43 \\ Try This Business Storytelling & Social Selling Fix

People remember the struggle. They remember the transformation, the feeling of possibility, just not the feature list. So when you're creating posts or starting conversations, I want you to start thinking less like a salesperson, right? Less like a car salesman who lists all the features of the car, and more like a storyteller. Tell the people where the car will take them, what kind of a family experience can they have. That's what people want to hear. And here's the thing, storytelling isn't just for big brand ads or, say, long blogs. You can use stories everywhere. And I suggest that you try to sprinkle it in and around everything that you would do on social media.
Tired of showing up online, posting your heart out and still hearing crickets? Are you doing all the right things but wondering why your content isn't converting? Your DMs are dry and your audience isn't buying? You're not alone, and this podcast is exactly for you. Welcome to Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses, where strategy meets soul and connection. Well, that's the secret sauce. Hi. I'm Cheyanne Cleyman, a wife, proud mama of three, former actress and fitness trainer, turned serial entrepreneur and online relationship expert. Over the last decade, I've built my own brands, helped dozens of others grow theirs, and discovered one powerful truth, connection is the real currency. If you're a service based business or high ticket brand that wants more leads, trust and sales from social media without the burnout or fake hype, you're in the right place. Each week, I'm bringing you short, powerful and packed episodes that feel like a coffee date with a best friend and biz coach all in one. Let's turn your followers into clients and content into connection. This is Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses, and it's about to change how you show up online. Let's dive in, boss.
You know, it still amazes me how much power a single story can hold. Let me give you a quick example. Years ago, I was living in California as a broke actress, and my husband, Kim, was all the way over in his home country of Belgium. We actually met at a wedding in the Netherlands. And here's the wildest part, we only had one lunch date before I flew back to the opposite side of the world. From there, our entire relationship began through stories. We spent hours online swapping little stories about our days, our families, our dreams. I mean, we were even doing workouts through FaceTime together. And honestly, those stories are what built the foundation of trust and connection between us, because just three months later, we actually got married in Vegas.
Okay, he flew to New York first, and then we road tripped across the country to Vegas and ultimately had a very romantic family beach wedding in California. And yes, it sounds like a Hallmark movie, but it's our real life. And here's the point, if you're still listening, it's probably because that story pulled you in. They make you lean forward. Stories create connection, and they stick with you long after the facts fade away. I mean, how many of you probably remember how long we dated, right? Or which country did we meet in? But you will remember that we married quickly and that we're from two different parts of the world, because that's a powerful part of our story.
And today, I want to show you how to use the same power of storytelling in your business, so that your audience isn't just scrolling by, but they're leaning in, which is, I hope, exactly what you're doing right now, because we're about to dive in. I want to say, first and foremost, welcome back to Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses. I'm your host, Cheyanne Cleyman, and today we're going to dive into something that will completely shift the way you think about selling, especially if you're like, ooh, I feel I'm allergic to it. This is going to be great news for you, because here's the truth, nobody wakes up excited to be sold to, but everyone loves a good story. Think about what's the next movie you want to see in the movie theater? Not when do you plan to, because if you're a parent like me, well, that's just not on the top of my priority list, but I can tell you some stories that I want to go see, and that's why storytelling is the secret sauce in your posts, in your conversations, and, yes, even in your direct messages. If you've ever wondered how to sell without being salesy, well, here we go. This one's for you, boss.
So here we go. Let's start here. Facts tell, but stories sell. Okay, if I was gonna recommend you go get something tattooed on yourself today, it would be that facts tell, but stories sell. Okay, maybe don't get the tattoo, but definitely put it on the back of your phone, like as a background image or something. Because you can tell someone, "Hey," quote, "my service helps small businesses grow," and they might nod like very politely and try to understand what that means. But if you say something like, "Last month, I worked with a local roofer who was so frustrated with social media, and then, boom, within 30 days of changing his engagement strategy, he booked three new jobs straight from his Instagram." Now I've probably got your attention, right? It's way more specific than just saying something ambiguous, like, "I help small businesses grow." Well, how do you help them grow? And who have you helped grow? Stories stick because they connect emotionally. Maybe you imagined yourself in that story right there. Maybe you imagined what could three new clients mean to you? What could it mean to your business, to your family?
People remember the struggle. They remember the transformation, the feeling of possibility, just not the feature list. So when you're creating posts or starting conversations, I want you to start thinking less like a salesperson, right? Less like a car salesman who lists all the features of the car, and more like a storyteller. Tell the people where the car will take them, what kind of a family experience can they have. That's what people want to hear. And here's the thing, storytelling isn't just for big brand ads or, say, long blogs. You can use stories everywhere, and I suggest that you try to sprinkle it in and around everything that you would do on social media.
You can say, do it in your captions. So any of your captions, whether it's for reels or if it's a carousel post or even just the caption itself, if you use threads or Twitter and you're just writing, instead of saying something like, "book a free consultation," share a story about someone who booked one and what changed for them. I've done this even in this podcast episode, and I've noticed that I've gotten more calls booked from when I tell a story about one of my personal clients, rather than like, "Hey, go book a connection call in the show notes." I mean, we all do these things, right, and it's okay to do them every once in a while. It's more of the exception, rather than the rule. The rule would be, use storytelling, and with your video content, make sure that you use storytelling frameworks like you can kind of do something like, "Hey, a before and after," and the lesson you learned from that, or say, if it's not your own personal transformation, speak about one of the clients that you've helped, even if the client was your mom or your cousin, especially if you're just starting out. Chances are, if you're listening to this podcast, you're probably an entrepreneur, a coach, a consultant of some type, an advisor. So in those type of niches, in those type of businesses, you are helping someone. So share how you've helped someone.
