Why Story-Driven Brand Videos Convert with Mariana Henninger

Mariana: [00:00:00] If you don't have something that makes an emotional impact with people from the get go, you have missed the biggest opportunity of attention that you didn't even think was there.
That You may not have seen coming that's just happening because you're showing up. so this is where the brand video lives. And this is where it thrives and makes that emotional mark on people to again, keep you top of mind and keep you in a different compartment of the brain than everyone else.
Who's going to get forgotten. And it's going to get mixed in the shuffle or lost in the shuffle.
Dustin: Welcome back to the seven figure lead podcast.
today I have a really fun, special guest, someone who I think is a, really special, uh, combination of [00:01:00] talents, an artist at heart who has really found her way in the entrepreneurial world and has combined those talents to serve entrepreneurs in a big way in videos and specifically brand videos.
So Mariana Henninger and connected through a mutual friend, Alex Sanfilippo over on somewhere Facebook or one of the socials. And she reached out and we connected. I was like, this would be an amazing story to tell in a skill set to teach to the seven figure leap audience. So, Mariana welcome and please take the mic, introduce yourself and we can start as far back in your journey as makes sense for people to understand kind of what makes you tick as an entrepreneur.
Mariana: absolutely. I love talking about that. thank you for the intro by the way. I feel like it was a conducted entrepreneur for most of my life. I traditionally have held the title of documentary filmmaker. I have an Emmy award, two nominations. So I, grew up in journalism and storytelling, but was very quickly drawn to intimate, personal, beautiful [00:02:00] stories that made people feel something that made people, want to either be compassionate about that person or actually Do something to change that reality, but most
importantly, that they felt like they had lived in that person's shoes even for a little bit.
And so that was the thing that drew me to documentaries, because I think a good documentary will make you see the world differently, see the world through somebody else's eyes that you would have never imagined. Experience living in your own reality. so that was 15 years of my life being in that world.
I was at the New York times, the wall street journal, time magazine. then NBC for about four or five years, I traveled all over the world. I went to Afghanistan and Haiti and I did, open prisons in Finland. And I did, the middle east, all over
the middle east of been a little bit everywhere, typically on either on my own, on very small teams.
So we weren't like this big, like Netflix crew coming in, uh, it was very subtle. It was very nimble and it also made me really build [00:03:00] this skill set of building trust fast with people, right? Because, you know, if I came to your house. And I needed to tell your story quickly. I needed you to trust me very quickly, too, that I would do your story justice.
And would really tell your story through your words. But obviously, as you know, as we all know, because we're content creators, we know that editing, you can choose the direction a little bit of things. so. I had to build that trust with people also because I couldn't spend a whole month with them necessarily.
Right. And I wanted to get that deep story very quickly that, yeah,
Dustin: I want to have a pause there. First of all, as you pointed it out, if anyone's watching the videos, the ultimate flex, she has an Emmy over her left shoulder. So I have like a guitar. And so some people are like, Oh, that's really cool. You have a guitar. I'm like, well, I don't know how to play that.
But like she earned the Emmy plus two nominations. So that's really, really cool. we were talking before the recording, you've had an entrepreneurial spirit within you, for a long time. And you kind of say closeted entrepreneur, and we'll get into kind of how that emerged, but in this backstory, like, You feel like [00:04:00] filmmaking was an expression of some other value, maybe growing up, have you always just love the underdog or have you always just loved getting a little deeper with someone like it sounds like you're really quick to build a connection with someone and like, get them to, you said, get to trust you quickly.
is that sort of Is that just like an innate God given talent? Or where do you think that comes from?
Mariana: wow. Good question. It's funny because I always ask people this question when
Dustin: Yeah, I was like, I'm doing this to you now. So
Mariana: But, I think I did always kind of stand out when I was a kid. I'm originally from Brazil. We traveled, my family traveled all over the world, even when I was a kid, you know, I can be a spy because I speak English, but no, with an American accent, I always correct people. They're like, Oh, you I was like, no, it's an American accent.
I feel like, you know, I can probably blend in okay in the U S But even so, like my story was so different and obviously now I'm older, but I think when you're younger, those big differences make a big difference and make, the fact that, your world was so different, like [00:05:00] everything that you'd experienced, the kids that in your class or that you were talking to couldn't relate with.
so you always have to Live kind of two lives. I'm going really deep here. but to answer your question, I think it did stem from this idea that I kind of stood out. Already, whether that was super evident or not, in my home country, I stand out a little bit that background, right, because of that traveling.
