Does Your Business Feel Smaller Than It Really Is?
A lot of businesses are far more valuable than the market realizes.
The work is strong. The customers are happy. The business has grown. And yet somehow it still feels harder to explain, harder to differentiate, or smaller than it actually is.
In this episode, Dr. J.J. Peterson talks with Julie Firth and Sonya Whittam of Story22 about why businesses often outgrow their messaging without realizing it—and why customer experience has become one of the clearest reflections of leadership itself.
Join us on June 10th and 11th in London for our two-day intensive workshop - Become the Obvious Choice!
Prefer to listen? Press play below.
One of the strangest leadership problems is realizing your business has evolved faster than the way people experience it.
The company is stronger than it used to be.
The work is better.
The customer results are stronger.
The thinking is sharper.
But somehow the business still feels harder to explain than it should.
Customers don’t immediately understand the value. Referrals happen, but not at the level leadership expects. Marketing sounds flatter than the actual experience of working with the company. And over time, businesses that are genuinely thoughtful and differentiated start feeling strangely interchangeable in the market.
That disconnect sits underneath far more businesses than most leaders realize.
In this conversation, Dr. J.J. Peterson talks with Julie Firth and Sonya Whittam of Story22 about why growing companies often outgrow their messaging without noticing—and why the customer experience itself has become one of the clearest reflections of leadership.
The Problem Usually Isn’t The Quality Of The Work
One of the most important ideas in this conversation is that many businesses are not struggling because they lack value.
They struggle because customers cannot fully feel that value when they interact with the company.
That gap shows up everywhere:
messaging that sounds generic despite excellent work,
websites that create confusion instead of clarity,
customer experiences that feel transactional even when the people behind the business care deeply,
or positioning that no longer reflects what the company has actually become.
Julie and Sonya describe seeing this constantly with successful businesses. Internally, leadership teams know exactly why the work matters. They understand the nuance, the care, and the transformation they create for customers.
But externally, the experience often feels smaller than the business itself.
One of the ideas J.J. has returned to repeatedly is that confusion quietly erodes trust.
The clearer a business becomes about who it serves, what problem it solves, and how customers fit into the story, the easier it becomes for people to emotionally connect to the experience itself. That is part of what makes the StoryBrand framework so powerful. Customers do not want to work hard to understand why a business matters to them.
They want clarity.
Not because clarity feels polished, but because clarity feels trustworthy.
And when businesses struggle to communicate their value clearly, customers often assume the business itself is less differentiated than it really is.
And confusion does not just affect sales. It affects perception.
When people cannot quickly understand the value of a business, they often assume the business is less differentiated than it actually is.
Customers Decide How A Business Feels Very Quickly
One of the recurring themes throughout the episode is that customer experience starts much earlier than most leaders think.
It begins with the first interaction.
The first email.
The first conversation.
The first few seconds someone spends trying to understand what a business actually does.
Customers are constantly absorbing emotional signals:
Does this business feel clear?
Does it feel thoughtful?
Does it feel intentional?
Does it feel confident in who it is?
Or does it feel like every other company in the industry?
People make those decisions quickly, often before leadership realizes it is happening.
That is part of why businesses can do exceptional work and still struggle to stand out. The issue is not always visibility. Sometimes the deeper problem is emotional resonance.
Customers do not simply evaluate whether a business is competent. They evaluate how interacting with that business makes them feel.
When Businesses Outgrow Their Messaging
One of the strongest insights in the conversation is the idea that businesses often outgrow the way they talk about themselves.
That tends to happen quietly.
A company grows through referrals, relationships, and reputation. The work evolves. The customer base becomes more sophisticated. The results improve. But the messaging never fully catches up with the reality of what the company has become.
So leadership keeps communicating from an older version of the business.
That creates a strange disconnect where the experience of working with the company feels far more valuable than the marketing itself.
And ironically, many thoughtful businesses unintentionally flatten their own differentiation in the process. Their language becomes overly safe, vague, or overly polished until they start sounding identical to competitors they are actually very different from.
