Cultural Strategy Consultant · Technologist · Modern Preservationist

History
isn't a display case.

The stories worth telling deserve more than a placard. I help historic sites, arts organizations, craft businesses, and cultural institutions find their story — and build experiences, revenue streams, and real community connection around it.

▶  See It Live Meet Michelle
Strategy
Story
◆
Place
Revenue
Impact
Scroll
Cultural Institution Consulting◆ Revenue Beyond Grants◆ GPS-Triggered Audio Tours◆ Story as Strategy◆ Heritage Tourism Strategy◆ Historic Site Visitor Experience◆ Preservation Isn't the Past◆ From Ticket Buyers to Co-Authors◆ Narrative Capital Is Real◆ Cultural Institution Consulting◆ Revenue Beyond Grants◆ GPS-Triggered Audio Tours◆ Story as Strategy◆ Heritage Tourism Strategy◆ Historic Site Visitor Experience◆ Preservation Isn't the Past◆ From Ticket Buyers to Co-Authors◆ Narrative Capital Is Real◆
And You May Ask Yourself...

Why are we
letting the
days go by?

Places with the richest stories are often the ones telling them worst. Not because the stories aren't there. Because nobody built the experience around them.

Not on a placard. Not in a brochure nobody reads. In your ears, on your phone, at the exact spot where it happened — triggered automatically as you arrive.

Same as it ever was.
The water flowing underground. The beautiful house. The beautiful wife. And the question nobody asks: how did we get here?
01
Why are we tearing down story instead of building on it?
Preservation isn't nostalgia. It's a strategy for what's next. Old buildings, craft legacies, arts institutions — these are economic engines waiting to be activated.
02
Why aren't we using the tech we already have?
Real-time mapping. Interactive audio. AR that layers then onto now. Live streaming from a place with meaning. These aren't future tools — they exist today and most cultural orgs aren't using them.
03
Why do the best stories keep getting skipped?
Women. Craft makers. Working people. Artists. The ones without monuments or Wikipedia pages. That's not a gap — that's an entire audience waiting to be reached.
04
Why does "sustainable" feel impossible for arts and cultural orgs?
Because most organizations haven't built the revenue streams that match their mission. Print on demand. Live events. Digital products. Licensing. The models exist. Let's build them.
◆ What I Do

Tech that
makes
history land.

I work with historic sites, arts organizations, museums, craft businesses, and cultural nonprofits to build story-driven experiences and new revenue streams — in the real world, not in a PDF.

01
Location-Triggered Experiences
Tours and experiences that know where you are — auto-playing stories, context, and content as visitors move through a place. Real mapping. No app needed.
Core Product
02
Historic & Place Storytelling
Research-grounded narratives for historic sites, arts orgs, craft brands, and antique collections — told in a voice that doesn't bore, condescend, or skip the good parts.
Story + Script
03
New Revenue Streams
Print on demand, live streaming, special events, digital products, and licensing — helping cultural orgs and historic sites build income that matches their mission.
Revenue Strategy
04
Adaptive Reuse Strategy
Helping historic properties, arts spaces, and craft businesses understand what they can become — blending entrepreneurial thinking with preservation to make spaces sustainable and alive.
Strategy
05
Workshops + Training
Practical sessions for cultural institutions and creative organizations: AI for humans, brand alignment, story and place. No jargon. Real tools. People leave knowing what to do next.
Education
06
Emerging Tech Possibilities
AR, VR, interactive installations, real-time data — bringing the past forward and connecting now to then. The tools exist. The question is how to use them with intention.
What's Next
Live Tour — Try It Now

The Mary
Pruyn Trail

A GPS-triggered driving tour of Albany, NY. Women, Children, Reform — and the stories we keep skipping.

This tour auto-plays as you arrive at each stop. Archival period voices. Intentional silence at the cemetery. Deep-dive bonus content. Built entirely here, from scratch.

