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

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Join the waitlist: https://creatormasterminds.co

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• The Feed Media

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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.

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

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RSVP to the Creator Business Summit

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• Project C
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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.

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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

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

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Links & References

• The Do Lecture

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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

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

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Tiffany

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

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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.

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Jayde

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

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References

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

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Follow Natalia

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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

This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we're joined by Kevin Jon. Kevin is a YouTube strategist, creator, and founder of multiple media businesses. He started as a solo YouTuber, grew and sold his own channels, and now helps brands and broadcasters build profitable content on YouTube. In this episode, we dive into his playbook for growth, monetization, and turning channels into real businesses.

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

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Kevin

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• Megalomedia
• Channel Craft

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00:00:00 Who is Kevin Jon?

00:00:58 Grow your channel with The YouTube Masterplan

00:07:07 How to identify opportunities on YouTube

00:09:13 What it takes to get 1M views on YouTube

00:19:34 The difficulties of building a media empire

00:25:15 What can be learnt from traditional media

00:30:01 The most important metrics to track on YouTube

00:32:29 Building the biggest YouTube agency in the world

00:36:40 Selling a YouTube channel for $100K

00:39:20 The value of pre-production

00:41:45 Translating traditional media content to YouTube

00:44:45 From teenage YouTuber to media entrepreneur

00:50:08 Lessons from working in China: Be scrappier

00:56:43 Bullish and bearish YouTube predictions

In this episode of The Creator Spotlight Podcast, Francis speaks with Melanie Ehrenkranz, the creator of the Laid Off newsletter and Discord community. They discuss the origins of Laid Off, building a community where people feel supported and engaged, and the concept of the laid off to creator/entrepreneur pipeline.

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Follow Melanie

• Laid Off Newsletter
• LinkedIn

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References

• Melanie's Laid Off survey
• Never Post podcast episode with Melanie
• Interview with The Sidebar
• Interview with The New York Times

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00:00 Introducing Melanie

01:44 How 'Laid Off' began

06:32 Building an engaged, valuable community

10:12 Trend reports and insights from the laid off experience

13:20 Monetization that gives back to the community

22:47 LinkedIn culture and the need for personal brand

30:36 Potential future services for Laid Off

35:48 Permeable definitions of the creator

39:56 The creativity of the newsletter format

42:28 The laid off to creator pipeline

49:01 How to gain your first 10K subscribers

51:26 One year of Laid Off

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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• 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