That is one reason this conversation pairs so naturally with the ideas behind StoryBrand. Clear messaging is not about sounding clever. It is about helping customers immediately understand where they fit in the story and why the business behind the message feels trustworthy.
Why Hospitality Matters Far Beyond Restaurants
The conversation also draws heavily from the philosophy behind Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara.
This is also where the idea of unreasonable hospitality becomes so important.
One of the tensions J.J. often explores is the difference between service and emotional experience. Good service may solve the practical problem, but hospitality changes how people feel while the problem is being solved.
That distinction matters more than ever because customers increasingly remember businesses that feel intentional, human, and emotionally aware — not simply efficient.
That same theme appears throughout this conversation with Julie and Sonya.
Hospitality is not really about restaurants. It is about designing experiences where people feel considered.
Julie shares an example of a co-working space struggling with long coffee lines during busy parts of the day. Operationally, there was no easy solution. The business could not justify restructuring staffing simply to solve a short-term bottleneck.
So instead of ignoring the frustration, they changed the emotional experience of waiting itself.
They introduced games and small interactive moments for people standing in line. Operationally, the change was tiny. Emotionally, it completely shifted how customers experienced the problem.
That distinction matters because customers notice when businesses optimize entirely for operational efficiency while ignoring human experience.
People can feel when a company is paying attention.
And increasingly, those emotional details become the difference customers remember.
Leadership Is Often Revealed Through Customer Experience
One of the strongest underlying truths in this episode is that customer experience is rarely accidental.
Businesses do not become thoughtful by chance.
The way a company communicates, responds to friction, handles problems, or creates moments of care usually reflects what leadership values internally.
You can often tell what a business prioritizes simply by interacting with it for a few minutes.
That is what makes this such an important leadership conversation rather than simply a marketing conversation.
Because customers are constantly asking themselves:
Does this business see me?
Does it understand what matters to me?
Does it feel intentional?
Does it feel trustworthy?
And the answers rarely come from slogans alone.
They come from the experience itself.
Why Customers Remember Certain Businesses
A lot of leaders are focused on attention right now.
More visibility.
More content.
More reach.
More growth.
But attention alone does not create loyalty.
Businesses rarely become forgettable because the work is bad.
More often, they become forgettable because customers never fully experience what makes them different in the first place.
And in crowded markets where more companies sound increasingly similar, thoughtfulness becomes surprisingly visible.
That is why the businesses people remember most usually do not just deliver good work.
They make people feel understood.
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Why Great Businesses Still Get Overlooked
[00:00:00] Why Great Businesses Still Get Overlooked
Dr. J.J. Peterson: If you've been around me for any length of time, you will hear me talk about two books that changed my life, Building a StoryBrand and Unreasonable Hospitality. And I genuinely believe that every single business and leader should read these two books, because one helps you talk about what you do, and one helps you actually deliver what you do in a way that makes people remember you and talk about you to other people.
So if you've ever felt like your marketing should be working but isn't, or you're trying to deliver something great, but it's just not translating, this conversation is gonna feel like a breath of fresh air.
Welcome to Badass Softie, a podcast for leaders who are unapologetically ambitious and want to lead with heart, because you're allowed to chase big goals without losing what makes you human. I'm your host, Dr. JJ Peterson, and today's conversation is one I have really been looking forward to, because I get to sit down with two of my really good friends, Sonya Whittam and Julie Firth, the founders of Story22.
They help companies get clear about what they offer in a way that actually makes people see the value of the company, and then they make sure that clarity shows up in the experience as well. And you know that it's working for them because Story22 has actually been named one of UK's top 100 small businesses four years in a row, and even more than that, what I love, is that their clients are showing up on those lists as well.
They are incredible, not only at doing the work themselves, but helping other people. And in today's conversation, we get into how to create messaging that actually lands, and then how to design experiences people talk about, and how those two things go together. And what's fun, sneak peek, is we also talk about something we are doing together this summer, which is I am flying to London and working with Story22 to host a live event in London where we b- we're bringing these two worlds together, StoryBrand and Unreasonable Hospitality, where for two days attendees can actually work on their business, clarify their message, and then design an experience th- that your customers won't forget.