I think from the get go, I was just always drawn to things that weren't the norm. It weren't like the basic and with storytelling. didn't know I was going to be a storyteller. Obviously, when I did end up going to journalism school, all the pieces fell into place or it's like started connecting the dots retroactively, but I didn't know growing up that I was going to necessarily be a journalist.
why that wasn't the direction I was going initially. and when I was in the journalism world, I very quickly made the decision that, if I'm going to be a storyteller, I don't want to do surface level. I want to go deeper. what's the point of [00:06:00] telling a story?
I guess there's entertainment value, but I want to do more than that. I want to make people really think differently. I want to make it worth their time and I want to impact their lives. I think it was born out of just looking at things differently, always.
Dustin: yeah. I think there's a uniqueness and thanks for indulging me here. We I'm not going to like, do a psychological profile or anything, but love to understand what makes people tick. And I think it was really fun to hear even this multicultural upbringing, Brazil with the American accent, which That's really a funny distinction.
I would be the first to be like, you don't have an accent. And you're like, actually, you sound like an American. cause that's how think The way we were born here. so that innate thing of like connecting quickly with people, seeing what's different and being curious about that, it sounds like, and it's wanting to understand the story behind it, of course serves super well in the marketing world.
So I don't want to jump all the way up to today and get into brand videos quite yet. so talk about, so you went from this whole career, I think he's had like 15 years coming out of college and filmmaking
Mariana: Mm-Hmm.[00:07:00]
Dustin: very successful traveling the world. Winning awards, there's got to be entrepreneurial stuff in there.
Cause I assume you sell the documentary. You pitch people on ideas, but tell me like in the middle of that, maybe like some things that you feel were entrepreneurial that later served you and you actually owned your own business.
Mariana: Well, in those 15 years, I wasn't always a staffer, I didn't always have a contract, and so you nailed it. I had to keep selling stories. I had to build relationship with the editors, with the decision makers, with the people who would pay the bill for this documentary, to. Convince them to persuade them that this was worth it.
And that this was important, that this was necessary. so there was a lot of that. I think pitching is an entrepreneurial thing. when I talk about being a closeted entrepreneur during those years big part, there was a lot of my entrepreneurial spirit that I couldn't develop. And although In my freelance career, I was running my own business, technically, there were so many different aspects of that, that I was still beholden to these editors. [00:08:00] I was still like under their approval, really, , Luckily for me, I do feel like I was very lucky with all the editors that I worked with.
I was able to gain their trust. I basically didn't have any editors who handheld me or who were like nitpicky about my work. After I worked with them once they were like, Oh, this girl knows what she's doing. We don't have to like oversee every step of the process. even though I earned that trust and even though I was like pretty independent in my career.
I just felt like there was more, I wanted to do so much more. I want it to be more free and how I used my skills. I didn't want, Oh my gosh. Here. So here's, an example of,
Dustin: Please go.
Mariana: not an example of me being entrepreneurial, or maybe it is a little bit, but it was one of the things that really made me know that my time was going to be limited in this career.
And I was at NBC. So I was a staff of the senior video producer, at 30 rock [00:09:00] and I won the Emmy. I was like, I deserve a raise. I feel like I know what other folks are making. I know what folks are making at CNN. had done my research and I was like, I really feel like I can be paid more here. It took me, I kid you not, almost a year to negotiate.
It was a big race. It was a very big race. It was maybe like 35 percent or something. It was really
Dustin: you did win the Emmy. Okay. Yeah. So
Mariana: You would think that would be an easy race, right? No, was a whole year of negotiation. In fact, I remember the HR rep, it was like her last day and I'm like, make this happen before you go.
Like, I don't want to start over with a new person. And that was actually the day it got approved. It was like her last day there. When I went through that process, I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I never wanted to do that again. I'd never want to spend the time and energy. Asking for a raise ever again.
it was still, a good two years after that, when I actually left [00:10:00] NBC, but I was starting to hit the swimming pool walls of that organization. And I was like, I'm too big for this pool. I'm too big for this one. You get all of these indications that, you're made for more, you're meant to be running the ship.
