StoryBrand Marketing Agency
StoryBrand Your
Business Without
the Guesswork
We implement a StoryBrand-driven strategic marketing system that attracts, nurtures, and retains your ideal clients, so you can focus on what you love (which, let's face it, is probably not copywriting and marketing).
Clarify Your Message
Attract Only Ideal Customers
Focus on Your Business Growth
Struggling to implement StoryBrand?
Are you finding it challenging to create a clear, engaging StoryBrand BrandScript on your own?
Unsure how to effectively integrate StoryBrand into your marketing?
Overwhelmed with what steps to take after completing your BrandScript?
Frustrated with marketing efforts that don't resonate with your audience?
Struggling to focus on your actual business?
You have a great business, and you're excellent at what you do. But if you're caught up chasing the latest marketing tactics – from SEO to social media and more – you're losing time that could be invested in growing your business.
WHERE STORYBRAND MEETS STRATEGY
You deserve marketing that works
Experience the clarity and efficiency of a well-crafted marketing plan tailored to your business and powered by StoryBrand.
Transform your marketing with a StoryBranded message that cuts through the noise, ensuring your brand resonates with your target audience.
See tangible results as your business attracts and retains the right clients (seemingly on autopilot), leading to sustainable growth and success.
With a StoryBrand-powered plan in place, spend less time worrying about marketing and more time on what you love – growing your business, spending time with loved ones, and all that good stuff.
You deserve peace of mind
Grow your B2B business with our strategic marketing services.
Do you find the lead generation process frustrating and time-consuming?
Save valuable time and focus on serving your clients.
Gain the upper hand in your market.
Set up a strategic marketing system that attracts and nurtures your ideal clients.
Feel confident with a solid, strategic marketing plan.
Hi, I'm Vicky Sidler
A StoryBrand Certified Guide & Fellow Entrepreneur
And believe me, I GET IT! I understand the frustration of marketing that just doesn't seem to work. I know what it's like to feel lost in a sea of tactics and strategies. When I started my agency in 2020, I was just a small fish in a big pond, trying to stand out from whale-sized competitors. (I’m also a qualified scuba diver, in case you’re wondering about these metaphors…)
Since then, we developed a proven, data-driven marketing strategy (powered by StoryBrand) that has helped both us and countless clients get noticed, attract the right customers, grow their ideal client base, and make an impact with their marketing and their businesses.
We boast a proven track record of transforming marketing messages to resonate with target audiences.
As StoryBrand Certified Guides, we apply the renowned StoryBrand Framework to everything we do with impressive results!
And as a Duct Tape Certified Agency, we’ve gone through an extensive certification process to offer you a holistic, systematic approach to marketing – a system that truly works.
You don’t have to do this alone. Together, we'll take your marketing from confusing to crystal clear. Let's make your brand's message stand out and connect with the people who matter most to your business.
I used the StoryBrand ‘one-liner’ yesterday for the first time to create some awareness on my various social media platforms. I have never had so many likes and interest on one of my coaching ads before. I am booking some consultations as we speak. You guys are amazing!
Tracey Clark, Business Coach
StoryBrand Services We Provide
Clarify Your Message
From US$1,500
Let us help you refine and perfect your StoryBrand messaging. We'll work with you to fine-tune your StoryBrand BrandScript, ensuring it resonates with your target audience and aligns with your brand's identity.
We even interview your ideal customers to get their point of view and make sure you've nailed it!
Learn More About Our StoryBrand Framework Consultation
StoryBrand Sales Funnel
From US$5,000
Specializing in the creation of the Marketing Made Simple Sales Funnel, we develop effective landing pages, engaging lead generators, and persuasive email sequences - all within the StoryBrand framework.
Install the full StoryBrand system into your business.
Learn More About Our StoryBrand Sales Funnel Development
Strategic Marketing Engagement
From US$7,500
Our Strategy First Engagement is a deep dive into your current marketing, where we’ll identify your ideal clients, map out your customer journey, craft a customized marketing plan, nail your BrandScript, and more.
Make sure you're doing it right from the start!
Why Choose Us?