So I'm so excited to introduce you to my friends and have you hear this conversation with Sonya Whittam and Julie Firth. Julie and Sonya, I am so excited to have you on the podcast. we have traveled the world together. We have been together at conferences in Boston. We've been together in, Holland.
We are getting together in Anaheim. We're gonna be together in London. you are some of my favorite people to be around, and that alone makes it so that you needed to come on the podcast. But the reality is Part of what I love is how much we laugh and joke around and all of those things, but also how much you inspire me in the work that you do.
I truly believe that you are the epitome of badass softie, and that's why I wanted you on the podcast. So thank you so much for being here today. Oh, wow.
Sonya Whittam founder of Story22: I'm blushing. Oh,
Dr. J.J. Peterson: blushing. I mostly mean every word. I mostly mean every word.
No, I really do, and I'm so excited. We're gonna be doing, we'll talk about it a little bit, but you- we're doing an event in London this summer together, a conference, called Be the Obvious Choice, where you can position your company as the obvious choice for your customers. But what I wanna talk about a little bit today, first off, is how did two powerhouses like you come together and build an agency, a marketing agency, a branding agency, so well and work, you work together so well.
How did the two of you... I, your backstory. How did you come together?
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: Let... Shall I take this one, Sonya? Okay. You go. Yeah. Okay. First of all, thank you so much for having us on. It's an absolute pleasure. and it's, a real kind of honor to be sharing this space with you. We're very excited.
[00:04:18] Building A Business Around Human Marketing
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: We actually got together through the book Building a StoryBrand, I think, in terms of the business.
But Sonya and I had been working together on, for a charity for a few years before that. we realized we had gelled really well. Sonya was, doing the digital marketing. I was head of marketing, for this adoption fo- fostering agency. And, we realized we had something special in terms of the working relationship.
And at the time, I, was doing a master's degree, and I was looking at, my dissertation was at story marketing. Sonya had introduced me to the book Building a StoryBrand, and then I'd gone off, studied your, thesis, JJ, as part of my, my work there and looked at how, story, how story played a part in, in charities as well, in the third sector, and how it could u- be used internally to resolve conflict Off the back of that, we...
I was chatting to my mum. We told her about the StoryBrand, the StoryBrand workshop in America, and, we dared each other. Sonya and I were like, if you ever fancy going, just let me know." And anyway, we did end up on a flight together, got to Nashville, had an absolute blast in Nashville.
I should say this was 2020. This was the, Jan- end of January, early February. On the flight back home, there was a chap in front of us in the row in front who was wearing a full-on World War II gas mask, and we had a good old giggle at his excesses. Little did we know at the time, the whole world was about to go into lockdown.
Dr. J.J. Peterson: You would be in masks very shortly, yeah. And literally
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: on, on the flight home, we were just like, shall we give it a go? Shall we set up a business together?" And not quite expecting it to be the c- the immediate success it was. And I think that was the thing with, COVID. As soon as we went into lockdown, we picked up a lot of customers straightaway, people looking to develop their messaging to f- find a way out of this, unusual, unprecedented crisis.
And, as they say, the rest is history, so there we six years on now.
Dr. J.J. Peterson: That's wild. I, remember when you came to the training. and I remember how much fun you guys had in Nashville, which is why we've had a lot of fun all over the world as well. you ladies like to enjoy your, your visits abroad.
And so w- we've always had so much fun. tho- that'll be another podcast that we can talk about- ... a- about that. S- Sonya, when... What was it... this is part of, what also obviously connected us, was the story part of it. But, as you were getting into this StoryBrand world and helping people clarify their message, what was it about the StoryBrand part of it that really drew you, the story part of it that really drew you to helping people?
