I was horrified.

The film says that

Santa is not real,

and the man

claiming to be him

is mentally ill.

He's deranged,

suffering from

delusions. Oh,

you're Santa. Are

you prove it? I

thought this is it.

We're finished.

You. Hello. I'm

Katie Flamen.

Welcome to

storytelling for

business, the

podcast that helps

you build better

customer

relationships by

telling stories

your clients want

to hear. And here

we are with our

very special,

festive episode.

It's so good to be

back. Since we last

spoke, the podcast

has had some

amazing feedback,

including three

Award nominations,

two at the voice

Arts Awards in

America and one at

the UK's

prestigious

independent Podcast

Awards. It is such

a lovely

endorsement of the

show. I'm really

grateful for that,

and to you for

listening and now,

of course, watching

in this podcast,

we're on a mission

together to explore

the power of

storytelling and

figure out what it

can do for your

business. How can

telling stories

possibly lead to

well, leads, and

how can talking

about your fears,

your failures, your

mess ups, build

client

relationships that

last you want to

get your message

across and be

remembered. And

that is not easy.

This podcast

investigates how to

do it. I talk to

creatives who helps

CEOs figure out

what their story is

and how to share it

in scroll stopping

unignorable ways,

telling that's a

real word. Never

mind. I also talk

to regular business

owners too about

what they do and

how they do it.

I've chatted to

loads of lovely

people. Please

check out previous

episodes, there's a

vet, a charity

boss, a Bucha, a

wide range of

business owners,

but they all have

one thing in

common. They're all

harnessing the

power of authentic

storytelling to

build their brands

and their bank

balance. And today,

I've got a really

special guest for

you, who's joining

us at her busiest

time of year. I've

taught for quite

long enough. So

welcome to the

show. Please

introduce yourself

and tell everybody

who you are and

what you do. Hello,

Katie, thanks for

having me. I'm

Holly tinsel. I'm

the Chief Operating

Officer at Santa

incorporated based

at the North Pole.

It's such a treat

to be here as your

festive guest on

storytelling for

business. So

excited. Where do

you want to start?

Well, we would love

to know all about

you, Holly. So

let's start at the

beginning. How did

you come to work

with Santa? Well, I

worked my way up

through the ranks.

Basically I joined

as an intern 20

something years

ago, and I loved

it, because I got

to experience all

aspects of Santa's

business. I was

particularly

passionate about

branding and

marketing side of

things, and I spent

10 years in that

department. So I

jumped at the

chance to talk to

you, Katie, because

we obsessed about

storytelling in

that department,

and rightly so,

because the power

of story, it's so

important to

everybody's

business, but to

ours. I think in

particular, can you

tell us a bit more

about that? What do

you mean? Exactly

sure. Sans brand

his story, it's so

much more than red

and white brand

colors or a jolly

guy with a beard,

that version of the

brand you might

know it was created

by Coca Cola

advertising in 1931

but course, sand

has been a legend

for a lot longer

than that. He just

didn't have his

brand story, saw

it. Can you explain

what you mean by

that? Well before

the 30s, there were

many different

depictions of Santa

Claus around the

world. There was a

tall, gaunt man and

an elf. There was

even a scary claws.

But Santa's

purpose, the

purpose of Santa

incorporate it too

has always shone

through. Santa's

purpose is to

represent the

spirit of Christmas

and the values that

go with that

goodwill, sharing,

love, forgiveness

and equality. It's

a trusted brand.

Santa's probably

the one of the most

famous people on

the planet, right?

And we use story to

get the Santa

purpose and brand

message in front of

our audience. And

course, our

audience is kids,

children all over

the world, and

those kids need to

know that they're

seeing. Mean they

are special and

they're loved.

Holly, you said

Santa's been a

legend for a long

time, and we all

know that. Can you

tell us a bit about

his origin story?

Of course. So

Santa's story

originates in

Europe, long before

the symbol of

Father Christmas

emerged in England.

The separate Legend

of sinter class was

gaining ground in

Europe. The origins

of sinter class can

be found in the

stories of St

Nicholas, who was a

fourth century

Greek Bishop from

Myra, which is now

in modern day,

Turkey. And St

Nicholas was

credited with

performing a wide

variety of

miracles. And of

course, we all know

that hundreds of

years later, that

magic is still

going strong today.

