“Most of the world will make decisions by either guessing or using their gut. They will be either lucky or wrong." – Suhail Doshi, CEO, Mixpanel.

A few weeks ago, I shared a staggering statistic on Instagram about Netflix. A view is counted if someone watches a show at least two minutes—resulting in "Bridgerton" claiming that the show received 82 million views. Not gonna lie. I binged the whole series and consider myself a raving fan. But wouldn't a more accurate measurement be:

• How many people actually finished watching the show?

• How many people actually felt satisfied or liked what they watched?

• What parts of the show resonated most? (I know, I know, Regé-Jean Page, obviously)

Of course Netflix has way more data than we will ever know, but my point is that simply counting likes and views are not enough to know if what you're doing is working. If you dive a little bit deeper, you can use your analytics as a road map to figure out what is resonating with your audience and what you should do next.

No matter what you're trying to measure—social media, website traffic, email campaigns—analytics can feel like such an unsexy thing. They are as confusing and misleading as that great date you had and then never had again. But let me break it down.

Below are five things you need to know, so that you can stop going coo coo trying to beat the algorithm.

Channeling my inner geekdom,
Molly

“To those of you who received honours, awards and distinctions, I say well done. And to the C students, I say you, too, can be president of the United States." - George W. Bush

When you think of awards and public relations, I'm willing to bet that the first thing that comes to mind is the Oscars or the Grammys.

But no matter your industry, there's likely an award for it. Case in point, the Best Dog Walker as recognized by theBeast of the Bay Awards.Slow clap.

Awards equal bragging rights, generate buzz, and can even help land you new clients. At the very least, they can help you benchmark with others in your industry.

For example, when we won a Bulldog Stars of Tomorrow award (like how I worked that in?), the process was rather grueling. We had to submit lots of data to back up our application (client retention rates, revenue growth, etc.). The process of applying proved very eye opening and gave our team the chance to say...wow, we did that?!

That alone was worth the time and effort.

But there are things you should know before you apply. Small print if you will. I break it down for you below.

So honored to be nominated (Yeah, right.),
Molly

I'll never forget the first week in quarantine.

It felt surreal. But also a little bit exciting. "Oooooh hell yeah, working from home! I meditated, I did yoga. I cooked my way through Pamela Salzman's cookbook." I was practically the Tim Ferris of setting good habits, testing new routines and overall kicking ass in this new normal.

Cut to June. Which if it were a Seinfeld episode would be called, "The One Where We Waited for the Other Shoe to Drop." And like in Seinfeld...nothing happened. We had clients. We were surviving. Just with an extra layer of fear.

And just like in real life, I keep trying to find something new to watch. But it's only reruns of, "The One Where We Waited for the Other Shoe to Drop." Rinse, repeat.

I hold on to hope that we have turned a corner. That the vaccine is on the way. That there will eventually be a peaceful transition of power in our country. But the 24 hour news cycle is seriously bad for your health.

If you have feelings of despair—whether about your business, about your future, about life in general right now, I wrote this for you. To tell you that you are not alone.

Has my business been impacted? That would be putting it mildly. Do I have days where I don't want to get out of bed? Yup, that too.

But then I pick myself up and live to die another day. The below things have helped me on my worst days. They hit all the notes: actionable, practical, mindful, spiritual.

"There are years that ask questions and years that answer."

To better days ahead,

Molly

RUE magazine announced today that—along with their acquisition by Danny Seo—they will launch the first print issue of RUE in January 2021, and I'm bringing you an exclusive video interview with newly promoted Editorial Director Kelli Lamb!

Now before you think RUE doesn't apply to you, they cover much more than design. For over ten years, they have been "the pathway to stylish living," which includes entertaining, travel, beauty and style.

We here at The Storied Group love to use lifestyle and design publications as a fun and unique way to shine the light on your business—like this feature we secured for the founder of ghee company, Fourth & Heart or this gorgeous feature of Blinking Owl Distillery, or this travel feature we secured for Golden Door or this feature for Pamela Salzman sharing a recipe. I even announced our company name change in this bar cart story!

What do all those features have in common? Gorgeous photos. Which we talk a lot about in the video.

Like last time, for those who still want to read text, I have broken down The Short Story below in five quick takeaways.