[00:07:21] When Marketing Starts Feeling Like Service
Sonya Whittam founder of Story22: I think, actually, it's one of the things that Julie and I really connected on first, was that we didn't like the kind of black hat marketing, tactics of, really aggressively selling to people or, trying to give them something they didn't need. And w- you know, and I personally love the way that StoryBrand flipped that and, it's, all about this generosity to your customers and thinking about them and helping them get what they want.
and I think, a- as we've worked, with clients across the years, what we've found is we are connected to really good businesses, that people really care about their customers, they care about their staff. and this, kind of story, the methodology, the framework is- It really powerful in a marketing standpoint.
it's really great at communicating that message really clearly, getting across to your customers, helping conversions. But also, it builds this kind of framework of, I think, generosity. You look at the way that, we write lead generators. We're giving information away. We're not trying to hold the, things, information back.
And I think that has been biggest eye-opener. So somebody who's worked in marketing for a long time, just how you twist that, how it draws in people that we like to work with, p- that link into the values that we have, and that's been wonderful for us because we've, we've got to work with some fantastic and, amazing businesses and business owners and, staff within those businesses.
Dr. J.J. Peterson: that, I, that's the part, obviously, that I've always drawn to as well, is just this idea that I, don't ever consider myself somebody who... If you would've told me, 12 years ago, "You're gonna be a marketer. You're gonna be a salesperson," I would be like, "No, I don't like that. I don't like marketing.
I don't like sales." But when you can approach it from a perspective of serving people and really being the guide, really coming in and saying, "Hey, I've been where you've been. I understand what you're going through, and I'm gonna help you overcome this," then I was like, that's not selling and marketing.
That's serving. And that, is what really, I think, always draws me to back to this space. Yeah.
[00:09:40] The Relief Of Finally Finding The Right Message
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: Yeah. I, think, I, think the power of actually giving someone a way to market their business that they feel comfortable with c- cannot be underestimated. we've had- This sounds awful, but we've had multiple clients in tears.
It's not something we don't set out to do that typically.
Dr. J.J. Peterson: But,
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: just to give you a little bit of insight, there was one, couple, actually, JJ, they were at the London workshop, back in 2023. We're still working with them now. And I'll never forget when we did the messaging for them, she, she burst into tears.
she was genuinely overwhelmed that s- finally h- her, what she wanted to say had a voice, and she couldn't find a way to say that without feeling salesy. And suddenly, when that was interpreted using the framework, it made her feel comfortable finally that she could show people that she was just there to help her customers, that she feels really passionately about, and she just couldn't f- find a way to pull that together.
So when you hear that back, and, essentially it's their words that they're sharing with you, we just inter- interpret that for them. When she heard that back, it was just this relief of, years of struggling to, to articulate that herself. And it, just, it feels, it, it must be the same for, the, people that you've worked with as well, that this, relief when things finally fall into place for them, and it's, a really magical moment.
Sonya Whittam founder of Story22: I was gonna say, we did, we had that with a big, multinational as well. We were around the table with sort of 14 people around the world who had spent two years trying to work out essentially their brand script. They worked with three agencies before us, so we were the fourth agency in, and we did a two-day workshop with them.
And at the end of it they were like, oh." and it was this kind of, 'cause the way the, workshop runs, you're doing section by section, and then you do, you piece all the pieces together, don't you? And there was just this silence around the room, wasn't there, of just a, "Oh, we've got it."
And it, it was th- it was a real moment of clarity for everybody that had been wor- It, there, there was quite... It would be fair to say there was quite a lot of tension in the room where they were arguing p- specific points, about what we should be saying, what we stand for, what we don't.
And at the end of it it was a bit kind of magical, wasn't it? it was just like a, this kind of calm just over everyone, and it was like, we've got it. we've nailed it." Yeah.
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: Without a battle, without any need for a battle. They were- Yeah ... all on the same page. It was just pulling the threads together to help everybody to see that they could say the same thing, and all had the same values.
But yeah, it's, it is a wonderful moment, I think, when you bring that together for them.
Dr. J.J. Peterson: I've had some of those experiences too where people at the, at the end, they come together, they just start crying a little bit. Also, they're a little tired from working for two days, but, they have tears, and it...
There's something about the message that they receive at the end of that just kinda changes everything. But my... I, think, I, would ask you, what do you feel like it is that now they have that they were missing? even for people who are feeling this right now, what is it that they were missing and now they have the- since they have a clear message?
