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#151 Austen Tosone recently celebrated working one year as a full-time content creator. She now has eight ongoing income streams and is launching an SEO masterclass. Her secret? Treating what some consider a hobby like the business it is. In this episode, I sit down with Austen and talk about everything from her background in the magazine industry to how she kept her content creation work going throughout the pandemic. Austen shares her advice for creators looking to transform their side hustle into a full-time job. She shares tips about batching content, when to create searchable vs algorithm-based content, missed opportunities she’s seeing from the brand side, and where she sees the creator economy going. If you want to turn your content into a profitable business, this is the episode for you.

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www.instagram.com/almostffamous

Show Notes:

Celebrating Austen’s first full year as a content creator! We dive into what led her to this point and what it was like being one of the original bloggers.
Austen shares the key strategies she learned working in the magazine industry that she applies to her content creation today.
The importance of learning how to be adaptable, flexible, and resilient in your career.
What does it take to tackle a career in social media?
How the pandemic suddenly changed Austen’s career plan and what she did to keep her content relevant as the world suddenly changed.
How Austen decided she was ready to make the leap into full-time content creation.
Diving into Austen’s eight income streams.
What is the content planning process like and does she focus on one platform over others?
The importance of creating both searchable and algorithm-based content.
Where does Austen see content creation going as an industry?
Missed opportunities for brands looking to work with creators.
What’s next for Austen? We talk about her new SEO masterclass and more.

Mentioned in this Episode:

Austen’s Website: https://austentosone.com/
Keep Calm and Chiffon: https://www.keepcalmandchiffon.com/
Austen’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/austentosone/
Austen’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/austentosone
Austen’s Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.ca/austentosone/_created/
Austen’s TikTok: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZML4KHLMj/

#150 This is a solo episode with yours truly and I’m talking about the steps I’m taking to prepare my business (and myself) for having a baby. I share my journey on hiring people, what the goal is by June 1st in terms of workload and how I’m hoping to never take back any of the work I’m delegating out. I share the other steps in my process right now including reviewing my current clients and firing the ones that aren’t aligning, making smaller to-do lists and changing my perspective on what it means to be productive.
www.instagram.com/almostffamous
www.instagram.com/poolsidedigital

Episode Description:

#149 With over 15k YouTube subscribers, Chris Jackson understands what it takes to grow a community on YouTube. In episode 149 of the Poolside Podcast, I talk with Chris about his experiences growing his channel, ‘Tiny Blue Games.’ Chris explains what he did to reach his first 1000 subscribers, four strategies to monetize a channel, which content types earn higher income, the importance of branding, and more. He gives actional tips to optimize your channel, including notes about thumbnails, titles, SEO, and the ‘About’ section. Chris explains the importance of paying attention to the right metrics to review your content and goes over how he does this on his channel. YouTube can be a challenging platform to grow on. If you’re looking to start, or grow, a channel, this episode is a great place to start.

Follow for more:

www.instagram.com/poolsidedigital
www.instagram.com/almostffamous

Show Notes:

Who is Chris and what kind of videos does he post on his channel, ‘Tiny Blue Games?’
How to use your side hobbies to build your career skill set.
Why did Chris decide to start a YouTube channel? And how does he maintain it while balancing a full-time job?
Chris’s keys to growth on YouTube and how to give back your time to your community.
What has Chris learned about personal branding since starting this channel?
How to manage creating videos your core audience loves vs ones that will get a greater reach.
Dealing with getting stuck in a niche of content.
Best practices for thumbnails, titles, SEO, and more.
If Chris started over, what would he do to build an audience in 2022?
How to make money on YouTube; 4 potential revenue streams.

Mentioned in this Episode:
Chris’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/TinyBlueGames
Message Chris for marketing support: cjackson@anstice.ca

Episode Description:

#148 As a 3x founder, content creator, and the CEO of Hermana Agency, Kayley Reed has been working deep in the creator economy for the last decade. In this episode, I talk with Kayley about her new tech startup, norm. A contact reader, pricing calculator, and more, norm. was built to empower creators to negotiate their worth in what is now a billion-dollar industry. Kayley and her team have been working tirelessly over the last year to find investors, build hype, and design the product their community needs. We talk about the problems norm. solves, how Kayley's team grew a waitlist of over 500 people, how norm. is keeping creators central to the business, and where Kayley sees influencer marketing going in the future. If you're a creator or a brand that hires creators, this episode is the perfect place to learn about the industry's new norm.