Strategy-First Approach
At the Strategic Marketing Tribe, we apply the StoryBrand framework as our cornerstone, ensuring that your marketing plan has a clear and coherent message that speaks directly to your customers’ needs and desires.
Consistent Lead Generation
Kiss those unpredictable and mismatched leads goodbye. Leveraging the StoryBrand principles, we help you craft messages that consistently attract the right clients, ensuring a reliable flow of high-quality inquiries.
Save Time and Effort
Let us handle the complexity of crafting and applying your StoryBrand BrandScript. With our StoryBrand-focused approach, we streamline your marketing efforts, enabling you to dedicate more time to what you're passionate about – growing your business.
Gain A Competitive Edge
Elevate your business with a marketing message shaped by StoryBrand, positioning your brand as the clear choice in your industry. Our strategic, story-driven method ensures your business stands out to your ideal clients, giving you a competitive advantage.
Amazing! I needed help clarifying my message for my website. The Strategic Marketing Tribe helped me do this using the StoryBrand Framework. I can even use the BrandScript we made for the rest of my marketing material.
Matthew Van Neel, Lance Mvn
[Free eBook] 7 Steps to Small Business Marketing Success
Submit your info to download a copy of our free Book, which will guide you through the seven steps to build an effective marketing system.
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How It Works
Here’s what you can expect when
partnering with us:
Book Your Free Consultation
Complete the form below and schedule a time that works for you. We’ll meet and talk about your business, goals, and current messaging.
StoryBrand Strategy Session
In our StoryBrand Strategy Session, we’ll dive deeper into your business to see what you’re doing now and where there are opportunities to integrate the StoryBrand framework effectively.
Start Applying StoryBrand
You get to keep all the ideas we come up with during this strategy session – absolutely no obligation.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Here are our answers to the most frequently asked questions about marketing and lead generation.
What is StoryBrand?
StoryBrand is a marketing framework developed by Donald Miller that helps businesses clarify their message so it resonates with their target audience. It centres around creating a story for your brand where the customer is the hero, and your business is the guide that helps them overcome their challenges and achieve their goals.
How can StoryBrand help my business?
Implementing the StoryBrand framework can transform how you communicate with your customers. It simplifies your message, making it easier for customers to understand how your products or services can solve their problems. This clear communication helps increase engagement, conversions, and customer loyalty, ultimately driving growth for your business.
What does the process of creating a StoryBrand BrandScript involve?
Creating a StoryBrand BrandScript involves identifying key elements of your brand's story, such as defining your customer's problem, positioning your brand as the guide with a solution, and outlining a plan that leads the customer to success. This script serves as the foundation for all your marketing materials, ensuring a consistent and compelling message across all platforms.
How do I choose the right StoryBrand guide for my business?
Be sure to choose a StoryBrand guide who prioritizes strategy over tactics. A strategic-first approach ensures your marketing is built on a solid foundation, preventing wasted time and resources in the long run. Look for a guide focused on aligning your core message and goals before diving into marketing actions, ensuring your efforts attract the right leads and drive meaningful results.
Learn More about StoryBrand
and Strategic Marketing Insights
From the Strategic Marketing Tribe
Take a deep dive into the world of strategic marketing insights,
where you’ll find expertise to help your business thrive.
AI Replacing Humans Backfires—What CEOs Miss
By Vicky Sidler | Published 29 August 2025 at 12:00 GMT+2
A San Francisco billboard shouting “Stop Hirring Humans” was meant as a clever marketing stunt. Instead, it became a neat metaphor for what’s gone wrong with the AI-at-work hype cycle.
In the last two years, CEOs have been falling over themselves to replace employees with “digital workers” that never sleep, never ask for a raise, and never unionise. The theory: cut salaries, boost efficiency. The reality: angry customers, costly rehires, legal trouble, and more than a few public “we may have overdone it” moments.
That gap between hype and reality is exactly what Markus Brinsa explored in his Chatbots Behaving Badly™ column, and recent corporate missteps only reinforce his point: replacing humans outright isn’t a shortcut to productivity—it’s a fast track to chaos.