And in your direct messages, I would say that this is probably one of the best places to tell stories, especially because if someone comes into your DMs, they are now a warm lead. They've taken time out of their day with all the incessant scrolling, all the bombarding of messaging coming at them, and they, for whatever reason, have chosen you. In the past, I wouldn't have given as much clout to DMs, because when social media was first coming out, it was just so new, right? Even pre-COVID, I mean, there wasn't as many social media business profiles and links and things like that. But now people, including us, including you, probably right now, have gotten a billion notifications while listening to this podcast, and you've really had to focus and clear your mind and make sure that you're really listening to everything I'm saying, because it's just part of the world we live in. We are bombarded.
So if you can put your mindset, or put yourself in the shoes of your client, you would see that they also go through this too. So long story short, or, as my husband likes to joke, I'm a short story long kind of girl. But if someone's in your DMs, this is big news. So if someone asks you, "Hey, does this really work?" don't just say yes. Don't keep it short and sweet. Instead, say, "Hey, yeah. Actually, one of my clients felt the same way. And after working together," da, da, da, da. At least in this way, you're not pushing, you're relating, right? Remember from earlier, the thing I said, "Make sure that you tattoo facts tell, but stories sell." Well, this would be the second tattoo is, "Don't push, relate." Relate to them. And people love to buy from people who get them, who feel them, who see them.
Right now, I know some of you who are listening are probably thinking, "Okay, Shy," like, Cheyanne, "I love this idea, but I just don't have time to do all of that engagement and then track conversations and figure out what stories to tell and actually find the people." Well, I've got good news for you, because that's exactly why we created our done-with-you and done-for-you lead generation packages at my company, Kuleana Connect. And here's how it works. We don't just help you grow an audience, right? That's what social media management companies and marketers do. We help you build relationships. So my team and I, we step in to nurture leads. We engage with your ideal clients, and we even hand off warm conversations to you when they are ready to chat and ultimately getting ready to buy. So if you've been wishing someone could just handle the social side of things while you focus on running your business, what we do is for you, and I'm going to go ahead and make sure that I put the link in the show notes so that you can check out the details. And if you feel this really resonates with you, and what I'm saying could be the prayer answer that you've been praying for, go ahead and book a call with us.
Now, let's break this down into something you can use today, right? Storytelling doesn't have to be long. It doesn't have to be complicated or dramatic. It's as simple as a three-part flow. So if you're a note taker, this is where you want to write these three down, so let's make it really easy. First and foremost, you want to have a problem, describe the challenge or frustration. Okay? Chances are, if you're looking at a podcast like this, and you've been online at all for a little bit of time, you've heard about keywords, right? So these are the words that your clients are using, their struggles, their frustrations, their trials, the things that they would come to you for. So start there. Number two, start with a turning point. So share what shifted again. This can be in your own personal story, your own personal journey, or something from one of your clients, or maybe a little bit of an in between, and then lead to a solution, reveal the outcome or the lesson learned. That's it. One, two, three, problem, turning point, solution. All right, let's do this together, like two more times. Problem, turning point, solution. Problem, turning point, solution.
All right, hey, I've got two kids under five, so I often put things to music. I want to give you an example so that I can make it more tangible for you. So problem, "I used to waste hours every week posting and posting with no results." Turning Point, "Then I shifted my focus to real engagement and nurturing leads." Solution. "Now my content isn't just getting likes, it's bringing in discovery calls every week." That was just three sentences, and it probably took me 30 seconds to say. It was short, it was relatable and it was human. So here we go. If you've been listening to this podcast for any amount of time, you know, I'm all about that action, baby. I'm about putting that movement to your business. So here's your action step for the week. I want you to pick one story, just uno. Okay, one story from your own business or your clients. Maybe it's a big win, maybe it's a struggle. Maybe it's your own journey, where you been or where you currently are. Write it out in this format of the problem, turning point and solution, and share it in your next post or conversation.
And don't forget, if you're still on the struggle bus and you're like, "Okay, I really need some help here. I love this episode. But what else you got?" Well, hey, glad you're asking. I've got two resources waiting for you in the show notes to make this even easier. First up is our downloadable freebie called The Five Quiet Reasons Your Content Isn't Converting. It's a PDF that will break down and help you spot and fix the hidden mistakes in your own social media content strategy. And then the next step on the ladder is our brand new lead tracker. It's the exact tracker that my team and I use for our clients, so you can keep tabs on every conversation and lead without feeling scatterbrained. Make sure you grab those for free. Start telling stories and watch how your audience responds differently this week.
And I actually want to hear about it. I love getting testimonies from my podcast audience, so please come on over and find us on Instagram at Kuleana Connect, or you can always shoot us a quick email at aloha@kuleanaconnect.com, and if you're wondering how to spell those, you can also find those in the show notes below. We'd love to hear your success stories. Again, everyone, thank you for hanging out with me today. I really enjoy this time, and I look forward to seeing you next time on Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses. You keep hanging in there, keep going for it. And boss, I know sooner rather than later, your storytelling is going to open up so many beautiful doors in your business. Have that faith, and I look forward to celebrating with you.
All right, my friend, that's it for today. Well, let me leave you with this. If your content is not converting, it's not your fault. Chances are you've been taught to prioritize the algorithm instead of the actual humans reading your words, and that is. That ends right here. Go ahead and grab my free guide, Five Quiet Reasons Your Content Isn't Converting and What to Do Instead. It's packed with real talk, practical shifts and quick, immediate wins. Link is in the show notes below. And if you're ready to stop guessing and start connecting with ideal clients who actually buy from you, book a free connection call with our team at Kuleana Connect. We don't do content. We do connection that converts because at the end of the day, it's not about going viral, it's about being valuable. Thanks for hanging out with me again. I'm Cheyanne Cleyman and I'll see you on next week's episode. See you later, boss.