Sonya Whittam founder of Story22: A couple of, things really spring to mind, but I think one of the things as we've gone through the, brand scripting with clients is, actually part of positioning.
[00:13:25] When Your Business Outgrows Its Messaging
Sonya Whittam founder of Story22: So marketing, obviously, strategy is about- understanding where you fit in the market, who you serve, who your people are.
and that definitely is something that we, really have thought about that a lot more in recent times about how important that is. how, you take that messaging and h- how it has to match to everything else in your business and your organization, how your operations work, how your sales work, how that links to service, how that links to, customers coming back into you.
And that positioning of, business from a marketing standpoint I think really is something that a lot of the organizations we've worked with ha- have got fantastic businesses, are running really successful, selling really bus- successful products or services, and sometimes they've found themselves in a position where they haven't really fully expected themselves to be.
They're much more successful than they thought they were gonna be, and their, marketing positioning and strategy had not caught up with the reality of where they were now. And that's, really exciting work for us because that is businesses are doing all these great things but haven't actually pulled it together in this kind of nice package.
And I think that's some of the emotion we get from people. And actually, sometimes, I think, speaking really candidly, sometimes those brand scripting sessions can be really challenging internally in the business because people are thinking. They're operating from different standpoints. And we've had two instances of two brother-led organizations where it's almost come to fisticuffs about, what they stand for and what, who, who they serve and what their values are.
And, it is, it's really cathartic for a lot of businesses to work through those this is what we do, or this is what we're trying to achieve for our customers, this is where we're taking them to.
Dr. J.J. Peterson: that's so important because y- you're right. There's so many... N- this is, there's so many p- companies out there and leaders who have...
Th- they're doing good work, they're doing good things, but they haven't been able to articulate their value in a way that- takes up space in the market, right? They just blend in with everybody else, so then they're stuck, it's all about the relationships you have and the connections you make versus, being able to actually have a message out there that connects with the right audience.
And not going through the process of pausing and saying, "Who are we? Who is our right client? What position are we gonna take up? What problem are we gonna solve? How do we p- show up as a guide?" If you don't do that, then you just end up blending in the market. And also, th- the saddest part for me is, a lot of times we can sit down with these people.
You have an hour conversation. You're like, "Oh my gosh, how are you not the biggest thing in the world?" And then- Yeah ... and it's really because, th- like you said, they haven't been able to identify their position in the market and how to articulate that in a really powerful way. And you mentioned something else that I, that i- is one of the things that makes me really excited about the things you guys are doing right now, is you're working with a lot of companies and helping them articulate that message and really find their positioning in the market, and you're doing it through marketing, but one of the things that you guys have started doing is really blending a- and helping people in the space of first talking about your product and service in the marketing and then actually being able to deliver a product that lives up to the promise you did in the marketing.
[00:16:59] Why Customer Experience Creates Loyalty
Dr. J.J. Peterson: that's another area that people often fall down on, is they talk a good game, but then their product that they actually deliver and the experience they deliver doesn't match up with the promise. And so you guys have started helping companies really lean into the unreasonable hospitality space and combine those two.
And so Julie, what really made you deci- you'd been doing marketing. You'd had some success in this space, and now you're adding this, unreasonable hospitality side of things. What, why? Why? Why did you... You had a great thing going. Why are you adding this other thing? And I know why, but, I'm just, I think it's a curious and very cool thing that you're doing.
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: Yeah, no, it's, really exciting actually. We're really enjoying introducing this to, the clients we've been working with because I think, there's so much focus on marketing and bringing in the leads and the sales, but- There is very little that goes on to think about what happens beyond that.
How are we actually serving our clients? How are we making sure that we retain our customers, that we, we generate good referrals from our customers? And that's the holy grail of marketing, essentially. we want our customers to advocate on our behalves to, to do the marketing for us, and that only comes when you deliver something really special and you equip your customers with really interesting, genuine, authentic stories that they're excited to share with other people.
