumer internet traffic. But it still baffles many small business owners. How do you use video? Can you really reach customers that way? And does it make a difference in sales? Incorporating video into your marketing is actually a lot easier than it sounds. And statistics show it works. Here are 4 ways to make video work for you. Post it on Your Website Websites are like digital storefronts. You spend a lot of time and effort creating curb appeal, getting customers to find you, come in and spend some time browsing. Ultimately, you want them to make a purchase. To create this digital sales cycle, you want to boost your search engine optimization, or SEO. A lot of elements go into how a website ranks in search engine results, from the average time spent on the site to the number of pages viewed. And nothing steps up to the plate to help like video. Adding a video to a landing page makes it 53% more likely to appear on the first page of Google search results. Probably because Google ranks websites with video content five times higher than websites without. That’s a big boost. Then when you have videos on your website, visitors will spend more than twice as long browsing the site, which is also good for SEO. And putting a video on a landing page not only helps SEO, it increases conversions by 80%. Create a YouTube Account Love it or hate it, YouTube is an essential part of our digital world now. It’s the second most used online search engine (after Google, of course). One third of all Internet users have a YouTube account, though you don’t need an account to watch videos, and over 50% of people watch at least one online video each day. That is a huge audience, both locally and globally. And those are customers, clients, patients and partners you could be reaching. Once you consider that YouTube is owned by Google, the connection between video and SEO becomes a little more clear. You can also use keywords, links and other SEO best practices in your YouTube video description that will drive more traffic to your website. Share it on Social Media If social media plays any role in your smal business marketing plan, your plan should also include video. Social video generates 1,200% more shares than simple text or image posts combined. People love to watch and share videos, making it a great, organic way for current customers and followers to help introduce you to new followers. There are also more traditional marketing strategies you can employ through social media, like Facebook boosted posts and ads. And as you might suspect, video ads do better than ads with only text, images and links. Send it in an Email Once you have a video embedded on your website or posted on your YouTube account, you have to tell people it’s there. Social media is a good way to spread the word, but not everyone is on social media. Everyone has an email address. Even if you don’t send out digital newsletters (by the way, you should, but that’s a different blog post), you can send the video link in an email. Just including the word “video” in your email subject line will get 19% more of your audience to open the email. Then putting a video in the email can boost your click-through rate by up to 300%. Software programs like MailChimp and Constant Contact track these open and click-through rates, so it’s simple to compare the results of a non-video email to the results of a video email. With online tracking methods, it’s pretty easy to see the results and ROI of video. You know what you spent to produce and distribute the video(s), and you can track your increase in traffic, followers and sales after adding video to your marketing mix. There’s no denying the audience is there and waiting for it, so get your business out there and be seen!
Video Marketing for Small Business
Sources: AdWeek, Cisco, Forrester, HubSpot, Insivia, Invodo and YouTube
Alpha Dog Running & Drinking Club – September Fun Run
RUN LIKE YOU STOLE IT! Or like there’s booze at the end… because there is. The Alpha Dog Running & Drinking Club is a fun run that brings together the community, businesses and nonprofit organizations. Our inaugural run on September 23 features d’Vine Gourmet and Arizona Helping Hands. ROUTE The 3-mile loop will start and end at d’Vine Gourmet (Alma School Road and Chandler Heights Road). If you’re feeling good, make it two loops. If you want to walk or quality check the wine, turn around at the 1-mile mark. Miles and turns will be clearly marked. We expect runners and walkers of ALL speeds. Strollers and dogs are welcome, too (if it’s not too hot). Of course dogs will be asked to stay outside the shop. After the run, d’Vine will host a private wine and beer tasting for us. So yes, there is booze at the end! And juice boxes for youngsters. Everyone who participates will be entered into a raffle for prizes from d’Vine and Alpha Chiropractic. Those who bring a donation will be entered into an additional raffle for more d’Vine prizes. We’ll also have discount codes for the Gilbert Marathon and will give away a race entry. And the best part – it’s all FREE! SCHEDULE 5:30-6pm Check in, drop off Arizona Helping Hands donation 6pm Run! 6:45pm Raffle 6:45-7:30pm Wine and Beer Tasting *We ask that everyone returns to the store by 6:45pm. If you want to get in a longer run, please let us know and plan to leave a little earlier than the 6pm start. ARIZONA HELPING HANDS Our nonprofit partner is Arizona Helping Hands, an organization that assists foster families and children. In addition to toy and school supply drives, this amazing organization supplies cribs, beds and basic needs to thousands of boys and girls – the ONLY organization in Arizona to do so. Alpha Chiropractic and Videre Creative Services are hosting a baby supply donation drive for Arizona Helping Hands that will officially kick off at this fun run. We encourage you to bring an item from the supply list below, or make a monetary donation if you can. Did you know that Arizona offers a dollar-for-dollar tax credit – up to $1,000 – for monetary donations to Certified Foster Care Charities? Arizona Helping Hands is on that approved list! Bring your donations to the run or drop them off at the Alpha Chiropractic office any time through October 31. Monetary donations should be in the form of a check made out to Arizona Helping Hands or through our online donation site – more info to come. Receipts are available for all donations. NEEDED BABY SUPPLIES: Diapers and wipes (any size) Tearless shampoo/body wash Baby powder Diaper rash treatment Baby lotion Brush and comb Baby washcloths Hand sanitizer Toys for newborns – 4 years old This event is hosted by Alpha Chiropractic & Physical Therapy and Videre Creative Services.