Should you consider starting a podcast? Is the return on investment worth the time and effort put in? Or will you just be wasting your hard-earned time? Darla grew up listening to talk radio and knew when they launched Wingnut Social that a podcast would be a terrific vehicle for their niche. But what about other niches? Darla and Natalie’s guest today, Katie Freeman, shares her take on the industry—and why it’s been worth it for her.

Katie is a furniture designer and creator, owner of Freeman Furnishings, and host of the Maker Mom podcast. She believes working with your hands is good for the soul and spends her time creating heirloom-quality woodwork. Listen to this episode to hear why she started her podcast, how it’s helped her career, and what she hopes the future of her furniture design business will look like. 

• [0:52] They’re going to Brazil!

• Katie on LinkedIn

• RESA Event: April 9th from 6-8 pm at Keller Williams Building in Coral Gables

Katie Freeman started woodworking as a way to reconnect with who she is while balancing being a mom to two little ones. She is an avid podcast listener and enjoys listening to other makers and creators. But she noticed something she found disconcerting: none of the voices she heard were female. She decided it was time to create a podcast and get a female voice in her industry.

She honed in on a niche for Mom’s who wanted to run a business while raising a family. So she launched her podcast on 10/19/2018 and has garnered quite a following. Katie points out that it hasn’t led to her landing a design client—but it has helped her become a trusted voice in her community. In fact, 50% of her listeners are local, and she believes that’s essential to her success. 

While Katie hopes that someday her podcast will help her land some design clients, it has led to some wonderful opportunities. She can point people to listen to her podcast—with a built-in track record—versus just pitching them. Because of it, she’s been able to land speaking engagements and is actually jetting off to present at a conference soon after the recording of this episode.

The local recognition she’s gained for being an expert in her space has led to an unusual opportunity—being able to teach classes at a local shared maker’s space. She shares her class schedule on the podcast and lets her listeners know they can sign up for it. 

Because she creates and edits her podcast herself, she has very little overhead cost. With the opportunities it has afforded her, starting a podcast has been worth it. Keep listening to find out how she markets herself locally, what she would have done differently, and how she uses Patreon to bring in income. 

BONUS CONTENT: Darla and Natalie chat about the potential to launch another podcast! Don’t miss it!

• www.WingnutSocial.com

• www.curreyandcompany.com

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