Hi, friends. How are you holding up?

We here at The Storied Group seem to have found our stride WFH and are so grateful that our business allows for a  easy transition. We've kept each other sane by encouraging daily walks, sharing funny memes, and continuning the usual celebrity gossip over a virtual watercolor in our Slack channel.  We highly recommend the free Gray Malin Virtual Zoom backgrounds that will take you to far off lands without ever having to leave home.

Over the last two weeks, our main goal has been to learn as much as we can about how the media is pivoting so that we can best serve you right now. If you missed my IGTV about that, here is a link. 

The biggest thing to know is point number one below—the media is still taking pitches. They may be doing interviews via Skype and publishing magazines from their living rooms, but there is still an opportunity for press. 

Below are a few things we have learned these past few weeks that I think are important for you to know. Please don't hestitate to ask if you have specific questions.

We are here for you from afar,
Molly

Seth Godin, one of the best minds we have today in the field of marketing, is notorious for saying that modern marketing boils down to the stories we tell, and the defining belief that, “People like us do things like this.” What that means is that you create impact through empathy and telling true stories that resonate.

PR (changing the story) and Publicity (getting earned media) is only a part of marketing, but in order to get the best results from them, it really helps to take a deep dive into figuring out who you seek to change, and then putting yourself into their shoes to understand their deepest desires. Only then can you solve problems for a specific group of people. 

No doubt the media landscape is quickly changing, but is print media dead? This writer doesn't think so. Every month it seems there is more news about beloved titles ending their run, so where do things stand?

We recently had the pleasure of attending a PR Net media panel here in LA, and the editors had a lot to say about the future of publishing. It's important that you understand what's happening, so that you can work with your publicist to clarify your media goals in the coming year. And if you want to see this on video, we did a recap on IG TV here.

A decade ago, Apple coined the phrase “There’s an app for that,” with TV ads showcasing the breadth of apps available through their store—at that time there were 500. Today, there are 1.96 million apps on Apple’s App Store and 2.46 million on Android’s store. No matter what you’re trying to accomplish via your mobile device—whether it’s getting a date, getting a ride somewhere, managing your finances, ordering food, learning how to milk a cow, or going hunting for the paranormal—Apple’s adage has never rung more true: no really, for better or for worse, there’s an app for THAT. Here are some of the coolest apps that have proven to be uber-useful in our world of media and marketing.

Twenty-some years ago before social media existed, Cindy, Claudia, and Naomi were the go-to “influencers” of their time – commanding top dollar from the world’s most prominent brands for appearances and endorsement deals. Today, Rocky, Chiara, and Shea are a few of the influencer powerhouses who can move the needle for a brand with just a single sponsored mention or post. As the global number of internet users, online transactions, and social media subscribers continues to grow, brands are increasingly adopting the influencer marketing platform to enhance brand exposure, generate higher customer engagement, and ultimately raise their bottom lines. This month, Matt Kirschner, Partner and EVP at Talent Resources (a premier full-service celebrity/influencer and social media marketing agency), gives us the short story on influencer partnerships. Whether you are an influencer wanting better brand deals or a company wanting to work with influencers, these are the five things you need to know right now.

It feels like everywhere we turn lately someone is launching a podcast, and we're not mad about it. With stats showing that 51% of the US population has listened to one, podcasting has gone mainstream. They are an integral way to get news, spread brand awareness and, let's be honest, seriously binge on the latest true crime drama. For marketers, podcasts offer an intimate brand experience that provides a high share of voice, an engaged audience and uncluttered ad space. “Big things are happening in the podcast space,” Bruce Supovitz, Senior Vice President of national audio services at Nielsen Audio, said. “Revenues in the US are expected to hit over half a billion this year—a strong start for a medium that’s only a decade or so old and big companies are taking note.” Here are 5 things to know about podcasts right now:

Between last week’s announcement that Facebook’s Q1 earnings made a jump thanks largely to Instagram, Beyonce posting her first ever Instagram story, and Taylor Swift debuting an Instagram filter to tease her new album, it just feels timely to send our first ever newsletter—The Short Story—debuting with social media’s most photogenic platform. Each month we will send you five things you need to know about one trending topic. So let’s dive in, #nofilter.