Starting her career on stage, Sarah Kleist developed a knack for telling stories, a skill she’s since translated into building brands and digital experiences with a business of her own. Her approach centers around engaging her clients’ audiences through clever content strategies on TikTok, insanely fast web design processes, tailored SEO tactics, and more.
In this episode of The Marketing Factor, Sarah reflects on how her theater roots help her understand audience psychology, putting her in a position to approach marketing as a blend of art and strategy. Watch the full interview for Sarah’s fresh takes on branding, and read on for five key takeaways from our chat below for a deeper look into some of her insights on engaging audiences.
“Jumping into roles is like the same thing as jumping into an ideal client's mindset for me... because it's all storytelling, I'm looking at it through the eyes of someone else.”
With her theatre background in theater, Sarah brings a unique storytelling approach to branding by designing from the audience’s perspective. Instead of only focusing on looks, she finds what genuinely resonates with the ideal customer—almost like guiding them through a story they feel a part of. This approach helps brands feel more familiar, building trust and sparking that feeling of “I know this brand” so the audience already feels connected.
“I don’t really think TikTok is a place to heavily advertise. You can, but I think it is a lot more beneficial to just focus on the content creation and let people come to you... For Instagram, I feel like Instagram to me is like a couple of different platforms in one, cause you have the feed and then you have Reels. And to me that is two completely different strategies.”
Instead of relying on polished ads, Sarah suggests brands lean into laid-back, relatable content that feels genuine—like Duolingo’s playful, unfiltered owl mascot. Having a consistent “face” or theme helps brands build familiarity without needing a hard sell. She also keeps things simple across platforms. Start by creating for TikTok, then repurpose for Instagram Reels, where TikTok’s style also does well. For Instagram’s main feed, a more curated look works best. This keeps content fresh across both platforms without adding extra work, letting brands build connections where people are already scrolling.
“On reels and TikTok, normally what I say is you have to have your climax in the beginning and then you can go to a little bit of exposition. So the climax is the hook. Go back to a little bit of exposition, explain the hook a little bit and then relive the rest of your story.”
While leading with a hook isn’t new, Sarah emphasizes its importance on platforms like TikTok and Reels, where doom scrolling makes first impressions count. By starting with the most attention-grabbing moment and then adding context, brands stop viewers quickly and keep them engaged as the story unfolds. For brands, flipping the story structure to lead with the “climax” makes it easier to connect, boosting engagement in a way that feels natural for these platforms.
“We pick a day and the day of we hop on Zoom at 9 a.m. We chat a little bit about everything in their questionnaire, all their content. I usually spend the first couple hours of the day working on the homepage, then send it to them for feedback. They’ve already picked out a template beforehand… every couple of hours, between, you know, 12 and 6 or 7, I’ll send them more pages for feedback. With website-in-a-day, it can’t be more than six pages tops. I can’t do a crazy involved site in a day, of course.”
For brands that need a quick launch, “website-in-a-day” offers an efficient, no-fuss solution. With a pre-selected template, Sarah dives into designing the essentials, working closely with clients to keep things on track. It’s a setup that works best with clients who know what they want and can make decisions quickly, letting her deliver a customized, polished site in just one day. This is especially great for service-oriented businesses that need to get online fast and start connecting with clients without a long wait.
“I personally care about my SEO because I want to be like a top-ranked designer for the specific platform that I designed for… I think if your business model is low cost, high volume, then SEO I think really matters.”
Sarah’s approach to SEO is straightforward, especially for service-based brands. She sets up the basics for her clients’ sites but skips the heavy keyword research unless they’re aiming for high-traffic goals, like blogging. For businesses with a high-cost, low-volume model, she suggests putting the focus on brand identity rather than trying to rank broadly. On the flip side, if you’re a high-volume business, SEO is a must for getting seen and driving sales. So - keep it simple and specific. Instead of going after big, competitive keywords, focus on narrow, niche searches that match what your customers are looking for.