What’s a You Betcha?

Since we talk a lot about telling stories, it seemed only right to take a moment and tell our own.

To answer the question that the title of this blog poses, we would say this: a ‘you betcha’ is extremely versatile. It’s a greeting, an acknowledgment, and even a confirmation. Now, it’s a creative agency based out of Minnesota too. Go figure.

We started You Betcha (the company, at least) out of a passion for storytelling and the impact it has on the world around us. Smarter people than us have talked endlessly about how much power great stories have in our society, and we believe them because we’ve seen the evidence firsthand.

If stories are going to greatly impact our society, then we want to make sure that we do our part to ensure that the right ones get told…and noticed.

Our Founding Story

Eric Johnson, our founder, has been passionately telling stories since childhood. In eigth grade, he picked up a writing curriculm that guided him through writing his first novel. After that, he wrote 5 more novels. Then, he picked up a camera.

On a whim, Eric made film production his college major. Alongside his friends, Eric had the opportunity to produce a series of award-winning narrative shorts. But after school, Eric decided to re-orient himself and focus on a different type of storytelling: brand storytelling.

After holding several reasonably fulfilling jobs in digital marketing and filmmaking for a time, Eric knew he wanted to do something a little different for brands than what he saw being done. Maybe something that looked a little less ‘marketing’ and a little more ‘storytelling.’

By combining a passion for marketing done right and storytelling taken seriously, Eric eventually came up with You Betcha (after several detours and mis-steps along the way.)

Why did he decide to call it You Betcha? Well, to be fair, it was his wife’s idea. But Eric connected to it immediately because the name reflects him: distinctly Minnesotan, fun, lighthearted, and confident too.

Why You Betcha is Different

Immediately, Eric went to work establishing how You Betcha would be different. Rather than focusing on producing quality assets, he decided that should be a given. Instead, he set the company apart by putting the emphasis on relentlessly crafting great stories that get to the heart of a company’s message.

Rather than shoving unwanted marketing messages down consumer throats, we desire to produce content that connects consumers and brands in a way that’s genuinely desirable from the perspective of both parties.

If we do our job right, brands will thank us for connecting them to their consumers, and consumers will thank us for connecting them to their favorite (or new favorite) brands.

You Betcha Today

Today, You Betcha is more than Eric. You Betcha is a team made up of people who care enough to put storytelling first. Some, like Zac Anderson (You Betcha co-owner) have been there since the day Eric worked on one of his first ‘real’ film projects.

Others have joined us along the way, and we’ve stuck with the ones who are the best of the best. And we hope they stick with us for the same reason!

This team strives to constantly think outside the box and pursue better outcomes for the brands it serves as well as the customers that the brands themselves serve.

We’re excited to continue working with bold, exciting brands with lots of personality and a willingness to explore what’s possible.