This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we're joined by Jonathan Hunt, the VP of HubSpot Media. Jonathan has been working in media for two decades for brands such as Nat Geo, Complex, Vice, Vox, and more.

Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles

__

Jonathan

• LinkedIn
• HubSpot
• Mindstream

__

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

00:00 Introducing Jonathan Hunt

01:20 The 3 pillars of audience development

04:16 For the independent creator

07:32 Marketing through content creation

14:10 The most sustainable monetization models

18:18 Building a brand voice

21:00 The need for diversification

23:41 The ever evolving definition of 'creator'

26:50 The most shocking recent changes in media

28:27 When to sell your business as a solo creator

This week we're joined by Suraj Kapoor, the creator of Pointer, a 10 year old 40,000 subscriber newsletter curating articles for engineering leaders.

__

Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles

__

Follow Suraj

• Pointer
• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Suraj and Pointer

01:33 The art of curation

06:53 10 years and 40k subs later, what's changed?

08:44 Avoiding becoming a personal brand

13:35 The AI threat to curation

18:38 From side hustle to six figure business

24:25 Attracting premium advertisers

31:09 Building a high-value audience

35:29 reinvestment and experimentation

40:30 The 20 hour work week

42:39 Mastering your analytics

48:00 Identifying the most popular content

51:15 The biggest threat to aggregation content

This week we're joined by Milly Tamati, the creator of Generalist World, a community and learning platform. She is also a writer, illustrator, speaker, and consultant.

Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles

__

Follow Milly

• Generalist World
• Website
• LinkedIn
• TikTok

__

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Timestamps

00:00:00 Introducing Milly

00:01:45 Necessity of a personal brand

00:06:22 Becoming director of miscellaneous

00:14:14 Building cult-like loyalty on social media

00:18:58 How a quiz can drive subscribers

00:27:26 The playbook for building a community

00:36:41 Keeping a community active

00:46:24 Brand deals done differently

00:53:15 Digital tool workshops

00:58:57 A podcast for the community, about the community

01:05:22 Not knowing what's next is fine

This week we’re joined by Landon Huslig, the creator of Wichita Life, a local media brand covering life in Wichita through a newsletter, podcast, and Instagram. He built it as a side hustle while working full-time as an engineer. It now has a combined 50,000 followers and generates $120k+ annually.

Wichita Life: https://wichitalifeict.com

__

Follow Landon

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Timestamp

00:00:00 Introducing Landon

00:01:16 The art of hand to hand combat

00:10:54 Starting a local media

00:18:43 The growth to $120k

00:25:06 How big can a local newsletter be?

00:34:27 The value of a likeminded community

00:40:39 The creator to entrepreneur spectrum

00:46:06 The difficult relationship with traditional local media

00:57:22 Building local businesses in addition to newsletter

01:01:48 The responsibility to your audience

01:04:03 Side hustle vs full time business

01:09:24 Starting a local newsletter in 2025

This week on Creator Spotlight we're joined by Nathan May, founder of The Feed Media, a company that helps newsletters grow with paid ads and help convert readers into revenue.

Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles

__

Join the waitlist: https://creatormasterminds.co

__

Follow Nathan

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X
• The Feed Media

__

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Nathan May

01:21 The core principles of newsletter growth

06:33 It’s about niching down

12:31 Growing a newsletter for acquisition

18:23 Your subscriber count does not matter

23:58 Is it harder than ever to get subscribers?

31:38 The one thing AI can’t replace

37:10 Give your knowledge away for free

43:58 Podcasting is hard — why do it?

50:11 Best lessons from podcast guests

52:18 Rapid fire advice for creators

The week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we're joined by Liz Kelly Nelson. Liz is the founder of Project C, a newsletter and pre-funding collective helping mission-driven journalism creators develop sustainable business models.

__

Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles

__

RSVP to the Creator Business Summit

__

Follow Liz

• Project C
• LinkedIn

__

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Timestamps

00:00 Redefining influencer

04:46 Journalists want to be creators

10:17 What to expect if you become a creator

16:51 The role of community in creator journalism

21:20 Is the solo creator a myth?