So I think, we, we, were introduced to Will Guidara, via StoryBrand at one of the StoryBrand, summits. Could see immediately that there were connections, between, our, any business really that's in the business of serving customers. And just to give some background to that, so Will Guidara had, a restaurant, Eleven Madison Park, in, Manhattan.
And one, one of the things that stood out to me about his story is that he was desperate for the, restaurant to become the number one in the world. He did everything he could with the food and the drink, and then realized that just wasn't enough, and it was the customer experience that was gonna get him there.
But one of the things that stood out was the way that he went around just transforming customer experience beyond the service. So w- when we deliver, if we deliver for our customers what we say we deliver, we think that should be enough. And, sadly, it's not enough because that's what our customers are expecting, 'cause that, is what we've promised.
So if we want our customers to go away and talk about us to other people and make recommendations, we have to go over and above that. And Will's story is a really, really inspiring, window into the ways that you can do that. And, we've been delivering, private workshops on this for a while now, and I've seen some fantastic ideas come out of that.
One of the things that we really love is the way that you can get All different levels of the business around the table, and there's just re- real spark of excitement when people realize that they can all have a role in the customer's success. so we're excited now to, bring, be bringing that to a public workshop in London with you in June, JJ
Dr. J.J. Peterson: Yeah.
We're gonna be together in June, to deliver both the StoryBrand and Unreasonable Hospitality workshop so that... And because we really believe how this works so well together is first, if you can actually identify the value that you bring to your customer in a way that makes them want to choose you as the product of choice or service of choice, and then once you understand that, how to actually rally your whole team around the idea of serving people well so that then you continue to be that choice for them over and over again.
And we're gonna walk through literally step by step with both of these frameworks. We're gonna walk through StoryBrand and help people identify their core message and their position in the market, and then we're going to actually walk through Unreasonable Hospitality. And y- so people can actually walk away with two things, their message and a new way of actually doing business and working with customers.
And I'm so excited about this, and I think for a lot of people who have, if they've been around my world very much, they've heard about StoryBrand a lot. And I've talked about StoryBrand a lot, and I've also talked some about Unreasonable Hospitality, and everybody loves the idea behind Unreasonable Hospitality.
I wanna be hospitable. But the first thing you said I love is getting everybody around the table and being able to have them actually, getting different people's inputs of customer touch points. somebody who's a receptionist on the phone, they think of it differently than somebody who's a manager on the floor compared to the owner of the business.
But when you have got... What I'd love to hear a little bit is just some really practical things that you have seen either businesses experience or you experience yourself of where people have taken these ideas, and it's actually transformed the way that they approach customers because, Will Guidara really has this book that's it's oh, some people from Spain flew in, and they wanted to see snow.
So let's just rent a limo and buy, some sleds and get hot chocolate and go to Central Park. And we're all like, "Oh, my gosh. That's so amazing," and which it is amazing. But then I look at myself, and I go, I'm probably not doing that." But- ... how do I incorporate Unreasonable Hospitality into my own work as space?
And so I'd love to just hear, 'cause you've been doing this for a little bit, about some of the examples of things that you've seen companies do that really has elevated hospitality in big and small ways
[00:23:03] Customers Remember How You Make Them Feel
Sonya Whittam founder of Story22: I think, one of the things that w- you know, linking back to what you said is that, businesses think that they're competing on product or service or price, but the reality is they are competing on how they make people feel, and that is where that service sits in.
So I, Whenever we're doing a workshop, I always tell this story because it's not necessarily about these audacious moments, it's about things where you feel seen, you feel value, it makes you feel something. So there's a hotel in Edinburgh called The George, and it's a very nice hotel. They actually feel very welcome and hospitable.
The culture of the hotel feels very nice wh- wherever you are. but I had a particular instance where I was very short on time. I'd been to the gym, I'd rushed into breakfast, and I needed to get going off to a meeting, and, I'd ordered a coffee, I'd ordered a flat white. And when the coffee came over, the, guy bringing it over had a big tray of different coffees and handed me a filter coffee.