But trust me, you're going to want to watch this entire video. Getting face-to-face time with an editor is a luxury, and Kelli spills all the do's and don'ts if you want to be in the magazine.

Just keep in mind that every magazine is different. The rules of RUE might not necessarily apply at other publications—except for the part about photos. Oh yeah and she pretty much 100% confirmed everything I wrote in my ebook for interior designers if you want to get published. That felt good.

Sipping a Chai Latte over here,
Molly

By 2022 online videos will make up 82% of online traffic. In fact, video drives more views, more engagement, and more response than any other social posting option.

And with those staggering facts, I bring you the first ever video interview for this edition of The Short Story.

If you don't follow Virginia Kerr, you will after this interview. She is a news anchor turned video strategy coach and has built a large following on TikTok and Instagram giving people quick and humorous tips to be more confident on camera.

Never fear, for those who still want to read text (all 43% of you!), I have broken down five quick takeaways below.

But trust me, you're going to want to watch this entire video. Virginia gets real candid about how she recovered from being called out as a copycat by a big influencer on TikTok (the kids were making memes of her face, y'all!). Hear it at the 14:15 mark. If she can pull herself up by her bootstraps to find her own voice after that experience, so can you! Just make sure to stick around for all the video tips that come toward the end.

As always, I love hearing from you. Hit reply to this email and let me know what you thought of the first video interview. Should I do more?

Stuffing my face with pumpkin muffins (tis the season!),
Molly

Fun fact: The Beatles were the first famous guys to understand that the media is someone to be courted, not avoided. They understood that the media can take a message you want to deliver and blast it to more people than you could ever do alone. Years ago, media training taught you how to be on the defense, how to not screw up—essentially how to control the message.

But unlike back then, the media is now fragmented. We have cable, streaming, newsletters, social media, your mom's friend's blog! So now the goal is not so much to control the message, but rather to control the lens through which the message is viewed. I had the pleasure of chatting about all of this with my longtime and very brilliant colleague LeeAundra Keany of Keany Communications. She has worked with the C-suite of major companies like Adidas, Apple, HBO and New Line Cinema, as well as with countless celebrities like Marcia Cross and Pierce Brosnan. I asked her to debunk the myth that media training is only for people who, ahem, suck at media interviews— newbies, novices, those who can't string a sentence together. (Because that could not be further from the truth.)

If you are embarking on a high stakes situation with oral communication (keynote speech, press interview, negotiations, giving testimony before legislature, executive presentation, CEO interview), media training will help you prepare. Let's dive in on how.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk,

Molly

“Take care of the people, the products, and the profits. In that order.” -The Hard Thing About Hard Things

Well, here we are—six weeks since I last wrote a newsletter, never once thinking I would still be typing to you from my home "office," a nook in my kitchen that was a big point of contention when we remodeled. (Do we spring for the expensive French doors that open up from my desk onto the patio?) I've never been more thankful my husband relented.

The media has moved from stories about Zoom meetings and how businesses are being immediately impacted to how our country will begin to reopen and what our new normal will look like. You're seeing stories about businesses not ever going back to an office and how hotels are starting to reopen and what the Emmys could look like this year.

Last night, my husband told me that someone he manages at his company mentioned how stressed out they were. It didn't even occur to him that someone not in a management position could feel stressed out right now. That small interaction gave him a completely different perspective on how he is managing the team.

This morning, my client who has had to make some really tough decisions about employees called to say, "Hey, I wanted you to hear my voice and tell you about some of our upcoming plans AND to say that as long as I run this company, you will be part of our team." That call meant everything to me. To quote Carrie Bradshaw, "This is not an economy of which to be whipped cream."

Both of these stories prompted the topic of this newsletter: Communication. I also happen to have a degree in it! Of course it includes how you communicate with your employees or those you manage, but I am also urging you to remember those who aren't full time employees: clients, freelancers, and even "fans" who follow you on social media.

Not everyone is in a position to keep employees. That is the harsh reality. But everyone is in a position to have clear and frequent communication, compassion, and transparency with the people who help you in business. People will remember how you made them feel. Make sure you come out looking like the hero.

We are still here for you from afar,
Molly

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