So Holly, we've

covered Santa's

origin story and

authentic brand

story, which is

obviously really

important to the

business. But then

I'm interested to

talk a bit about

the other stories

around Santa,

because there are

books and songs and

goodness knows how

many films with

Santa in them. And

in those cases,

story isn't under

your control. Is

it? Santa

Incorporated, has

no power over that

story, and

sometimes those

stories don't show

Santa in a very

favorable light.

I'm thinking of an

Ella Fitzgerald

song, and I think

it's also a kid's

song that a fat

shaming Santa when

he gets stuck in

the chimney, and a

classic movie

Miracle on 34th

Street springs to

mind as well, where

he's accused of

suffering from

delusions and he

has to go to court

to prove that He is

real. So how does

Santa Inc cope with

those kinds of

negative stories?

Well, we do have a

busy PR department,

but actually, those

examples are

interesting because

they show

vulnerability.

Like, yeah, Santa

is not a slim

gentleman, but

there are plenty of

svelte young

superheroes out

there for kids to

admire. That's what

comic books and

Marvel movies are

for, right? But not

so many overweight

grandparent type

figures, but Santa

is a great role

model. Because of

that, you don't

have to be skinny

to be one of the

good guys, and you

don't have to get

it right all the

time either.

Sometimes Santa

gets a bit stuck,

but don't we all

those things make

him very human and

very relatable, as

for Miracle on 34th

Street. The first

version of that

movie was released

in, I think, 1947

so a little bit

before my time. But

I'll never forget,

when I saw the

trailer for the

remake in 1994 I

was horrified. The

film says that

Santa is not real,

and the man

claiming to be him

is mentally ill.

He's deranged,

suffering from

delusions. Oh,

you're Santa. Are

you prove it? I

thought, This is

it. We're finished.

But I was wrong.

That negative

storyline actually

ended up turning

into a positive and

strengthening

Santa's brand in

the end. Do you

think there's a

lesson in there for

other businesses?

Absolutely, things

go wrong in

business all the

time, like the

chimney thing, and

as a business

owner, you just

have to pick

yourself up and be

honest if you make

a mistake,

apologize if

necessary, and do

all you can to make

amends. Like for

us, the most

important thing is

not disappointing

children. We are

their festive

service provider,

and they are our

trusting audience.

So if we make a

mistake, we say

sorry, and we make

it better. And we

have to accept that

often we can't

control the

narrative, so we

just have to stay

calm, face the fear

and move through

it. I think

fundamentally, any

business wants

their story to be

re, shared and

retold, and as long

as your core brand

is solid

underneath, it's

probably all good

publicity in the

end, brilliant

advice. Okay, so

you are second in

command at Santa,

incorporated at the

top of the

organization. So

what does being coo

there involve?

Well, as the COO,

I'm responsible for

overseeing the day

to day operations

of everything we do

at the North Pole.

Part of my job is

reporting directly

to Nick Santa

himself. Ha.

And managing and

motivating the

staff. They work

across a lot of

different areas of

the business, and

it's my role to

implement

strategies to make

sure everything's

working well

together. So for

example, there's

the data collection

and analysis that

making sure every

child that writes

to Santa gets their

letter read and

naughty and

correctly actioned.

And from that comes

the naughty list

and the nice list,

which are updated

24/7, there's

another team

working on those

all year round. Oh,

so it's not just a

seasonal operation,

then, not at all.

Our manufacturing

arm is extremely

busy all the time,

but everyone takes

the whole of August

off. That's a nod

to our European

roots. So we shut

down the toy

workshops, the

factories and the

staff all take a

break. I'm guessing

Logistics is

probably a big part

of your job.

Everything's a

logistical puzzle.

We're a global toy

manufacturing and

toy distribution

operation and

distribution is a

massive part of it

all for us, we only

get one chance to

get that right one

night. And even

with magic, it is a

huge undertaking to

get every gift to

every child, the

correct home

correctly in just

one night. It's not

long. What's it

like to work there?

Holly, I love it.