I then started butting heads with my new boss, not in a bad way. she needed yes, people on her team. And I'm not a yes person for everything. Like I question everything I challenge. I have my own opinions on things. I probably am not the easiest person to work with if you want to micromanage your team.
up until then I had bosses who trusted me, so I wasn't micromanaged. So anyway, long story short, I had all of these different signs that I was meant to run my own business, do my own thing. And I love business and
marketing.
Dustin: I relate to that in a big way. I had the whole engineering career, so very different ends of the spectrum, but, very, left brain, Technical career, not artistic, but same thing. I was kind of an entrepreneur, I did some sales and marketing for the group that I [00:11:00] represented and I had to hire people.
So I definitely gained some skills, but it's like 2015 and I'm like, I got to quit this. Like I, I need. But I was a breadwinner with three kids and that wasn't happening overnight. so for a variety of reasons, I didn't actually leave till 2018. So I can totally relate to that three year period being both frustrating and empowering.
' cause I was practicing a lot of the things I needed when I left and I'm setting myself up with kind of a runway financially and stuff to make that a reality.
Mariana: important.
Dustin: But it just hits different, on January 3rd in my case, when I actually was like, I don't have to go, I don't have a boss today, you then you're terrified. You're like, wait, I have a boss. Like, no, one's going to give me stuff to do. so yes, I would love now to talk about making that leap. So at some point, I don't know if you went straight into what's now called brand magnetic, or if you did some other entrepreneurial things, but yeah, tell us about leaving corporate.
And actually I know you're a freelancer, you had a version of your own business, but when did you feel like. going to say coming out of the closet, But like a not closeted entrepreneur, he used to call it an entrepreneur. The women were standing in the bedroom, not in the [00:12:00] closet. And you're an entrepreneur fully own that identity.
Mariana: Oh, yeah. I think it was all, you know, the moment I left, I think the very next day I was just like, I'm free. I felt,
you
Dustin: coffee mug. This is love my boss or that kind of thing.
Mariana: Nope. Um, to answer your question. I took almost a year where I was giving myself time to heal. the relationship with that last boss was not a very positive one.
And I, Just need a time to heal the same time I wanted to figure out how the heck am I going to take all of these things that I know how to do and can do them with my eyes closed and how can I make this into a scalable business, so I knew how to do storytelling that was intimate, personal, passion driven, emotion driven, all of that.
I can do it for you, but how do I teach people? How the heck do I teach people how to do this? I've only done it
instinct.
Dustin: skillset.
Mariana: So different. And also just like do I create a framework around this? can I possibly teach it? Can I possibly, [00:13:00] and all of those questions. And so I gave myself the time to.
Just digest that to ruminate and it's very different than not taking action. I'm a huge proponent of, going quickly early, doing it, not doing a good enough, so it wasn't like I was hesitating on taking action. I was taking a lot of action, but I was let on a few different things, but I was letting that big question ruminate in my mind. So essentially what I did was I could, with a flip of a switch, a production company, I have a ton of gear where I ended up buying a lot of gear cause I had sold a lot of stuff, bought gear, had contacts in the industry that I could just reach out to like, Hey, I'm freelance.
This is my production company. and luckily for me, 2022 was a year where I was. Slammed with gigs. So financially, it was a very nice, transition from a full time job that had that salary that I described before. and it gave me the freedom to just give myself time to figure out [00:14:00] what this business could look like and how do I do this at scale?
So those are the questions that I was asking myself. so really at the end of 22 was when I was like, okay, You know what? The way that I'm going to figure
this out is by actually doing it for the people that I want to work with in it with that marketing framework in mind. And what I mean by that is that obviously I've done this as a journalist for 15 years and I know about marketing and sales.
I also spent the year just consuming so much information about marketing and sales and especially digital marketing. so I was like, how do I combine these two? I'm going to Do it and do it so well that I can then break it up into steps and break it up into frameworks. it's so funny that we're talking about this because today I just launched my first custom GPT for my course.
And if you had told me that I was going to be using an AI tool to help my students create their brand video, I would have told you, You were crazy. You were a lunatic. Um, so I, went from [00:15:00] questioning how I could do this by teaching to actually, starting to create AI tools that will help them get there in different parts of the process.
