Featuring Rikki Quintana
"None of the traditional conventional marketing advice actually produced the results that it was supposed to... What worked was storytelling. If I could talk to people in person, online, in newsletters, and tell the stories behind the products, that's when people's eyes lit up."
For Rikki Quintana, this realization marked a turning point. It finally registered that traditional e-commerce marketing was not effective in fair-trade retail. Coming from a full legal career, she had entered the world of e-commerce ready to follow the "rules" prescribed by the experts: posting daily on social media, testing paid ads, hiring outsourced marketing specialists, and mapping out fictional customer personas. And despite meticulous adherence to the playbook, the needle barely moved, and profit margins remained razor-thin.
Watching people’s eyes light up when she shared the stories behind the textiles and carvings unlocked the missing piece of the puzzle. The products were never meant to compete against mass-produced goods in an impersonal digital feed; their real power was the lived experience woven into every thread. By trusting the simple power of a shared narrative, Rikki proved that small, mission-led businesses don't need giant marketing budgets—they just need to invite their audience into the human story.
We can all succomb to the "proven methods" without realizing how they might not apply to our needs, business or personal. Engaging your audience on a personal level can increase their connection to you, the company, and the products.
Listeners, now it's your turn:
What will you take from this conversation?
Did Rikki's leap of faith remind you of something that happened in your life?
Have you had a moment when you decided to take on something you felt strongly about, and later realized you might have bitten off more than you can chew?
Has there been a time when you didn't know what you didn't know, and that worked out for the best?
Episode Highlights
Pivotal Insight: An artisan shared with Rikki that the "support of her mission of cultural heritage preservation" had given her "the confidence and the courage to know that I'm on the right path." It was then Rikki realized that, "What she said was so much more powerful and engaging than anything I could say about her or about the impact."
Seeds planted: This perspective revived her passion for fair trade and its artisans, and it planted the seed for her next venture: Real Impact Stories, LLC.
Podcast Story: The episode brings the magnitude of stories to the forefront, and shines a spotlight on their value in taking business beyond the metrics.
Mentioned in this episode:
About Rikki
After decades as a business lawyer, Rikki Quintana spent years building a fair trade business with Silk Road artisans, where she saw that real stories from real people, told in their own words, are so much more effective than conventional marketing content. She founded Real Impact Stories, LLC because she wanted to support other purpose-driven entrepreneurs who hate marketing and aren’t getting the results they hope for, even when they do all the marketing things recommended by experts.
Today she helps small people-first entrepreneurs, like coaches and consultants, share real stories from real people about real impact, and connect with their ideal clients in ways they hadn’t imagined before.
Connect with Rikki on LinkedIn and let her know you heard this episode!
After more than 430 episodes of this podcast, I was recently inspired to change the format of the show.
The new format for my show aligns with what I’m learning about narrative identity (how the stories we tell about ourselves internally and externally influence our identity) and demonstrates what I’ve been teaching for years: Sharing a story to reveal who you are and what matters to you.
My hope is that future episodes will offer more clarity about great storytelling and how to find and explore pivotal moments to demonstrate who we are.
About Sarah:
Sarah is a Montana based workplace communication trainer, TEDx speaker, DisruptHR speaker, public speaking coach, professional storyteller, musician, and podcast host. Her workshops and coaching packages with teams and their leaders are known to address and reduce miscommunication – the most common cause of tension and stress in the workplace. Using the team’s results from the StrengthsFinder assessment, she guides teams in learning to speak each other’s “language”, learning to value each other’s strengths and connecting with each other through enhanced self-reflection and effective listening.
Sarah’s nearly 20 years working in government agencies inspired her to complete her MBA and to achieve her StrengthsFinder certification to improve work environments for others, guiding teams toward increased satisfaction, productivity, and happiness.
Visit her website to purchase her book, Your Stories Don't Define You in paperback or audiobook.
