She pulls out of her driveway – mind racing, stomach tight. There’s a pitch in two hours. No breakfast, barely awake, tension rising. All she can think is: I need coffee.
She steps into your café. And in that moment – everything softens.
The air is warm. The aroma wraps around her like a blanket. The chatter is calm, the baristas intentional. It’s fast-paced, but never rushed. And when her name is called and she takes that first sip?
Peace. Clarity. One breath before the storm.
That’s what you’re really selling.
Not a product. Not ingredients.
But a feeling.
Don’t Sell a Latte – Sell a Feeling
Think about the woman we just met.
She didn’t walk into your café because of a feature. She didn’t read a sign that said “Vanilla oat latte – 2 shots.”
She came in for a break. A breath. A feeling.
That’s what most cafés miss when they try to market.
They focus on the ingredients. The menu. The discounts.
But feelings – not features – are what drive decisions.
There’s a simple framework in marketing called FAB: Features, Advantages, and Benefits.
Most cafés stop at the first two:
Feature: Vanilla oat milk latte
Advantage: Smooth, light, easy on the stomach
But the benefit? “This drink gives you the peace to make it through your day”
See the difference??
When you lead with feeling, you’re not just another café down the street. You’re the place someone returns to when their day feels out of control.
Now take a look at your competitors’ socials.
Most of them are saying:
“New summer menu!”
“Try our cold brews!”
“Now offering matcha!”
That’s all surface.
But the experience? The moment someone steps in, hears the hum of the espresso machine, feels the warmth of the space, and exhales before the chaos resumes?
That’s what you should be selling.
It’s what makes someone say:
“I don’t know what it is… I just love going there.”
And if you remember nothing else from this post, remember this:
You’re not selling what’s in the cup.
You’re selling what happens the moment they take that first sip.
What Is Storytelling in Marketing
So what is storytelling in marketing?
It’s not writing a novel. It’s not reading a bedtime book. It’s something more intuitive, more emotional – and more strategic.
In marketing, storytelling means walking your audience through an experience. Whether you’re using visuals, words, or both, your goal is simple: Help the customer imagine what it feels like to choose you.
Let’s go back to our latte example.
That woman rushing to her meeting had nothing but chaos. Her mind was racing, her nerves were jumping. Every bit of anxiety crept up on her.
Now the second she took a sip of that latte, time stopped, she felt relaxed. She knew that after this sip, she could handle anything the day threw at her.
That’s the moment we sell.
Because now, it’s not about what kind of beans you use or how many ounces of oat milk are in the cup. It’s about how she feels. It’s about how the café made her morning easier to survive.
That’s storytelling.
It’s showing people what it’s like to walk through your doors, not just telling them you exist. It’s connecting to a feeling they already know and offering them a solution they hadn’t considered.
You’re not saying: “Our lattes are handcrafted.”
You’re saying: “This is the only place where your day slows down before it speeds up.”
See the difference?
When someone reads that story and thinks, “Wait… that’s me. I’m always rushing. I need that pause in my morning,” you did your job right! That’s how storytelling makes your brand sticky.
And the best part?
It doesn’t just live in long-form blogs like this one. Once you know who your customer is – what they deal with, what they crave – you can bring that story into every reel, every ad, every caption.
Because at the end of the day, this isn’t about coffee. It’s about calm. And that calm is only found at your café.
Tips to Start Telling Your Story
Section 3 – How to Start Telling Your Story
Now that we’ve covered what storytelling is, let’s talk about how to actually start crafting one.
Here’s my three-step framework:
Start with the pain.
Storytelling begins by understanding your customer’s struggle. What’s bothering them? What’s something they deal with daily that your product – or your environment – can fix? Maybe they’re always in a rush. Maybe they wake up feeling scattered. That’s where your story starts.
Take our earlier example: a businesswoman preparing for a big pitch. She’s anxious, behind schedule, already rehearsing her talking points in her head. That’s her pain. And the hypothetical café? It’s the solution.
She walks in and the noise fades. The espresso aroma hits first – warm, rich, comforting. The line moves quickly, but there’s intention behind each drink. She sees baristas working with care, craft, and efficiency. Then, the sip. Just one, and suddenly the pressure eases. She’s grounded and focused. That’s what you’re really selling – not a latte, but a moment of clarity.
Map out the solution like it’s your own story.
Put yourself in her shoes. How would you want that problem solved? What would make you feel seen and taken care of? It’s not just about pushing a product. It’s about guiding someone from stress to stillness.
Talk about the clink of ceramic mugs, the way sunlight hits the floor at 8:00 AM, the feeling of that first sip. Describe it like a scene – not just to sell coffee, but to make someone feel something. Because when someone sees themselves in your story, they don’t just become a customer – they become loyal.
What’s in it for them?
Not just in product terms – but in emotional clarity, in lifestyle alignment, in a feeling they’ve been chasing without knowing how to name it.
Solve the problem. Paint the scene. Sell the feeling. That’s how storytelling turns coffee into connection – and connection into conversion.
TL;DR
You’re not selling a latte. You’re selling a feeling.
Customers don’t care about ingredients – they care about what your business can do for them .
Use storytelling to connect emotionally:
• Describe the experience, not just the drink.
• Paint a scene that feels personal and real.
• Show how you can solve their problem
Start with a pain point. Walk them through the solution. And always answer: what’s in it for them?
Because if you can make someone feel calm, clear, and seen even for one sip – they’ll keep coming back.
That’s not just marketing. That’s loyalty.
