The Business of Content with Simon Owens

Simon Owens
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  • مرتان في الأسبوع

The show about how publishers create, distribute, and monetize their digital content.

  1. قبل يوم واحد

    How an IMDB co-founder achieved three successful media exits

    My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   One day in the 1990s, Alan Jay received a surprising phone call at work from Jeff Bezos’s assistant, who said the Amazon founder wanted to meet with him during an upcoming trip to the UK. That meeting would eventually lead to Amazon acquiring IMDB, the movie database Alan had co-founded.   After the acquisition, Alan didn’t rest on his laurels; over the next two decades, he went on to co-found two other media companies – one in entertainment and the other sports – both of which had their own successful exits. In a recent interview, Alan told the origin story of IMDB, walked through how he built the two other media properties, and explained why it’s much harder to launch a media business today compared to 20 years ago.

    ١ س ١ د

  2. قبل ٦ أيام

    How a San Francisco print zine evolved into a thriving local blog

    My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   If Stuart Schuffman were in his early 20s today and building an independent media career, he’d probably be a TikTok influencer, but when he launched Broke Ass Stuart in the early 2000s, the natural medium was a print zine, one he printed out and stapled together himself. It was a San Francisco travel guide of sorts, and he trucked it all around the city and convinced coffee shops and bookstores to sell it on consignment. The zine was never a huge moneymaker, but it landed him a book deal, and from there it expanded into an online media brand that’s widely read by the city locals. In fact, Stuart can’t walk through the streets of San Francisco today without being recognized. In a recent interview, he told the Broke Ass Stuart origin story and explained how, bit by bit, it turned into a real business.

    ٣٧ من الدقائق

  3. ٨ أكتوبر

    How a government contractor built a media empire around his niche content

    My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   By the time Eric Coffie launched his YouTube channel in 2016, he was already one of the most successful federal government contractors in the US and employed an entire team that specialized in erecting steel buildings. The YouTube channel came out of his frustration of having to repeat the same advice over and over again to those wanting to break into the industry; he figured he could just record some video explainers and send them to people.   But the success of the channel led to him expanding into podcasts, and then before he knew it Eric was operating an entire media company that spanned across video, podcasts, online courses, coaching, events, and even a paid community.   In a recent interview, Eric explained how he found an audience by going extremely niche and why he wants to shut down most of his media revenue streams so he can regrow his contracting business.

    ٥٥ من الدقائق

  4. ٦ أكتوبر

    This local newsletter covering a Dallas suburb has the highest paid conversion rate on Substack

    My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   The Coppell Chronicle isn’t your average Substack newsletter. For one, the headlines are incredibly boring. Secondly, there’s really no free version of it, since every issue that’s sent out includes a paywall. But perhaps the most remarkable thing about it is that it’s managed to convert upwards of 40% of its email list into paid subscribers, which is a conversion rate at least 10 times higher than the average Substack newsletter. What’s more, its owner Dan Koller achieved all this while maintaining his full time job. In a recent interview, Dan explained how he launched the newsletter, why it took off in his Dallas suburb, and whether he thinks other wannabe local news entrepreneurs could copy his model.

    ٣٨ من الدقائق

  5. ٢٤ سبتمبر

    This former Amazon executive generates over $200,000 from a newsletter he sends just once a week

    My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   If you ask Dave Anderson what he does for a living, he’ll probably tell you he’s retired, but that’s not entirely true. While he did leave his last full-time job at Amazon back in 2020, he still writes a weekly newsletter on Substack about tech leadership. And even though he only works on the newsletter part time, it currently has over 2,000 paid subscribers. It turns out a lot of people want to tap into his insights gleaned from 20 years working in the tech industry, including over 10 at Amazon. In a recent interview, Dave discussed the newsletter’s origin story, how it found its audience, and why he doesn’t have any ambitions to scale it into a larger media company.

    ٥٥ من الدقائق

  6. ٢٢ سبتمبر

    Why a marketing consultant bought the largest real estate trade magazine in Canada

    My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   Andrew Fogliato never set out to be a marketing consultant. He was simply trying to succeed as a real estate agent and began creating local online content to promote his listings. His colleagues at RE/MAX quickly noticed that his marketing savvy gave him an edge, and soon he was training other agents across Canada. Eventually, he left RE/MAX to launch his own marketing agency, where he built a strong business helping agents run Facebook ads. In 2022, Andrew saw an even bigger opportunity. He purchased Real Estate Magazine, Canada’s largest industry trade publication, and immediately began expanding its online presence. In a recent interview, he discussed why he bought the magazine, his approach to monetization, and why he isn’t in a hurry to expand into the U.S. market.

    ٥١ من الدقائق

  7. ٣ سبتمبر

    How a professional sailing league built massive reach on YouTube and social media

    My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   SailGP is only a little over five years old, and yet the competitive sailing league has already built out a substantial fan base all across the world. Not only are its competitions broadcast on linear TV channels, it also produces an impressive amount of content that includes YouTube videos, social media clips, and podcasts. In 2022, it hired Melissa Lawton, a longtime sports broadcast producer, to run its content operations, and she’s invested heavily in everything from live streaming to highly-produced docuseries. In a recent interview, Melissa explained how SailGP’s media operations fit within its larger business and walked through her team’s approach to producing both shortform and longform content.

    ٥١ من الدقائق

  8. ٢٧ أغسطس

    This Stanford lecturer co-hosts one of the most popular design podcasts

    My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/   When Eli Woolery and Aarron Walter launched the Design Better podcast, they did it on behalf of InVision, a tech platform used by designers and other creatives. Aaron was the head of content at the company, and the goal of the podcast was to educate the designer community while also raising awareness of the InVision brand.   But when InVision decided to wind down its content operations, Eli and Aarron negotiated to take over Design Better, and now it’s a thriving standalone business. In a recent interview, Eli talked through everything from the evolving format of the show to how it became an independent media business to its current monetization models.

    ٣٧ من الدقائق
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The show about how publishers create, distribute, and monetize their digital content.

المعلومات

  • صناع العمل
    Simon Owens
  • سنوات النشاط
    ٢٠١٨ - ٢٠٢٥
  • الحلقات
    ٢٥٢
  • التقييم
    فاضح
  • حقوق النشر
    © Simon Owens 2025
  • موقع البرنامج على الويب
    The Business of Content with Simon Owens

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