So brand magnetic as a business was. I was born in beta in like late 2022, and I came up with a name, I think in like March or February of 23.
Dustin: Okay.
Mariana: So officially a year and a half or so into the business and,
Dustin: That's impressive. Cause I To give you due credit, well, I left engineering 2018. I started doing digital marketing stuff in a pretty big way by like 2014. I had a blog doing stuff halfway, in 2009. So I've been around, you know, I've been gray hair. I've been around for a while, but Mariana and I were, talking before recording, we're talking shop and funnels and high level and now we're, you attaching BT and AI and, you only been doing this, specifically for less than two years.
that's really cool. I love the name brand magnetic and you have brand magnetic. com. I have to ask, was that. com available? That could not have been free [00:16:00] or 15 on GoDaddy. So,
Mariana: no, no, no. I'm actually done
Dustin: Great.
Mariana: off. I did, I did do that one in installments. I left to pay in full, but that one I was like, ah, this is a, this is a lot. So I'm going to sparse it up.
Dustin: that's awesome. Well, that's a great story that like from the corporate into, I like how you had a year of just taking on projects, like doing the stuff you knew how to do, but almost like you were viewing it through a new lens of like. I'm going to do this the way I've been doing it, but I also want to be setting up systems, frameworks, marketing materials with an eye towards how this would be scalable and teachable to others.
I think that's beautiful. And that's, again, just stories about yours and not mine, but so many parallels. the year 2021, 22, I was doing podcast guesting for a different brand and as people started asking me for help, I like started to think now I'm going to do what I was going to do anyway, but I'm going to document and think and About the version of this as teachable and scalable.
And I think that's a really important point in someone's entrepreneurial journey. so it's 2023, you've got this [00:17:00] expensive domain that you own. Um, and yeah, so tell me, like, bring me up to modern days. So now we're sitting here, heading into Q4, 2024. I discovered you under the umbrella, like, brand videos.
And so that's the thing that the two or three word phrase you're known for, I've podcast guests and your brand videos, but yeah, give us a snapshot of like, what does brand magnetic stand for and do, is what is your sort of your core service offering? And then we'll talk more about The future and where you think this is going.
Mariana: It sounds awesome. Well, first of all, brand video, like what the heck is that? quick backstory of how I got to the term brand video. I didn't originally call it that. so among documentary filmmakers who do branded work. So in the past I worked with. Microsoft and Hulu and Wells Fargo and HP, I've done a
bunch of branded content.
It's called, so in the doc world, in the film world, it's typically called branded content or, the style that I usually do that I do, with brand videos, we would call that a mini doc or something like that. Now I [00:18:00] started using the word documentaries and people looked at me like. I was crazy. Like
Dustin: Like good to do that when you're dead. Yeah. Like, I don't need one of those. Yeah.
Mariana: I was like, Oh, I do documentaries for entrepreneurs. They're like, why would I ever do a documentary about myself? And I realized like, well, okay, they understand what brand photos are. Brand videos is like the closest
thing. personally, like, I shouldn't be saying this, but I personally don't feel like the name comes anywhere near translating the amount of power that I bring to it and that I help my students bring to their brand videos.
And you'll understand why as soon as I explain what it is. So a brand video is two to three minute video that tells your story, the story of who you are in a way that emotionally connects and resonates with your audience. It lives top of funnel. It lives, you know, in your email signature pinned on your social media profile.
If you're the face of your business, it lives on your homepage, on your about me page, second most visited page on your website, why people want to know who you are. [00:19:00] So it lives in all of these places, top of funnel. So that as soon as a. Cold lead, a cold audience person comes into your world. They immediately connect with who you are.
They immediately remember who you are. Remember your story room. they're getting not just your story, but your values and all of these things that make them feel something, make them resonate so that they will never forget you again. so now every time you show up. By the way, I've had immediate conversions from just watching my brand video or like sharing me on a podcast, watching my brand video, DMing me sold.
that's my customer journey for many of my clients. Not all of them, but many, obviously it depends on how ready they are, but, If they've kind of been looking for something like this, or they, it resonates with them so much that they're like, okay, I'm making time for this.
We're doing that. so that's what a brand video does. It creates that instant personal and emotional connection. And in order to do that, there's this. specific way to tell your story. There's a way to use emotional visuals. So I don't [00:20:00] call it B roll because B roll is just basically covering, with visuals.