TL;DR
Companies from fintech to fast food have replaced staff with AI—many are backtracking.
High-profile failures show bots can’t match human empathy or problem-solving.
AI without oversight brings legal, reputational, and operational risks.
Augmentation beats replacement: combine AI speed with human judgment.
Need help getting your message right? Download the 5-Minute Marketing Fix.
Table of Contents
AI Replacing Humans Backfires—What CEOs Miss
Why the Robot Overlords Keep Tripping:
1. Lack of emotional intelligence:
The Legal & Reputational Landmines:
The Smarter Play—Augmentation:
AI Can't Replace Expertise—Tea Data Breach Proves It
AI Fraud Crisis Warning—What Small Biz Must Do Now
Vogue's AI Model Ad Backfires—Marketing Lessons for Small Businesses
AI Energy Crisis Looms—How Smart Tech Is Fighting Back
AI Visibility: What ChatGPT, Google AI, and Perplexity Cite Most
FAQs – AI Replacing Humans Backfires
What does “AI replacing humans backfires” mean?
Why are some companies rehiring staff after replacing them with AI?
Can AI fully replace human workers today?
What risks come with replacing humans with AI?
What’s the better approach—replacement or augmentation?
How can small businesses use AI effectively without replacing staff?
The CEO Daydream vs. Reality:
The pitch for “digital employees” is irresistible to executives: tireless bots that handle customer queries, crunch data, and slash costs.
And yet, reality hasn’t been kind. Klarna’s CEO bragged about AI doing the work of 700 humans—then rehired people when customers revolted over poor service. Carnegie Mellon’s “all-AI company” experiment saw the best bot complete just 24% of its tasks, with some delivering 1.7%. That’s not workforce transformation—it’s a productivity sinkhole.
There’s no one I’ve discussed the Klarna story with who wasn’t at least a little delighted by the outcome. Humans have somehow become the underdogs in our own workplace reality—rooting for each other when faceless corporate cost-cutting backfires. Not every business owner, of course—especially not the big ones with a reputation for caring more about margins than people—but when the jobs they created get slashed for the sake of efficiency and it fails spectacularly? It’s hard not to enjoy the irony.
Why the Robot Overlords Keep Tripping:
For all the big promises, these so-called “digital employees” have a knack for falling flat in ways that any seasoned human could have predicted.
1. Lack of emotional intelligence:
AI can mimic politeness but can’t actually empathise. It can’t read a frustrated customer’s tone or improvise to calm them down.
2. No common sense:
Bots flounder in unfamiliar situations. Humans fill in gaps with judgement; AI either guesses badly or stops.
3. Hidden overhead:
AI systems need human babysitters—engineers to integrate, monitor, and fix them. You’re not eliminating jobs; you’re swapping them.
4. Morale damage:
Fire half your team for bots and watch the rest polish their CVs. Perception matters.
The Legal & Reputational Landmines:
From Amazon’s biased recruitment AI to Workday’s class-action discrimination suit, the risks are real. Misfiring AI in hiring, lending, or compliance can trigger lawsuits, fines, and PR damage that far outweigh the “savings.”
New York City already mandates bias audits for AI hiring tools; the EU’s incoming AI Act will go further. The era of “deploy first, think later” is ending.
The Smarter Play—Augmentation:
The companies doing AI right aren’t replacing—they’re augmenting.
AI handles the repetitive tasks.
Humans take the complex, creative, and sensitive ones.
Staff are retrained, not pink-slipped.
Think ATMs: they took over withdrawals but increased the number of bank tellers by freeing them for higher-value work.
For Small Business Owners:
Even if you’re not sacking hundreds, the lesson is the same: AI should support your team, not replace it. Test tools in small areas, keep humans in the loop, and measure outcomes against customer experience, not just costs.
If your marketing is next on the AI chopping block, remember this: a bot can churn out 20 posts in a few minutes, but without a clear, human-crafted message, it’s noise.
Need a place to start? Try the 5-Minute Marketing Fix—it’s the quickest way to sharpen your message so people listen, whether your content is human-written or AI-assisted.
