Social Media Storytelling: Human to Human
With Social Media Expert, Aubry Bracco
How did your early experiences as a reporter shape your approach to brand storytelling?
When I was 20, my journalism professor literally handed me a random street name and said, “Go find your story.” That meant knocking on strangers’ doors, never knowing if I’d find a dud or a gem. It was terrifying and thrilling. What it taught me is that listening is the most powerful tool we have.
I’ve carried that into marketing. I still approach brand storytelling like a reporter: stay curious, dig for the authentic thread, and elevate the human element. The best stories aren’t manufactured. They’re discovered, and, when they’re told right, they make you truly feel something.
What was the biggest turning point in your professional life? How did it influence your approach to leadership or creativity?
The turning point was in Salem, Massachusetts, when I went from local newspaper reporter to running a hyperlocal news website, Salem Patch. One day I was covering fires and going undercover with cops on Halloween, the next I was figuring out how to engage a digital community 24/7. I wore every hat—writer, editor, photographer, social lead—and it forced me to translate stories into strategies in real time.
In social [media], the story keeps moving. People react, share, challenge, and reshape it in real time. Suddenly, storytelling wasn’t one-way anymore. It was a conversation.
What drew you to social media marketing or did it find you? In what ways has this career path differed from what you originally expected?
I didn’t exactly choose social media marketing. It chose me. What drew me in was the immediacy. In journalism, you publish a story and it’s fixed in print. In social, the story keeps moving. People react, share, challenge, and reshape it in real time. Suddenly, storytelling wasn’t one-way anymore. It was a conversation.
As social media has evolved, what is a strategy that’s withstood the test of time? And what is one that you think needs to be discarded?
The strategy that’s always worked and always will is telling real, human stories. Authentic stories that connect people will outlast any algorithm change or shiny new platform. They’re what make someone stop scrolling and actually feel something.
What needs to be left behind is chasing every single trend. If it doesn’t serve your story or your audience, it’s not strategy, it’s noise.
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Social media can be both a megaphone and an echo chamber. How do you cut through the noise to create content that truly resonates with audiences?
Social media can feel like shouting into a void or hearing your own voice bounce back at you. The way to cut through is to stop thinking about volume and start thinking about connection.
For me, it comes back to telling authentic, human stories. The posts that resonate aren’t the loudest or the flashiest; they’re the ones that feel real, that make someone nod and think, “That’s me” or “I’ve felt that too.”
I also think curiosity plays a big role. If you’re genuinely curious about your audience, what they care about, and what they struggle with, you create from a place of empathy instead of performance. That’s how you move from being part of the noise to creating content that people actually remember.
How do you balance the need for real-time responsiveness with the importance of thoughtful, brand-aligned storytelling on social channels?
What I’ve found works is anchoring everything in the brand’s core story. If you know what you stand for and how you want people to feel when they interact with you, you can respond quickly and still stay true to that foundation.
It’s the same muscle I built as a reporter: reacting to breaking news on deadline, but making sure the story was accurate and human. On social, the goal is similar. Be timely, but never at the expense of trust or authenticity.
The hidden wins are those moments when your content makes people feel something, when it sparks connection, conversation, or even debate.
With metrics and analytics playing such a key role, how do you measure the true success of a social media campaign? Are there “hidden wins” that numbers can’t capture?
Metrics and analytics are important—you’re serving a business after all. You have to track reach, clicks, and conversions. But the true success of a campaign often shows up in the human signals. A positive reaction means you struck the right chord. A negative one means someone cared enough to engage. Silence is the only thing that tells you you’ve missed.
The hidden wins are those moments when your content makes people feel something, when it sparks connection, conversation, or even debate. The data tells you what happened. The human signals tell you why it mattered.
Obviously AI is continuing to have an immense impact on marketing. Aside from AI, are there any groundswells that you see in social media that you think marketers should take note of?
I see smaller, more intentional communities on the rise. It’s less about chasing virality and more about creating spaces where people feel seen and connected. For marketers, that means shifting from broadcasting to actually building relationships.
It’s funny. I started in 2010 as a social media community manager, back when hyperlocal and community was the big trend. In a way, it feels like we’ve come full circle. The tools have changed, but the heart of it—building genuine communities—hasn’t.
What advice would you give aspiring marketers—espedially social media marketers—seeking to distinguish themselves in a crowded, ever-changing digital landscape?
My advice is to practice the craft in ways that go beyond the metrics. Experiment boldly, pay attention to how people actually respond, and then develop your instincts from there. Algorithms will keep shifting, but your ability to read the room, ask better questions, and tell a story in a way no machine could—that’s what will set you apart.
The marketers who stand out will be the ones who bring curiosity, creativity, and empathy to whatever tool is in front of them. That’s the work that lasts.
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About Aubry Bracco
Aubry Bracco is a digital marketer and strategist with two decades of experience leading social media and digital content initiatives for major national and global brands, including Visa, NFL, Liberty Mutual, The Olympics, Cousins Maine Lobster, REELZ, Wistia, and CEO Coaching International. Her specialties include digital strategy, social media, content development, events, and personal brand development.