This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast, Francis is joined by Hayley Rose, a former Google and YouTube employee turned YouTube growth strategist. Hayely has worked with some of the biggest channels on YouTube, growing them from zero views to hundreds of millions. In this podcast Hayley breaks down the five steps that every creator should follow to get more views, grow on YouTube and build a sustainable career in the creator economy.

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Hayley

• LinkedIn
• YTJobs

The Upload Club

• Website
• Newsletter
• Instagram

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Timestamps

00:00:00 Introducing Hayley Rose

00:03:00 The three services of The Upload Club

00:05:44 The actual purpose of a thumbnail — it’s not what you think

00:08:05 YouTube's most important metrics to focus on

00:12:20 The five steps every creator must know

00:15:22 Step 1: The Idea

00:19:14 Step 2: Pre-production

00:25:22 Step 3: Shoot day

00:28:35 Step 4: Edit

00:38:18 Step 5: Upload

00:43:37 Hayley's experience working at YouTube

00:50:55 Huge opportunities in the creator economy

00:57:32 What makes a creator?

00:59:55 Ex-YouTube employee's thoughts on the algorithm

01:01:50 Tactical advice for creators

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast, Francis is joined by Colin Rocker, a creator focused on career and corporate content. Colin shares his journey from skepticism about TikTok to becoming a successful content creator with a mission to educate 'first-generation professionals'.

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Follow Colin

• LinkedIn
• Instagram
• TikTok
• YouTube

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Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Colin Rocker

01:11 The many failed attempts before finding success

03:23 Defining the niche 'first-generation professionals'

05:46 Diversifying your platforms: Instagram vs TikTok

08:00 The most valuable skills needed as a creator

15:11 Going all in as a full-time creator

18:39 The value of personal brand identity

23:51 Monetizing your audience, ethically

29:21 Attracting a diverse audience

32:32 Managing your time as a full-time creator-entrepreneur

38:29 Creating meaningful, positive content

42:46 Building a welcoming community

46:17 The challenge and rewards of writing a newsletter

49:54 Personal experience in a post-information world

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast, Francis is joined by award-winning journalist and podcaster Chico Felitti. Chico has found much of his success creating content for the Portuguese speaking audience, topping the podcast charts of Brazil multiple times with his shows Além do Meme, De Saída and O Síndico. Relaunching his hit podcast 'A Coach' for the English speaking audience, 'Don't Cross Kat' has now become a success in the US market, landing itself in the top 10 of the US charts.

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Follow Chico on Instagram

Listen to 'Don't Cross Kat'

• Spotify
• Apple Podcasts

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00:00 Introducing Chico Felitti

01:33 Being a journalist first influencer

05:59 The ethics of influencing as a journalist

10:06 The cultural shift to independent creators in Brazil

12:47 Why Brazilian's are so wild on social media

15:48 Rebuilding the story of Kat Torres for the US market

22:59 AI dubbing facilitating the cultural exchange

27:30 Building audience relationships through different mediums

29:33 From zero podcasting experience to Brazil's number one

36:50 The power of storytelling and the lives it can change

38:55 Chico Felitti's latest project

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we're joined my Jazmin Griffith, social media expert and founder of social listening agency Que Lo Que. Jazmin has over a decade of professional social media experience, working with some of the biggest brands such as Sony, Google, Microsoft and PepsiCo.

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Jazmine:

• Que Lo Que
• LinkedIn
• Instagram
• TikTok

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Timestamps:

00:00 Introducing Jazmin

01:06 What is social listening?

04:48 The most important datapoints as a creator

08:34 The newest tools to analyze your social media

10:44 Finding valuable content amongst the slop

14:35 The inspiration behind Que Lo Que

21:12 How you can use social listening as a creator

24:02 The value of LinkedIn over TikTok

27:15 Blurring the lines between influencer and creator

32:54 Gen Z's unique relationship with social media

38:45 Jazmin's social media evolution, from hobby to business-card

44:05 The difficulties of making content as a solo creator

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we are joined by Adam Biddlecombe, co-founder of Mindstream, a successful AI-focused newsletter which was recently acquired by HubSpot only 17 months after its inception. Adam shares his journey from being a musician to an entrepreneur, the ability to identify and seize an opportunity, and how to prep for acquisition.

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Adam

• LinkedIn
• X/Twitter

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Links & References

• Mindstream

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Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Adam and Mindstream

01:48 Adam's first business in the music industry

06:38 The creator/entrepreneur spectrum

10:34 Getting started in the newsletter world

15:13 The first 1k subscribers and early investments

20:51 The skill of identifying an opportunity

27:31 Monetizing strategies following rapid growth

31:57 The value of using LinkedIn as a creator entrepreneur

37:56 How to prepare for acquisition

49:06 The three types of exits in business

52:20 The biggest opportunities in the creator economy right now

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we are joined by Jesse Feister, the Executive Director of the Webby Media Group. In the lead up to the 29th annual Webby Awards ceremony, Francis and Jesse reflect on the evolution of the Webby Awards and the creator economy, exploring the creator to business pipeline and three skills necessary to succeed as a creator.

