Episodes

  • Ep. 94: 15 years of social media strategy advice in one hour ft. Jack Appleby

    Ep. 94: 15 years of social media strategy advice in one hour ft. Jack Appleby
    Jan 20 2026
    Jack Appleby is a marketing strategist and creator with over 15 years in the industry. In this episode, we break down why most brand content fails, why trends don’t matter, and how creators can build audiences people actually root for. __ Get started for free at https://taplio.com Use code: CREATOR1X1 __ Jack Appleby Newsletter LinkedIn Twitter/X Instagram How to Hoop Forever YouTube Instagram TikTok Francis Zierer LinkedIn Twitter/X __ Timestamp 00:00 Introducing Jack Appleby 01:05 Social media is not marketing 05:30 Making $9,500 in a month on TikTok 09:36 Investing in a series that loses money 13:13 You don’t need production quality, you need story 15:31 Revenue streams as a marketer 18:16 The need for strong opinions online 26:21 Creating a story through short form video 30:49 Building a newsletter to 80k subscribers 36:05 Hiring a manager 44:42 How to make a $50k course 51:40 The need for better content in 2026
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    58 mins
  • Ep. 93: He’s building a $10M+ creator business ft. Kallaway

    Ep. 93: He’s building a $10M+ creator business ft. Kallaway
    Jan 13 2026
    This week we’re joined by Kallaway, a creator and operator building a profitable media business by treating content like a system. In this episode, we break down how he thinks about distribution, YouTube packaging, short-form frameworks, and turning attention into a scalable, $1M-per-month business. __ Kallaway Sandcastles YouTube Instagram TikTok LinkedIn Website __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Kallaway 01:05 The $1M/month content machine 10:01 Bringing a consultant mindset to content creation 15:09 Treating content like a science 20:29 Long form video production process 26:22 Replicating your past successes 34:02 How rapping helps you be a better YouTube 38:05 Short form video production process 41:24 De-risking your failure in short form video 47:43 Creating content without being a creator
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    51 mins
  • Ep. 92: Creator economy lawyer reveals every creators’ biggest mistakes ft. Brittany Ratelle

    Ep. 92: Creator economy lawyer reveals every creators’ biggest mistakes ft. Brittany Ratelle
    Jan 6 2026
    This week on Creator Spotlight we’re joined by Brittany Ratelle, a lawyer specializing in helping creators, creatives and online entrepreneurs cut through the overwhelm of getting their business legally legit. In this episode she breaks down the most common legal mistakes creators make, from brand deals and contracts, to hiring and platform risk. __ Brittany Ratelle Website LinkedIn Instagram YouTube Francis Zierer LinkedIn Twitter/X __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Brittany Ratelle 01:26 Biggest red flags in brand deal contracts 10:15 Avoid these contract mistakes 16:06 When should creators become a business 20:17 When is reaction content and remixing IP theft? 26:12 The only way to actually own your audience 33:44 How to write a contract as a creator 37:45 Hiring as a creator 42:37 Most common mistakes creators make, legally 45:10 What’s changing for creators in 2026
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    54 mins
  • Ep. 91: Three predictions for the creator economy in 2026 ft. Creator Spotlight Team

    Ep. 91: Three predictions for the creator economy in 2026 ft. Creator Spotlight Team
    Dec 30 2025
    This week, Francis is joined by the rest of the Creator Spotlight team — Assistant Editor Natalia and Podcast Producer Tom — to reflect on the biggest creator economy themes from a year of interviews and share their predictions for 2026 __ Francis Zierer LinkedIn Twitter/X Natalia Pérez-Gonzalez LinkedIn Twitter Tom McCloud LinkedIn Twitter __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Tom and Natalia 01:30 How to use serialized content in 2026 10:10 Changing our perspective of the creator economy 11:50 Our best piece of 2025 Our 2026 Predictions 15:13 Francis: In-person is the future 20:28 Tom: Podcasts are dying 27:30 Natalia: Short-term creator partnerships Themes of 2025 29:10 Building strong parasocial connections
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    35 mins
  • Fixing the Biggest Problem in the Creator Economy… Trust ft. News Creator Corps