Related Articles
AI Can't Replace Expertise—Tea Data Breach Proves It
When AI replaced human cybersecurity judgment at Tea, the result was 72,000 leaked user photos. A perfect reminder that replacing expertise with algorithms can turn a cost-saving plan into a PR nightmare.
AI Fraud Crisis Warning—What Small Biz Must Do Now
Sam Altman warns AI fraud is coming fast—and convincingly enough to fool people who know you best. It’s the next chapter in the “AI backfires” saga, but with higher stakes for small business owners.
Vogue's AI Model Ad Backfires—Marketing Lessons for Small Businesses
Guess swapped a real model for an AI one in a Vogue ad, and the backlash was instant. A cautionary example that replacing humans with digital stand-ins can tank both trust and brand perception.
AI Energy Crisis Looms—How Smart Tech Is Fighting Back
AI may cut payroll costs, but it’s guzzling electricity at a rate that could hit 3% of global consumption by 2030. The hidden cost of automation every CEO should know.
AI Visibility: What ChatGPT, Google AI, and Perplexity Cite Most
Want AI to reference your business accurately? This deep dive into where AI gets its “facts” shows how to position yourself so the bots become your unwitting promoters.
FAQs – AI Replacing Humans Backfires
What does “AI replacing humans backfires” mean?
It refers to companies that rushed to swap human employees for AI “digital workers,” only to face costly problems—like poor customer experiences, operational failures, legal risks, and ultimately having to rehire humans.
Why are some companies rehiring staff after replacing them with AI?
Many found that AI couldn’t handle complex, sensitive, or unpredictable tasks as well as people. This led to frustrated customers, lower quality, and in some cases, financial losses that outweighed the initial savings.
Can AI fully replace human workers today?
Not effectively. AI excels at repetitive, structured tasks but struggles with emotional intelligence, creative problem-solving, and adapting to new or ambiguous situations. Most roles still require human oversight.
What risks come with replacing humans with AI?
Key risks include:
Poor customer service and brand damage
Hidden costs for integration and ongoing maintenance
Employee morale decline and higher turnover
Legal liability for bias or discrimination in AI decisions
What’s the better approach—replacement or augmentation?
Augmentation is the smarter choice. Use AI to handle repetitive or low-value tasks while keeping humans for work requiring judgment, creativity, empathy, and adaptability.
How can small businesses use AI effectively without replacing staff?
Start small:
Test AI on specific, low-risk tasks
Keep humans in the loop for decision-making
Train staff to use AI tools as assistants, not replacements
Measure success based on customer satisfaction, not just cost savings
What’s the first step for business owners considering AI?
Get clear on your goals and your message. Before you deploy AI in marketing or customer service, make sure your value proposition is sharp and easy to communicate. Tools like the5-Minute Marketing Fix can help you do that.
Become the Next StoryBrand Success Story
In the world of business, feeling overwhelmed by marketing strategies that don't deliver can be disheartening.
At the Strategic Marketing Tribe, we understand that you might be unsure on how to effectively apply the StoryBrand framework and perhaps hesitant about investing in yet another marketing solution.
Our approach is designed to alleviate these concerns:
We offer a completely free strategy session that’s designed to help you with some great ideas for marketing your business. These ideas are 100% yours to keep – and there is no sales pitch to endure (not even a secret one).
What’s the catch? Well, if you’d like help with finalizing your StoryBrand Framework or implementing any of the tactics we discuss, we hope that you’ll consider us.
Best of all? If you’re not completely blown away by the work we do for you, we’ll give you a full refund. Sure, it’s a massive risk for us because we can’t undo the delivery once it’s been made, but we are so confident in the value our service provides that a guarantee is a no-brainer.
With our expert guidance, you can shift your focus from marketing worries to what you do best – growing your business, spending time with those you love, and enjoying the success that comes with clear, effective strategy.
Ready to take the guesswork out of your StoryBrand marketing?
Let’s get started
Ready to take the guesswork out of your marketing efforts? At Strategic Marketing Tribe, we create a tailored marketing strategy for your business that attracts, nurtures, and engages not just any lead, but your ideal customers.
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