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Links and References

• Check out the Webby Awards
• Read Jesse's AI and Creativity piece
• Follow the Webby Awards on X/Twitter, Instagram and YouTube
• Follow Jesse on LinkedIn and Instagram

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Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Jesse and the Webby Awards

00:47 Jesse's mandate as Executive Director

03:37 How the Webby's define a creator

11:35 Understanding the grind of the entrepreneurial creator

16:00 Being a musician in the MySpace era

21:19 The 3 most valuable skills as a creator entrepreneur

30:20 Sustainable business models for small creators

34:04 The evolution of brand building online

38:46 AI and creativity: Creativity always wins

42:08 The biggest opportunities in the creator economy

44:56 The instant feedback loop — use it wisely

48:15 Plans for the Webby's 30th year

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we are joined by Grace Ling, founder of the thriving Design Buddies community, which turns five years old this month, has over 150,000 members, and generates $1 million in annual recurring revenue. She is also a talented content creator and has found particular success on LinkedIn where she has nearly 50,000 followers. She is also the cohost of the How Creators Make Money podcast.

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Follow Grace on Instagram and LinkedIn

Check out Design Buddies and How Creators Make Money

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00:00 Introducing Grace Ling and Design Buddies

01:52 What is design?

03:30 What makes the Design Buddies community different?

05:46 The first 1,000 members

08:31 The first 150,000 members

12:00 Maintaining a healthy community at scale

15:46 $1M in revenue — what’s the breakdown?

18:18 Rizz as a service 20:39 Gatekeeping, use it wisely

22:40 How to spend $1M

24:49 LinkedIn’s untapped potential for growth

35:51 A lesson in diversifying your revenue as a creator

39:37 How Creators Make Money, the podcast

42:16 The two labor models of content creation

45:00 From creator house to party mansions

This week Francis is joined by podcasting Amanda McLoughlin, CEO of Multitude and co-host of the podcasts Spirits, Attach Your Resume, and Join the Party. Amanda began her journey as a creator vlogging on YouTube and has since spent over a decade in the podcast space.

Amanda's Podcasts:

Attach Your Resume

Join the Party

Spirits

All Multitude shows

Timestamps:

00:00:00 Introducing Amanda McLoughlin

00:01:29 Building a network through the early YouTube community

00:05:04 How the podcasting world has changed over the past decade

00:11:02 Forming Multitude

00:15:56 Building a top 0.1% without the algorithm

00:25:53 Podcast listeners are the most valuable audience

00:31:20 The most valuable thing you can do is say no

00:33:58 Diversifying your revenue streams

00:35:52 Sustainable creator-led businesses to model

00:38:53 Your podcast doesn't need to be profitable to be valuable

00:40:08 Never host your podcast with Spotify

00:45:58 All creators are a business

00:52:33 Platforms need creators, creators don't need platforms

00:56:13 Attach Your Résumé: stories behind seismic events in digital media

01:01:46 What NOT to focus on as a creator

This week Francis is joined by Thomas Yeum, an ambitious video-first creator specializing in YouTube and Instagram. Thomas is well known for his Instagram series '125 days to make 10k/month'. Thomas shares his journey from software engineering to content creation, discussing the challenges and opportunities within the creator economy.

Follow Thomas:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thomasyeum/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Toemas

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yeumthomas/

00:00 Introducing Thomas Yeum and his creator journey

06:39 Challenges with modern consumption habits

10:03 The creator economy is the new American dream

15:48 Finding a career that fulfils personal values

19:22 125 days to make $10k/mo

26:07 The 3% rule: How to utilize inspiration

27:39 4 steps to making a great video

33:57 Balancing art and business as a solo creator

36:29 Making $100k/mo in 365 days

39:03 A bad video does not equal a bad concept

45:48 Building 12k+ subscriber newsletter from scratch

49:28 Bridging the gap between tradition media and the creator economy

53:15 Advice for aspiring creators

This week Francis is joined by Kyle Sheldon, founder and CEO of Name and Number, a soccer specific marketing and creative agency. Kyle has worked within the US soccer world for two decades and held marketing roles at multiple MLS clubs. Kyle is also the founder and editor of Pathway, a newsletter aimed at helping individuals break into the soccer industry.

Kyle: https://x.com/kylesheldon

Name and Number: https://www.nameandnumber.com

Pathway: https://pathwayhq.com

00:00 Introducing Kyle Sheldon

01:05 The evolution of soccer and sports marketing

04:28 Becoming the driving force in growing soccer in the US

09:25 Growing careers in the soccer industry

12:22 Pathway's natural growth has led to extremely high engagement

17:32 The potential future growth of the soccer industry is massive

21:20 Navigating the soccer-creator industry requires expertise

24:49 The fashion culture within soccer

28:19 Empowering creators to thrive in the soccer space

32:22 US vs European football content culture

41:36 The shifting power dynamic between creators and traditional media

50:32 Partnership advice for creators and brands