I call it emotional visuals because they're, an active character in your story also. and we can talk about all that, So that's what my entire offer is around. Now, in order to do that, there's a lot of messaging work. There's a lot of, knowing your customer deeply and going even deeper than you thought you needed to go.
And all of that is behind the scenes. But the thing that you come out with is a brand video that you can use for years to come in your business. And in terms of how my offers are structured, so since we're touching on the topic of like, how the heck do I do this?
I've not only done it, I've tested, multiple rounds of students on a course program called the brand video system. So that is still in beta. I hope to launch that early last in next year as a standalone. for now, what I do is the brand video accelerator. So essentially it's a program where we go through the course together, but I'm hand holding you every step of the way.
And obviously as you I'm sure you know what I'm about to say. It's a [00:21:00] wonderful feedback loop for me to, like, understand where the gaps are, where are people having trouble? Can I create a custom GPT that's going to help them go from this step to that step? Probably can. And I just figured out how.
So it's essentially, giving me way more confidence that this, Course can be done on its own and that people won't get discouraged or won't get, they'll actually like complete it as you and I know you probably have, 1001 courses that you've bought that are sitting in your digital shelf.
I don't want this course to be one of them. the one failure of the brand video is that if you don't complete it and publish it, it doesn't actually work for you. So I really need you to complete it. and then I have a done for you service, which is my brand video signature. and, that kind of splits into the signature and the elite.
we don't need to go into that, but it's basically different levels of the done for you service.
Dustin: I actually want to park here for just a minute. our audiences, a lot of creative people, all different areas of expertise, but they're all kind of these solopreneurs, many on [00:22:00] a journey from six to seven figures and offers are everyone loves to talk about offers and marketing.
Mariana: know what you're talking about.
Dustin: Yeah, no, it's super boring. there's so many parallels. So I feel like we've, come from these weird corners of the universe that we've merged on this podcast. So, my core offer is the podcast profits accelerator, and it's done with know, small group.
Um, we have tried in various forms and fashions, the equivalent of your brand video system, which I assume is the done. I do it yourself version of what
Mariana: Right.
Dustin: what you teach, and then you have the done for you version, which is the signature we don't have to go there, but I'd love to just in a few sentences, the distinction, so you have two done for you services, there's a signature and an elite.
So just give me an idea. and you don't have to use price points, but give me an idea of Accelerator, Signature, and Elite, are there like, this is a 10x, this is a 100x, and this includes this, and this includes me, like, coming and doing your hair personally, and, there's got to be some new level of intimacy with the Elite version.
So, yeah, just give us a little more, uh, tangible breakdown
Mariana: granularity. [00:23:00] No, sure thing. so the accelerator it's a four figure investment. right now I think it's a 12 week program. it's a once a week group coaching. I'm touching base with people, with folks all the time. they have access to me through a Facebook group. if you want to get really granular, there are Two levels to that.
There's like the base level and there's the VIP level. So in the VIP level, they get Voxer access to me, but they also get the editing done for them. So in that program, I'm teaching them everything that they need to know to actually get to a script of their brand story again. One that's going to convert, create that feeling of trust in their audience.
and then I'm teaching them how to film on their phone. There are folks who like, okay, I don't want to learn how to film. Don't have time. How can I hire somebody to do this for me? I teach them how to do that also. But let's just stick with the regular part of the program where they learn how to film on their phone and they learn how to edit on CapCut on desktop.
They can also edit on their phone. We have that option also. And then the VIP, that's when they [00:24:00] hand off the footage to my team. My team edits for them. Obviously, that's a slightly higher price point. The Signature offer is now we're in the five figure range. the signature offer is basically all of that done for you.
Like we, I work with you to get to a script. My team is also doing customer calls for you. So we're doing that customer research in a very deep level that I usually teach in the accelerator and in the brand video system. and honestly, that's a recent switch because I realized that I'm essentially promising to deliver something that's going to convert.
