Discover
You will be interviewed to find the history, hard work, personality, and purpose that make your business distinctive—and will make people care.
“Marketing is no longer about the stuff you make, but the stories you tell.”
Seth Godin
This is Marketing
Your Story Is Your Most Powerful Marketing Asset
You’ve spent thousand of dollars on marketing and still wondered:
Which of this actually working?
Local businesses are competing with national chains whose advertising budgets they can’t match. At the same time, consumers are surrounded by an endless stream of marketing:
“Look at our product.”
“Look at this sandwich.”
“25% off.”
“We’re cheaper.”
“We’re better.”
What if there was a way to cut through all the noise?
What if there was a better way to create interest and engagement within your community?
What if your story is an untapped asset with more power than a corporate budget?
Meet Gina and Lori.
Gina never planned to start a popcorn company. She simply wanted to make better popcorn for friends and family.
What began in a former tool shed in Wrightsville grew so quickly that both she and her husband Tim left their jobs to run the business full time.
Years later, Lori Capello left corporate America to buy and expand the business, creating a welcoming space overlooking the Susquehanna River.
The name reflects the personalities of both Gina and Lori—they don’t take themselves too seriously while serving neighbors. Lori says, “It’s about building small town community. We have deep relationships and can talk about life’s challenges.”
A teenager with blue-green hair is listening nearby. “Yeah,” she affirms. “She’s the mom of this street.”
Today, Half Nuts Popcorn offers 31 popcorn flavors and much more- something for everyone on a hot summer afternoon.
And we are reminded that it’s the local small businesses who create the most genuinely welcoming community spaces.
Stories earn attention
Do you feel what just happened?
Another photograph of a burger or a taco is easy to scroll past. But “How a Local Grandmother Turned Her Fabulous Popcorn into a Local Favorite” is a narrative.
Creating curiosity and an emotional connection. That’s the power of story.
Stories create connection
When people discover the people, passion, history, craft, and purpose behind a local business, that business becomes more than another name on a screen.
It becomes personal. People buy-in to a personal story differently than they do another coupon.
Stories create engagement and action
When it’s time to decide where to spend their time and money, you’ve now given people a reason to choose you.
Your story helps drive your brand
It’s what makes your business different, gives people a reason to care, and become loyal customers. It’s what turns you from just another business into a brand.
What is the process?
Create
Those elements are turned into stories people actually want to consume—written features, photography, short-form video, social posts, etc., that create an ecosystem of engagement within the local community.
Reach
Those stories are put in front of local audiences through social media and other channels including paid distribution, print, and other partnerships.
Convert
Making an emotional connection through story gives people a reason and opportunity to act—a reason to walk in your door, and discover a new community space they want to come back to.