The Creator Spotlight Podcast

Michael Kauffman, founder of the Catskill Crew, dives into the world of community-led newsletters and sustainable revenue models. He discusses the importance of audience engagement and building local relationships. Kauffman emphasizes the emotional impact of branding, drawing parallels to nostalgia and comfort. He shares strategies for monetization while maintaining authenticity in the creator economy. The conversation highlights the uphill battle local newsletters face, but also the vast potential for growth and community collaboration.

John Hu, known online as Jayhoovy, is the founder of Stan, a comprehensive monetization tool for creators. He dives into the challenges creators face in today’s economy and the importance of personal branding for success. John emphasizes the power of consistency in content creation and the need for effective systems thinking. He discusses the potential of creator-led digital products and what it means to build in public, arguing that honesty fosters competitive advantage. Plus, he inspires with stories of perseverance and self-belief in the entrepreneurial journey.

Adam Ryan, CEO and co-founder of Workweek, shares his extensive experience in the newsletter industry. He discusses the delicate balance between creativity and sales, revealing key strategies for audience growth. Adam emphasizes consistency as crucial for content creators and reflects on how his early career shaped his marketing acumen. He explores the transformation of newsletters from mere accessories to vital marketing tools, highlighting the importance of authenticity and values in driving business growth.

Joining the discussion is Lex Roman, a freelance growth marketer and creative entrepreneur known for his newsletters, Journalists Pay Themselves and Revenue Rulebreaker. Lex delves into innovative monetization strategies, highlighting how to thrive with a small audience. He examines the significance of niche communities and the evolving role of newsletters for income. Lex also tackles subscription fatigue and the understated yet crucial business acumen of journalists, revealing fresh insights on ethical practices and community engagement in the creator economy.

This week Francis is joined by Alex Dobrenko, a comedian and writer of the newsletter Both Are True. Both Are True: https://botharetrue.substack.com Alex's Twitter/X: https://x.com/dobrenkz 00:00 Intro 01:23 The Journey to Comedy and Writing 08:20 Writing Style and Honesty 15:02 The Role of Improv Comedy in Creativity 22:07 The Growth of an Audience 30:26 Professionalization of Content Creation and "Selling Out" 38:57 Whoa: Exploring Deeper Conversations through Interviews 45:37 Navigating the Solitary Nature of Creation 49:15 The Evolution of Social Media Engagement #podcast #creatoreconomy #creatorspotlight

This week Francis is joined by Penn Weinberger, founder and head of the agency Bad Behavior. Bad Behavior works with creators to produce original short-form shows for brands; they’ve worked with clients like Lyft, Columbia Records, Cash App, and Stanley. Bad Behavior: https://www.bad-behavior.com/ 00:00 Introducing Penn and Bad Behavior 01:42 Working with Creators vs. Influencers 05:00 The Impact of Viral Marketing 07:14 Empowering Creators 09:35 Upsetting the Traditional Advertising Model 13:42 Starting and Then Diversifying the Agency 17:12 The Blur Between Creator and Celebrity 22:22 The Revenue 26:07 The Increase in Management Amongst Creators 30:06 Rules for Building a Creator-Led Show 32:47 Finding Brands as a Creator 36:35 Red Flags for Brands and Creators 41:06 Unpredictable Virality #creatoreconomy #podcast #goingviral

This week Francis is joined by Rameel Sheikh, founder and writer of The Bottleneck which, in his words, is the only weekly newsletter offering stories, frameworks, and tactics to sharpen how you execute. Rameel’s newsletter: https://www.thebottleneck.io 00:00 Introducing Rameel Sheikh and The Bottleneck 01:09 Building a Strong Audience Relationship 03:07 Lessons Learnt from the Startup World 07:18 The Decision to Start a Newsletter 13:31 The Structure of the Newsletter 17:00 Experimenting with Different Writing Styles 20:08 How the Newsletter Generates $30k a Month 26:00 Building an Audience from Scratch to 28k Subscribers 32:30 Are Creators Also Founders? 37:27 Building a Team as a Founder 40:57 The Many Failed Experiments that Led to The Bottleneck 44:27 Building a High Value Community 49:52 Future Dreams or Goals of The Bottleneck #podcast #creatoreconomy #founder

Today’s guest is Swapna Krishna, creator of @adastraspace a YouTube channel and beehiiv newsletter about space. She’s a professional writer with over a decade of experience doing everything from journalism to content marketing to authoring a book. Ad Astra YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adastraspace Newsletter: adastraspace.com 00:00 Intro 01:20 The Journey of Writing and Publishing a Book 04:35 Transitioning to Video Content Creation 07:22 Developing Presentation Skills Through Podcasting 12:42 Defining the Creator and Journalist Identity 18:31 Swapna's Journey Through the Content Creation World 22:22 The Differences in Solo Creating and Working in a Team 30:25 All of Swapna's Projects 31:50 Production Process: From Idea to Execution 41:58 The Relationships with Swapna's Different Audiences 48:34 Space-X's Media Dominance 50:40 The Monetization 54:25 Defining Goals and Editorial Mandate #podcast #creatoreconomy #space

@JohnNellis has grown by over 1 million subscribers in less than a year. We're talking to John's business partner, Alex, to dig deep into the strategy behind one of the fastest growing football channels on the platform. John Nellis: https://www.youtube.com/@JohnNellis 00:00 Intro 01:10 Getting into the world of football content 04:43 Tripling the growth of Sky Sports YouTube channel 07:27 The partnership with John 13:52 Combining the business and creative mind 16:24 How the business operates 18:41 How big is the team? 20:05 Producing content from in-front the camera 24:49 Why John Nellis is the best to work with 29:50 Growing and reinvesting into the business 35:10 The importance of the title and thumbnail 37:34 The myth behind "retention editing" 40:46 How the channel is monetized 44:27 Why you should delete your old videos 46:09 How much money is the channel making? 48:23 The work/life balance of a content creator 51:54 The goal for the channel 55:52 YouTube vs TV #podcast #creatoreconomy #contentcreator

This week Francis is joined by Caitlin Dewey, creator and writer of the newsletter Links I Would G-Chat You If We Were Friends. Caitlin's Newsletter: https://linksiwouldgchatyou.substack.com 00:00 Introducing Caitlin Dewey 03:27 The Birth of the Newsletter 06:16 Taking a Break and the Pressure of a Rebrand 13:36 Building a Community With Readers 17:53 Building a Good Salary From Subscriptions 19:49 The Definition of Creators vs. Journalists 27:42 Bring Back Comfortable Middle Class Lifestyles 32:59 Collaboration in the Newsletter Community 37:37 The Painful Art of Content Planning 43:21 Substack's Shift in Business Model 50:13 The Craft of an Aggregation Newsletter 53:19 Fake News Is Now Just News #podcast #creatoreconomy #newsletter