    Fixing the Biggest Problem in the Creator Economy… Trust ft. News Creator Corps
    Dec 23 2025
    This week on Creator Spotlight we’re joined by the team from News Creator Corps. We break down what creators can learn from journalism — from fact-checking and sourcing to handling mistakes publicly. A conversation about fixing trust, misinformation, and credibility in the creator economy. Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles __ Earn with Google AdSense: https://goo.gle/earnwithadsense __ News Creator Corps Apply for the Spring 2026 Fellowship: https://newscreatorcorps.org/apply/ Rachel Lobdell Katie Grossbard Danielle Desir Corbett __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing News Creator Corps and the guests 07:40 The type of creator that’s NCC focus 13:31 Transferring conservative journalistic value to content creation 16:20 The eight lessons journalists can teach creators 23:42 The values of a diverse cohort 29:05 Finding your own guild 33:55 Trust and monetization in the creator economy 35:36 Teaching instantly applicable lessons 43:05 Building a recognised trusted reputation 46:38 Misconceptions of news creators 51:00 Fighting against the slop and misinformation 01:00:22 How NCC is helping creators
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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • Newsletters + Events = 6-figure creator business ft. Brett Dashevsky

    Newsletters + Events = 6-figure creator business ft. Brett Dashevsky
    Dec 16 2025
    Brett Dashevsky is the founder of Creator Economy NYC, where he’s built a six-figure business by consistently creating content, growing a newsletter, and hosting events for creators. In this episode, Brett breaks down how newsletters and in-person events compound together to build audience, trust, and a sustainable creator business. __ Brett Dashevsky Newsletter Creator Economy NYC LinkedIn Twitter/X Instagram Francis Zierer LinkedIn Twitter/X __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Brett Dashevsky 01:16 Biggest challenges growing a newsletter from scratch 07:00 Scaling multiple newsletters to the masses 12:44 A community built out of passion 20:00 Why consistency always wins 26:21 Building something bigger than himself 29:33 The best advice for creators 33:56 Revenue breakdown 36:19 How hosting events makes money 42:41 Securing long term deals with brands 48:33 Defining the digital economy 50:52 Event cost and attendance 56:36 Building tools for creators
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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • How to build a local newsletter people actually read ft. Tomo Chien

    How to build a local newsletter people actually read ft. Tomo Chien
    Dec 9 2025
    This week on Creator Spotlight we’re joined by Tomo Chien, the founder and editor of ‘Morning, Trojan’, a newsletter aimed at engaging USC students with local news. He highlights the competitive landscape of student publications, the importance of original reporting, and the strategies used to grow the audience. Read the newsletter __ Earn with Google AdSense: https://goo.gle/earnwithadsense __ Tomo Chien Morning, Trojan LinkedIn Twitter/X Francis Zierer LinkedIn Twitter/X __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Tomo Chien 01:08 Disrupting the local media scene 05:10 The freedom to be controversial 08:57 The one change that brought 10k subscribers 14:30 Finding the stories people want to read 20:02 How long does aggregating content take? 25:02 Tomo’s high school news project 28:55 Why he’s shutting down the newsletter 32:22 Future plans after the newsletter 37:28 Defining creator journalism
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    44 mins
  • He’ll teach you how to make $100k+ writing online ft. Nicolas Cole

    He’ll teach you how to make $100k+ writing online ft. Nicolas Cole
    Dec 2 2025
    This week on The Creator Spotlight Podcast we’re joined by digital writer, author, and serial writing entrepreneur Nicolas Cole. Nicolas is the co-founder of a $600K+ per month online writing education business. He shares the principles, systems, and mindset shifts that turned simple online writing into a scalable company. __ Nicolas Cole Website LinkedIn Twitter/X Instagram YouTube Francis Zierer LinkedIn Twitter/X __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Nicolas Cole 05:23 Scaling to $600k+/month 12:00 Growing an educational product 17:15 The demand for ghostwriting in 2025 28:04 The hardest part of scaling a business 35:05 How to never run out of content 40:05 Rejecting the ‘artist vs entrepreneur’ dichotomy 50:00 How to earn more as a creator 55:27 Education with accountability 57:15 New rules for writing online in 2026
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    1 hr and 4 mins