And the only way it's going to do that is if I have confidence that I'm speaking to that customer in a way that they need to be spoken to. I can't, it's almost like I can't rely on my customer unless I know they've worked with a copywriter. And even so, there are definitely questions that they fail to ask.
there are questions that I teach my folks to ask that. I've heard copywriters say, I've never thought to ask this, but that's a great [00:25:00] question. so we do that for them. so I don't fly to you. I work with folks all around the U S I work with folks, essentially because I have a network of vetted cinematographers, like documentary cinematographers that either I know or have worked with, or are recommended by somebody in my network that I trust.
I also have hired so many cinematographers in my career. So I know how to vet them. I know what kind of person I'm looking for that can not only, work with me creatively to plan the day. Oh, there's so much pre production. I can't even like describe. But also that I know will be able to be there without me being present, without having a director on site on the day.
so that is all done for you. I hire essentially a cinematographer and an assistant. It's also a cinematographer who knows how to run sound, who knows how to set up a beautiful interview, who knows how to get creative visuals that are emotional, that are visual, that have like mood to them, the mood that we want to create [00:26:00] depending on your story.
So all of that's done for you. And then that footage comes back to my team and we edit and then there's a whole distribution strategy on the back end of that too. That is
Dustin: No, I know we're going to talk about the elite version, but I'm really glad to ask I got some really fresh ideas for myself. I'm sure the audience is too. I honestly was kind of coming to the interview. this has to all be a done for you service.
who, who. Is he going to feel ever empowered through a course or a great coaching experience to film a high impact brand video on their own? , and I'm actually super encouraged. I'm like, well, that's cool. Like I could totally see the script part. And if you could show me what camera settings and what to actually do with my phone.
VIP version, you even edit it. Yeah, I could see that. and, depending on your brand, my brand's pretty casual. Like, actually, I would be cool to have like
Hollywood, uh, quality, big camera coming in, but actually be able to do it on my own.
I can see the appeal of that as a four figure investment. And for those who are ready, everything you just described with the signature version is really cool. And I was like, well, is she flying everywhere? and no, like you [00:27:00] have a
Mariana: I'm doing it
remotely.
Dustin: just holding the camera and the director are very important.
But as long as they have a certain skillset. All of the work that goes to prepare for that day or that moment is
Mariana: Oh my gosh. Yeah.
it.
out minute by
minute.
Dustin: is a leap where you're going to fly and know,
Mariana: Yes. I do plan for the elite. so. The elite is obviously a much higher investment. The differences here are that, we can film in multiple locations, multiple days, the kind of interesting part about the elite offer. I guess I'm ready to announce it.
It's, pretty official. I I've only made some small announcements here and there, but I'm working with Amy Porterfield on her brand video on the elite. We were supposed to actually film in the fall. It's, now been pushed early next year. So.
You'll see examples of that soon, but essentially the irony is that while I obviously give folks more time, these are entrepreneurs, seven, eight figure nine figure entrepreneurs who have less time.
it's almost like we're giving ourselves the work to look through all of their [00:28:00] video. Database, like all their archival stuff, we're pulling stuff from
like the early days, we're pulling stuff from interviews ever. It's almost like I don't need to actually interview them, except that we want the visuals, of that, like, really impactful interview scene now working with a crew.
I have a lot more hands on deck. Hair and makeup is included in the, signature also, but there's a few more bells and whistles to really bring a fairly highly cinematic experience, to that elite video. And it's a little bit more, just more time intensive because we really want to get this one right with the flexibility of the travel and the location rentals and all of that.
Dustin: I love the distinction too, that like, Just using Amy as an example, there's so much video content of her that's from her corporate days and her first talk on stage and like all these. And so, while that's a great asset, it's also a ton of stuff to consider. And you're like, I want to put together this amazing story.
Like which B roll and I [00:29:00] know it's not B roll, but which role do I use? Which snapshot? that's really cool. so anyway, I, thank you for indulging me. I love offers. This is a really unique one. and I think it's really well laid out. I mean, I love the naming too, so you got system accelerator, signature elite.
really makes sense to me how those stair step and you got a really great anchor. You're like, Hey, you know, you can have the Amy Porterfield experience and pay substantial amounts of money and I'll come to you. or you can step down, as appropriate where you're at with your stage of business.
And if anyone wants examples, I'm sure you're going to tell us where to go later. But, you go, to your site and take your own medicine, you have an about page. I remember, as soon as you sent me a message and we connected, I do that. You know, I go to LinkedIn and I go to your about page and I went and I actually watched the video and then I went back and saw, Oh, this is what she does.
