This candy shop gained 43K followers in five weeks

And they aren't even open yet...

Hello! I’m back from my week off. I spent the majority of that time in Sea Ranch, where I ate grilled oysters at The Marshall Store, played tennis on a court next to the ocean, and completed one very hard puzzle.

I also finally cracked open George Saunders’ A Swim in a Pond in the Rain. The book is about writing fiction but it’s also about keeping a reader’s attention. In it, Saunders highlights the role escalation plays in short stories. He says, “Always be escalating. That’s all a story is, really: a continual system of escalation. A swath of prose earns its place in the story to the extent that it contributes to our sense that the story is (still) escalating.”

A story that escalates builds reader investment. So does a good social media strategy. In my recent interview with the Fishwife team, a reader commented, “What I take [away] is how they’ve really focused on the emotional bts component as part of their social strategy, which generates the feeling of people rooting for them even as their brand profile has rose.” A business is, by nature, filled with escalation. How do you capture it all in a way that allows your audience to root for you?

Kate Bolger, the owner of The Village Confectionary, knows the answer. Her candy shop doesn’t open for another 10 weeks, but has already accumulated over a million views and over 43K followers. Kate is building online investment early through her beautifully-scripted videos, prompting comments like “Ok, watched all your videos like I’m binge watching Netflix 😍 you are an amazing story teller. I’m here for your journey and cheering you on!” Below I share her tips for telling a small business story online and why she thinks of her social presence in seasons not posts.

I also cover:

• Four post ideas to try this week

• The best movie marketing isn’t about the movie

• Is Instagram’s new premium subscription available to brands?

• Why I’m going detective mode on Chanel’s social media

• An early bet on the MLB team with the best social this season

• New roles on the Link in Bio Job Board!