And I said, "Oh, no, I think mine's the flat white." And he said, "I'm so sorry. I've taken... I got the wrong order." And I said, "That's fine. I'll have the, filter coffee." Genuinely, I was in a hurry, filter coffee was fine. And then I, wolfed down my breakfast, ran up to my room to, go and get my stuff to go to this meeting.
And during that time, he had then made me a flat white and delivered it to my room for me. Now, that is, y- a- absolutely exceptional service in that I hadn't complained, I hadn't worried about it. But he made me see, s- feel seen and feel valued as a customer, and I think that is absolutely the epitome of unreasonable hospitality.
It made me feel like, "Wow, this is incredible." And actually, the, cost of it to the hotel was a cup of coffee, And that's... And I'm telling this story to, all your listeners who might go to Edinburgh and stay in The George, which you should do 'cause it's fantastic. When people feel valued, when they feel seen, when they feel an emotion, a positive emotion connected somewhere.
That's why they do business with them, that's why they go back time and again
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: One of the other experiences that we've had that's stood out is, there's an, it's another hotel actually. and I should say that l- there is a lot of misunderstanding around it, that people think that it has to be for a hospitality-based industry for this to be relevant, and it absolutely isn't.
we work with businesses in, in all different services. This other hotel, the, it's a very modest hotel. It's a three-star hotel. And whenever you go there, it doesn't matter who it is, if it's the cleaner, the maintenance man, the front desk, you are treated as if you are royalty when you go in there.
People stop what they're doing, they pay attention to you. You have their time and their attention every time you go there, and it's, those little touches that make all the difference
Dr. J.J. Peterson: Yeah. M- I would say some of my favorite companies are not even companies that make, are perfect, but they fix their mistakes well.
that really, like, when somebody, owns it and then works to, even if it wasn't their fault. sometimes it's just "Hey, I know this is, this happened. We don't like it when it's happened, but here's where we're moving." and so there's so many opportunities I think people don't even realize that they have, those moments where there is points of tension.
Or, when a mistake happens, the coffee is wrong or, something like that. Those are moments we can think about and prepare for ahead of time. And then there's also just that moment of, who are we when people walk in the door? We stop and we say hello. We stop and we acknowledge that there's a human there versus just letting them walk on by.
So there's moments that, all of these moments where customer inter- i- interactions happen, that when you actually pause long enough to identify what those are and then say, "How are we gonna approach this? When somebody walks into our hotel, what do we do? When somebody gets the wrong order, what do we do?"
And writing those down, and then finding ways to elevate those moments in a way where people are seen and understood, now all of a sudden, like you said, we're talking about them on podcasts, right? These are the moments now that other people are telling stories. You're gonna tell anybody who comes to Edinburgh, that's where they need to stay because of this moment, and it really creates this, culture within your company of, that y- you become...
first off, everybody on your team gets really excited about it, so they're talking about it. But you become the obvious choice for anybody who's in that area. And that's what, I've just, I, I love- Obviously, I'm a part of what you're doing because I'm joining you in London, but, part of why I'm joining is because I love so much of what you're doing, right?
This idea of helping companies, and I think if all companies out there can actually find a way to articulate their value clearly, their position in the market, what is the position they hold, and then deliver on that promise in a way that makes people feel seen and understood, there's no way people aren't choosing you as their company of choice.
that is just, it's obvious to me. And being able to help good people and good companies do that is my favorite thing in the world. I love it so much. And so we are doing this in London, June 10th and 11th, and there are still a few spots left for people who want to come and experience this, and I'm gonna be really spending the first day w- leading the StoryBrand side of things, and, Julie and Sonya are gonna be walking through with that as well.
And then they are really gonna take the lead on the unreasonable hospitality, and I'm gonna be working with them on that. And so by the end of these two days, you as a company or a thought leader can walk out with plans for both being able to articulate your message in the market and position yourself strong, and then also have a plan for unreasonable hospitality so that you become the obvious choice for your customers.
You stand out in the market. you are the person that everybody talks about and comes to. And so how can... If people wanna register for that, where can they register?