Follow for more:

www.instagram.com/poolsidedigital
www.instagram.com/almostffamous

Show Notes:

A bit of background on Kayley: Who she is, her journey in the influencer marketing world, and what she’s working on now.
How Kayley’s unique perspective in the influencer space allows her to see major gaps in the market.
What is norm. and what problems does it solve?
How Kayley is keeping creators at the centre of everything norm. does.
How did Kayley and her team make sure people would really want this product?
What strategies did Kayley and her team use to build fomo around norm.’s launch?
What’s it like to work with investors?
Where does Kayley see the influencer marketing industry going? Discussing the democratization of social media.
How can influencers decide which platforms to focus on?
How is Kayley juggling two businesses at the same time? How to transition from entrepreneur to business owner.

Mentioned in this Episode:

norm.: https://www.itsnorm.ai/
norm. on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsnorm.ai/
Kayley’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kayley.e.r/
Hermana Agency: https://www.instagram.com/hermana.agency/
Andie’s TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andoej?lang=en

#147 When your whole life suddenly changes, how do you find the energy to prioritize yourself? In episode 147 of the Poolside Podcast, nutrition and fitness coach, Michelle McGrattan, talks about how she pulled herself out of a hard time by staying true to her own advice, 'The Michelle Method.' Michelle has been on the podcast twice before, and we had a ton to catch up on. Michelle talks about everything from her divorce, moving across the country, and her new role at Barre Belle Toronto, to motherhood, boundaries, and social media. We dive into handling criticism on social media, the importance of community, and how to get through bad days. This episode is a great reminder that, even through tough times, taking care of yourself is number one.

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www.instagram.com/poolsidedigital
www.instagram.com/almostffamous

Show Notes:
Michelle dives into her background, the ‘Michelle Method,’ her role at Barre Belle Toronto, and her passion for nutrition and fitness.
How to connect with what motivates you on social media.
Pulling yourself out bad days through connection and community online.
Michelle’s wake up calls for living a healthier lifestyle and what originally got her interested in nutrition.
Dealing with self doubt on social media. How to stop comparing, share authentically, and make room for everyone at the table.
How Michelle’s mindset and perspective on life have changed over the last few years.
Divorce, moving cities, and business changes; how community got Michelle through the hard times.
Diving into Michelle’s morning routine.
The tools and routines Michelle recommends to slow down and listen to your body.
Balancing business and a baby; how setting firm boundaries has helped Michelle stay on top of her priorities.

Mentioned in this Episode:
Michelle’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellemethod/
Barre Belle: https://www.barrebelle.ca/

#146 What’s working and what needs to evolve in the influencer marketing space? In this episode, I talk with Kristen Novak, founder of WILD Public Relations, about what it’s like to run a PR agency in 2022. We dive into what brands are looking for from influencers, what it’s been like working in PR over these past couple of years, and Kristen’s own experiences running a business while becoming a mother. We talk about the importance of finding your niche as a content creator, the mental health struggles many influencers face, and where the industries might be going in the future. This episode gives influencers and content creators a peek behind the curtain into the needs and expectations of public relations firms and brands.

Follow for more:

www.instagram.com/poolsidedigital
www.instagram.com/almostffamous

Show Notes:

Kristen dives into why she founded WILD Public Relations, the negative connotations associated with “agencies,” and what she was doing before she started WILD.
What exactly is PR and how is it different from marketing?
Would Kristen do anything differently if she could start over with WILD?
What’s it like to run a business as a new mom? Kristen’s tips and personal mental health journey.
Kristen’s favourite projects she’s worked on and what she loves about running her own business.
How has WILD managed to adapt throughout all the shutdowns these past couple years? Plus, what it’s like for PR agencies to be able to run events again.
Diving into influencer marketing: What’s working, what needs to evolve, and what are brands looking to see?
The importance of choosing a niche for your content creation.
What types of content is Kristen tired of seeing? Discussing authentic content versus following trends.
How does WILD sort through and choose influencers to work with?
Where does Kristen see influencer marketing and PR going in the future?
Addressing mental health concerns in the influencer marketing space.
Does Kristen have plans to open another business?

Mentioned in this Episode:

WILD Public Relations: https://wildpr.ca/
WILD Public Relations on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wild.pr/