Like this. and so, yeah, you definitely did a great job taking your own medicine. So let's talk for just one minute about the future and where you see your offers or your business going in the next three years. And then I want to kind of hand the mic to you and we'll get a little more practical as we close out.
So Where's this awesome thing going that you've, that you've trapped you and sounds like you're on a [00:30:00] rocket ship and now you're trying to figure out where to steer it. So tell us about the future. I guess,
Mariana: I'm doing right now is honestly what I'm focused on. If I can nail what I just described to you, more than pleased. I think it's a lot about building
momentum. Building visibility is a big one for me right now. hello, why I'm on this podcast. And so,
Dustin: guessing is a great way, by the way, to do
Mariana: well, I know a guy who talks about that. So it's a lot about getting the word out. People have, they don't necessarily know what a brand video is or have never heard of the concept. As soon as I describe it, the dots connect, right? And this is, by the way, why I love working with online business owners is because they get the power of storytelling.
They get the power of emotional connection. They get the power of doing this in an automated way. They get the power of like investing in one asset. That's going to work for them 24, 24, seven, tap a funnel with every single person that comes into their universe. They get it. So I don't have to like [00:31:00] really sell them on it.
I just have to explain there's a bit of education that needs to happen and obviously awareness. First and foremost. So a big thing for me right now is driving awareness. I don't think in three year increments, I definitely think in 12 week years, uh, 12 weeks ago. the big ones are obviously this partnership with Amy and her brand video is going to be amazing.
I want the course to be incredible. I want the course to be a no brainer. I want it to be so awesome that people can't help but finish it, can't help but create their brand videos, which by the way, it might not look perfect the first time around. Come back to it in a year. Come back to it. Once you know your audience even better, once you've like refined your messaging even better.
You can all you have to do is tweak it. You don't have to start from scratch again. so that is a goal of mine just to pour so much back into that program that is scalable. And I do have an option. I do think that a membership is. Is in my future somewhere where I do provide some sort of support, some sort of feedback, or I [00:32:00] have myself, maybe some other coaches working as well, , to get people, to the point that you made earlier, it is hard to do things on your own.
I talk a lot about how you can be the best surgeon in the world, but to perform surgery on yourself is it's, really
Dustin: That's a good analogy. it comes up every day and what we do The thing you're so good at doing for others is basically impossible to do for yourself. And, uh, yeah, doing surgery on yourself. I like that. I like
Mariana: Yeah.
Dustin: but yeah, I love what you built. And like I said, I really am an advocate for the way you've done this in the sense that you started in the middle.
So like, I really think starting with the flagship done with you program is the way to go. And then you can go, higher level from that up into signature and elite, and you can go, DIY version of which is less expensive, more scalable, more approachable for people. But to get both those, right.
I think there's a ton of value in doing the in the middle with everyone and the done with you for a long time. and that's what you've done. That's what we've done with our niche, with podcast guesting. that's awesome. So, Mariana. I would love to turn the mic over to you for [00:33:00] maybe five minutes and, let you teach what you want to teach. I'm assuming it's going to have something to do with brand videos. Uh, but yeah, You have the floor and just give our audience some kind of practical takeaway, something they could, they can use, whether it's a framework or a strategy or, a teaching that they can really take to heart and get some action from.
And then we'll circle back and, let people know how to go hire you and get involved in your world.
Mariana: Yeah, absolutely. I'd love to talk about your brand story, which is essentially the foundation of your brand video. when I think about brand story, it's still the same principles that I use for a brand video, which is like, what is the story that I can tell about myself? What are the parts of that story?
And how do I tell that story in a way that's going to create that immediate personal and emotional connection? And, and one thing, in terms of why to do this. we've talked about why hopefully it's, a no brainer, but I'll also add that if you think about the customer journey of folks online, it's typically, I come across a post that you've made or a comment that you had in somebody else's post or somebody mentions you, whatever the [00:34:00] case may be.
Just like you did with me, you landed on my way. You look for me, who is this girl? What's her deal? We are looking for like in that magical moment of that first connection, we missed the boat so many times, like over and over. If you
don't have something that makes an emotional impact with people from the get go, you have missed the biggest opportunity of attention that you didn't even think was there.