Sonya Whittam founder of Story22: Ooh, that's a great question. So you can go straight to our website and buy tickets online. so that is story22.co.uk. and it's on the homepage.
You can click straight through from the homepage to the tickets. And, we're, y- really looking forward to it because these are just such fun days. They're hard work. you're there to work. You're there to get something out of it, but at the end of it, you really have tangible assets that you can then go and take back to your business and start to make those changes.
at the end of the StoryBrand day, you'll leave with your brand script, which is that foundational piece of work for you to be able to elevate your marketing and your communication, both internally and externally. y- the brand script is, valuable to your team as well as valuable to your customers.
And again, with that unreasonable hospitality, it's the start of this beautiful journey of how to elevate that experience for your customers
Dr. J.J. Peterson: There's a reason we do this, is because, like you said at the beginning, this to me is just a better way to do business. When you actually approach marketing, sales, and customer service from a space of actually serving people, caring for them, delivering incredible value, like you should be able to articulate that, and it just makes doing business and life and all the things so much more fun.
So I am so excited about this. This is the first one we're doing in this space. and I hope we see so many people there, plus we're just gonna have a really good time in London. We are, definitely ... so my family, my whole family's coming, so if you wanna meet my family- ... come to this as well.
So- ... the other thing too is just like I said at the beginning, I, just am I, have loved watching what you do with your customers, how you inspire them, how you, make them better and connect them with their customers in really powerful ways, and you continue to inspire me on so many levels. And you truly are badass softies, and so I'm so thankful that you would join me, and I'm so thankful that, we're, we get to do this in London.
Julie Firth, Founder of Story22: Oh, thank you, JJ. It's been a pleasure.
Dr. J.J. Peterson: I really can't wait for this workshop in London, and I hope that you will join us. Again, if you wanna register for this workshop, go to story22.co.uk, and you can sign up and join the three of us and some other friends of ours going through the process of helping companies actually clarify their message, so really be able to articulate the value your company offers in a way that connects with customers, and then actually practically walking through how to design unreasonable hospitality for your company, so you walk away with both.
And the thing that I was reminded of today in our conversation was really how important this is, because I, know that even for myself, I know that when I show up, I deliver a ton of value, but do I articulate that in a way that actually serves my customers? Meaning, do I articulate it in a way that shows them the value I can bring so that they can actually be better at their business, right?
if my marketing is aligned with the products I'm delivering, then I get to serve my customers even better. When you clarify your marketing message, it's about service to your customer, because more people understand why they need you, and they actually get the help that they need. And then when you deliver that with exceptional quality and service, come on.
Come on. It, that... again, it's so easy to see how those two things work together in a way that really serves your customer. And even now, for myself, I really do- have a hard time marketing myself. You don't hear a lot of commercials on this podcast. I, need to be better about that. I need to be better about talking the things that I'm offering for people so that they-- if, they need it and it can help, they get it.
And I even need to work on clarifying my message more and putting it out there, and then serving people in a way that matches that. I, think that was just a strong reminder for me that I need to be living in that as well. And so if that's something, again, that you are interested in that would be helpful for you, come join us in London June 10th and 11th.
Two days, you get your brand message clarified, understand your position in the market and how to articulate it, and then also create unreasonable hospitality for your customers. Go to story22.co.uk, and we'll see you there, and we are gonna have an incredible time. So as I wrap things up, I'd like to leave you with this.
May you have the boldness to tell the truth about what you offer, not louder, not flashier, but clearer, so people who need you can finally understand why you matter. May you see your marketing not as a performance, but as an act of service, a way to help someone make a confident decision instead of leaving them confused or overwhelmed.
May you make promises you actually intend to keep and build something so aligned, so thoughtful, that your customers feel it the moment they experience you. And may you create a business where what you say and what you deliver match so closely that people don't need convincing, they simply choose you.
Because we believe you can be both ambitious and kind, fun and driven, powerful and deeply human. Your leadership can inspire, your success can have soul, and your ambition can make space for everyone. That's why you're a Badass Softie. We'll see you next week. Thanks for listening. Follow and subscribe so you don't miss an episode.
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