Honestly. I'm proud

of what we do. I

can't imagine ever

working anywhere

else. We have a

beautiful, diverse

workforce. There

are magical folk,

humans, reindeer,

and everyone is

treated with

respect. Every

voice matters, and

I learn something

new every day from

my colleagues. It's

very important to

us to have a

positive workplace

culture. We work

hard at that.

Everyone knows the

elf. Business

values efficiency,

loyalty and

fairness. You

probably heard of

Santa's elfs. Well,

that's what that's

all about. And we

seek anonymous

staff feedback, and

it is

overwhelmingly

positive, and if

there are concerns,

we act. I really

believe in our

business values,

and I'm just so

happy and proud to

work at Santa

incorporated and

make a positive

difference to

people's lives and

give them memories

to treasure. I

don't know how many

other businesses

offer that, and I'm

really, really

grateful to work

where I do. What a

wonderful

endorsement. Holly.

Thank you so much

for sharing all of

that amazing

information. And

there's so much in

there that's

relevant to regular

business owners too

well, I better let

you go. I know this

is a really busy

time of year for

you, and I really,

really appreciate

you joining me on

the podcast. So

Holly tinsel. Thank

you so much for

joining us. You're

so welcome. Thank

you so much for

having me. Katie

and Merry

Christmas. Wow,

what a woman. She

reminded me of

somebody I'm not

quite sure who, but

something very

familiar about her.

There was so much

to take from that

conversation that

you can use in your

business, as I just

said to Holly. So

let us recap

today's key

takeaways. And you

know me, you've got

to have an acronym,

right? Today's, of

course, is S A N T,

a Santa, s, let's

start. There is for

storytelling. Not

only should you be

telling your own

stories, you want

stories to be told

about you and your

business. Holly

reminded us that

all the stories

that about Santa in

films, books,

songs, the whole

bit, they become

one multi layered

narrative. Even

when you can't

control the story

you're in or it

feels negative, you

can still own it

and move through

it, even if it's

difficult.

Ultimately, all

those Santa stories

work together to

reinforce Santa's

reputation and

build the Santa

brand. Okay, A is

for authenticity,

even when things

don't go smoothly.

Holly reminded us

that Santa is

always

authentically

himself. Poor guy's

had his fair share

of challenges, from

gymnas to

courtrooms, but

when times get

tough, he stays

true to his purpose

of spreading joy

and never letting

his customers down.

Everyone knows that

Santa is one of the

good guys. N It's

for North Pole.

Wasn't it

inspiring? To hear

about Santa's HQ at

the North Pole, how

Holly and Santa

manage that diverse

workforce, how they

promote the

positive workplace

culture through

their elf elf

business values,

efficiency, loyalty

and fairness. Is

your office like

that? If it is, why

not share stories

about it? And if

there isn't, is

there anything you

could do to improve

conditions for your

staff? Maybe let

your staff tell

their stories.

Okay, tea is for

toys. Santa's toy

distribution

operation is a

masterpiece of

global logistics.

Maybe you've got a

story about how you

managed to deliver

for your customers,

against the odds,

why not share it?

And that last A is

for audience. Santa

and his team know

their audience

inside out. You

know exactly what

kids want, not only

from the individual

letters they

receive, but from

ongoing market

research, which

informs the nice

list and the

dreaded naughty

list. Santa gives

gifts that make

everyone feel seen

and special. Do

your customers feel

like that about

your business? If

they do get those

five star reviews

and share those

stories? Well, now

I've got to go. My

presents won't wrap

themselves, and

honestly, I think

it's about time for

a cup of tea and a

mince pie. Oh, I

almost forgot,

though, I've got a

gift for you,

season three of

storytelling for

business. Woo. It's

not gonna be ready

by Christmas Eve,

unfortunately, but

you will be able to

enjoy it soon. It's

another bumper

bonanza of business

boosting content

from the biggest,

brightest and best

storytelling

experts. Make sure

you subscribe so

you don't miss it

when it drops. And

if you've enjoyed

this episode, and

if you don't mind,

please take a

minute to leave me

a holiday gift. I'd

love a podcast

review. Thank you.

Thanks so much for

your company. It's

been so much fun

recording this

episode. I'm Katie

flammon and

sometimes some

other people too,

and this is

storytelling for

business until next

time. Goodbye. You