That You may not have seen coming that's just happening because you're showing up. so this is where the brand video lives. And this is where it thrives and makes that emotional mark on people to again, keep you top of mind and keep you in a different compartment of the brain than everyone else.
Who's going to get forgotten. And it's going to get mixed in the shuffle or lost in the shuffle. Who's lead magnet you're going to sign up for. And they're going to show up in your inbox. You're like, who the heck is this person? What do they do? I can't remember what I signed for. Unsubscribe, or if you're really bad, you hit spam, don't do
Dustin: man,
Mariana: [00:35:00] subscribe, so you do not want to fall in that rush of other people who are not making their mark.
You need to create that bond type of funnel. So how do we do that? How do we know which parts of our story to tell and how to tell it? It all depends. starts with what I call the intersection. It's thinking about everything that your audience has lived through their desires, their aspirations.
And I'm talking deep. I know you've heard of these things. Cause these are all like things that we do for marketing and for puppy and all of that, but you need to go super deep. You want to think about what's keeping them up at night. What's making them cry. what is the thing that they are anguished about at the end of the day, not just like the problem they're trying to solve, but what's Go deep there.
Then you look at yourself and understand what makes you unique. what are your values? What are your, why, why is it that you chose to teach people about podcast guesting? And why is that important? What drives you to do that? but importantly, it's doing this sort of internal work, [00:36:00] but keeping in mind at the end of the day, This is not as relevant as understanding why people want to work with you versus anybody else.
What is it about you that makes them want to work with you? so what we're looking for is the intersection of their stories, their reality, their universe. And
what makes us unique? And what does trust feel like for our audience? That's a huge question we need to answer and that, that I talk about in my program.
That I teach you how to answer in my program. what does trust feel like for your audience? And so once you understand that, you understand that is the end point of your brand video. That is the thing that you want to reach by telling your story. And then essentially what you're doing is understanding which parts of your story are going to create that feeling of trust.
Yeah,
Dustin: what does trust feel like for your ideal client or what does trust feel like for your audience? that's a really good one. I like that prompt. yeah, I think people can go journal on that, but [00:37:00] like the big idea is finding the intersection of that ideal client's Universe, their pain points, and you're really top of mind struggling there.
The thing they're really feeling deeply with your unique ability, right? And like, where can you meet them in that to help them? And that intersection is the place to be. And then once you find the intersection, be able to answer the question with clarity, what does trust feel like there? super powerful.
I love great That's a good one. That's a fresh one. So, all right. Well, Mariana, this was real gift. I really do appreciate this very unique topic. it's definitely got me intrigued. It's got me thinking about that, there's literally no replacing a first impression, right?
You don't get a second chance for a first impression and online that first impression is often in a very trite social media environment and when people are going to click over and they want to know more, what do you serving up? Like, what are you showing them? And I think If you can have a brand video, you should, and you're making it accessible to everyone.
And by offering, different ways to do that. So for those that are listening, they're [00:38:00] like, man, I love this gal. She had an awesome story. She came out of the closet as an entrepreneur. and now she's living her best life, with these new offers. love all things about your story and your frameworks.
Um, so people are interested in knowing more about you and exploring this world of brand Videos for themselves. Like what is the next best step?
Mariana: so I'm super accessible and most active on Instagram. You can find me at brand magnetic, all one word. And then if you are, have not been writing things down, like Dustin, you can grab my cheat sheet. So I have. An ultimate
cheat sheet for creating that brand story that converts. It's an awesome little starter guide, and you can get that at brand magnetic.
com slash cheat sheet
Dustin: Cheat sheet. All right. I love it.
Mariana: and connect with me on Instagram at brand magnetic. If you forgot that URL, just just come on over and I'll
Dustin: She spent good money for this. So you got to remember brand magnetic. it is a beautiful, URL, a beautiful domain and great brand. So [00:39:00] Instagram at brand magnetic, get the cheat sheet, brand magnetic. com slash cheat sheet. Of course, we'll link to all this stuff in the show notes. Uh, Mariana, Again, very, very grateful that we connected.
I think there's a lot of cool stuff we're gonna be able to do moving forward and helping each other's communities with the complimentary work that we do. so thanks so much for your time and thanks for being so open, transparent, putting up with some of my potty humor and thanks for being a gift to our audience. [00:40:00] [00:41:00]