GPS proximity triggers audio automatically — no tapping required
Two contrasting voices: male "official record" vs female matron
15-second silence moment built into the cemetery stop
4 stops · Albany, NY · 75–90 min driving tour
▶  Launch the Tour See all tours →
A Driving Tour
The Mary
Pruyn Trail
Women · Children
Reform · Albany NY
▶
The Person Behind It

Hi. I'm Michelle.
Disrupter without
trying. Modern Preservationist.

I lead branding and community projects at Overit, where I combine design and technology to craft bold, human-centered ideas. But Place of Sense is where my own thinking lives.

I became a preservationist without realizing I was one. I grew up in a historic farmhouse, rehabbed two churches, got the Turner Farmhouse listed on the National Register, and somewhere along the way realized that the tech I'd been using for marketing was exactly what historic places needed to tell their stories.

Entrepreneurship + Preservation + Technology = Sustainable models that work. That's the equation. That's what I build.

Curiosity
Asking questions no one else is asking. Finding answers no one else has thought of yet.
Alchemy
History and modernity coexisting. Old spaces finding their next chapter through adaptive reuse.
Empathy
Stories that stick. The overlooked made visible. Emotional connection at the core of everything.
Technology
AI, GPS, AR, audio — creative amplifiers, not distractions. Tools in service of human stories.
Who Am I?
Michelle
Toch Dinsmore
Modern Preservationist · Technologist · Creative Entrepreneur
  • Principal, Overit — digital marketing & creative agency
  • Creative work also at Overit Studios
  • Restored the 1785 Turner Farmhouse — National Register
  • Rehabbed two churches (one is my office)
  • Operates Grafton Stone House hospitality
  • Spearheading Albany's 1st Friday revival
  • Speaker: Landmark Society, HomeAway Summit
  • Airbnb Community Leader, Albany area
  • Connect on LinkedIn →
Michelle Toch Dinsmore

The
Hard
Truths.

Story and place are economic engines. Here's how technology and entrepreneurship activate them.

Preservation isn't the past.

It's a strategy for what's next. Old buildings, craft legacies, and arts institutions are economic engines waiting to be activated.

Every place has a story worth money.

Location-triggered experiences, print on demand, live streaming, special events — the revenue models exist. Most orgs just haven't built them yet.

The best stories aren't being told.

Women. Working people. Craft makers. The ones without monuments. That's a gap and an opportunity.

Tech collapses time.

Real-time mapping, interactive experiences, AR, live streaming — tools that bring the past forward and pull now into then. For any organization with a story.

◆ Workshops

Come out
knowing more.

Practical, human-first sessions for organizations ready to stop playing it safe with their story. No jargon. Real tools. Real talk.

01

Story & Place

Uncover the story that animates your place and turn it into experiences, engagement, and community connection. Narrative, pillars, archetypes, digital concepts, and more.

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02

Brand Ethos & Creative Direction

Align teams around what the brand actually feels like in action — across creative work, messaging, and customer experience.

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03

Creative Thinking

Break default patterns, unlock fresh perspectives, and turn original thinking into ideas teams can actually use. A fun time and a real learning experience in one.

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04

AI for Humans

Practical, human-first AI for teams who want to understand it, stop fearing it, and find meaningful ethical uses for their actual work.

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See All Workshops →
◆ Field Notes

Thinking out loud
about place, story,
and what's next.

Ideas before they're ready. Questions worth asking. Things I'm noticing about how places, arts organizations, and craft businesses can use story as a strategy.

Read Field Notes →
New · Field Notes
Why Every Arts Organization Needs a Revenue Strategy That Doesn't Depend on Grants
Grants are fuel — not the engine. Here's what a real sustainability model looks like.
Read →
New · Field Notes
The Antique With No Story Is Just Old Furniture
Provenance is the product. Age alone isn't value — narrative capital is.
Read →
New · Field Notes
Mapping as Storytelling: When Location Data Becomes Emotional Experience
When place responds to you in real time, you stop being a visitor. You become a participant.
Read →
Let's Shape What's Next

Ready to make your
place feel like
something real?

michelle@storylikely.com
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