27:00 Culture shock at the newsletter conference

31:52 Your responsibility as a creator

36:10 Maintaining ethical standards as a solo journalist

38:16 The creator journalist world 5 years from now

40:57 Revenue breakdown

43:10 Don't make these mistakes as a creator journalist

This week Francis and Natalia are joined by sewing creator Sydney Graham ( @HiSydGraham ). Sydney has gained over 100k subscribers on YouTube this year and has over 600k followers across platforms.

• Read the newsletter

__

RSVP to the Creator Business Summit

__

Follow Sydney

• YouTube
• TikTok
• Instagram

__

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Follow Natalia

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Sydney Graham

01:01 How to gain 100k subscribers in a year

10:46 Early days of the creator economy

15:05 The biggest creators in the sewing space

17:40 Balancing community and individuality

21:17 The best video platforms for creators right now

25:19 Why you shouldn't chase trends

31:48 Sewing content is growing - here's why

33:45 Revenue breakdown

36:51 Content creation and sewing similarities

41:12 How to build a friendly community online

45:53 Choosing the right brand partnerships

49:38 Defining your goals as a creator

This week Francis is joined by Tom Fishburne, also known as The Marketoonist. Tom is a cartoonist and marketer who turned his satirical drawings about corporate life into a sustainable business that has brought him over 500,000+ followers across platforms.

Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/p/tom-fishburne

__

RSVP to the Creator Business Summit: https://www.beehiiv.com/virtual-events/creator-business-summit

__

Follow Tom

• LinkedIn
• Website
• Newsletter
• Instagram

__

Links & References

• The Do Lecture

__

Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Tom Fishburne, The Marketoonist

01:05 How to price your work online

08:49 Humor as a leadership skill

11:45 The world of content creation in the early 2000’s

15:05 It’s not the ink, it’s the think

21:05 The importance of mimicry in creative work

23:26 How to create a recognizable style

26:36 You must be an entrepreneur in the creator economy

30:41 Email, the most valuable platform

33:16 The best platform for audience engagement

38:32 Red flags for clients

43:17 Why you shouldn’t scale your business

44:37 How to nail speaking engagements

52:25 Structuring your day for optimal creativity

57:39 Focussing on sustainability, not growth

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we're joined by Tiffany Yu, the founder and CEO of Diversability, an entirely disabled-run and disabled-led social enterprise to elevate disability pride. Tiffany is also the author of The Anti-Ableist Manifesto, in which she highlights the myriad ways our society discriminates against people with disabilities - and what we can do about it.

Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles

__

Get your free ticket to The Creator Summit at https://live.mightynetworks.com

__

Tiffany

• The Anti-Ableist Manifesto
• LinkedIn
• Website
• Instagram
• TikTok

__

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

Follow Natalia

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Tiffany Yu

01:01 The three levels to building a community

04:41 What is Diversability?

06:17 The breakdown of a 80k community

13:09 Key elements of a strong community

18:43 The reach of virtual communities over in-person

24:42 Influencers vs. creators

31:48 The four pillars of monetization

36:25 How the creator economy has helped the disability community

49:02 Best platforms for virality and business growth

53:57 The tenets of The Anti-Ableist Manifesto

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we're joined by Jayde Powell, a creator, social strategist and entrepreneur. Jayde has worked in the industry for over a decade and is an expert in social strategy, previously working with brands like Apple TV, LinkedIn and Delta Airlines. As a creator, she's built a thriving, sustainable business, and currently has 28,000 followers on LinkedIn.

__

Jayde

• LinkedIn
• The Em Dash Co
• Website
• Instagram
• Twitter/X
• TikTok

__

References

• Jayde's interview with Buffer
• Natalia's essay on authenticity

__

Follow Francis

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

Follow Natalia

• LinkedIn
• Twitter/X

__

Timestamps

00:00 Introducing Jayde

01:24 Making $50k+ in 3 months

06:39 What they don't tell you about speaking engagements

09:15 Creator Tea Talk

13:22 3 parts of approaching brand partnerships

14:49 Authenticity in the creator economy

19:15 Establishing a personal brand in 2025

24:19 The journey to 100k LinkedIn followers

30:27 The journey to $250k of revenue

34:42 All creators are entrepreneurs

42:04 How to build the self-promotion muscle

44:24 Creating unique content to stand out on LinkedIn

48:03 Building a sustainable future in the creator economy

52:56 The importance of community amongst creators

55:24 The #1 piece of advice for creators