Not Getting The Results You Want?
This might be why....
How to Get Sponsors Workshop
This is a Paid Workshop
When: Sunday, April 27 at 4:00 pm MTN/6:00 pm EST
Cost: $47 (replay will be available for 1 month)
Reserve your seat here
Paying Subscriber Coworking/ Q&A Days
I’m looking forward to our next paying subscriber co-working day. It cost only $8 a month or $76 for an annual subscription to gain access to behind the scenes perks.
This Monday, April 21, 2025 at 2:00 pm MTN/4:00 pm EST-Zoom link will be shared with paying subscribers Monday morning.
Monday, April 28, 2025 time TBA
Paying Subscriber Monetization Hot Seat
DM me via Substack to let me know if you would like to be the first person in the hot seat. We’ll do this “live”
How to Work With Brands Workshop
(All Subscribers-Free)
Tuesday, April 29th, 2025 at 6:00 pm MTN/8:00 pm EST (via Zoom) Zoom link will be sent closer to that date.
Affiliate Disclosure
“In order for me to support this newsletter, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. Please note: As an Amazon Associate I may earn income from qualifying purchases that you may make if you interact with an Amazon Affiliate link associated with Creators Getting Paid”
Oh, My Goodness it’s Quarter 2
Q1 (January-March) felt so freaking chaotic in some ways. There were things outside of my control (politics) and then there was the fact that I was in an 8 week podcasting fellowship.
Did you know that I also have a once a month radio show? Yep, there’s too much going on in my world.
As I go into Quarter 2, I’m reevaluating what is working and not working in my online brand and business-without judgement. I thought that I would share some decisions that I’m making with the hopes of amplifying reach, increasing brand visibility and to earn more money.
Change #1-Cut the (Business) Fluff
I mentioned that I have a once a month radio show that I’ve been working on for the past year. It’s a local show here in Colorado and I’m very thankful and excited about having the opportunity.
BUT, the time constraint (it had to be exactly 28 minutes) was driving me crazy. I also just wasn’t seeing the return that I was hoping for. I reached out to the team and thanked them for the opportunity and will be finishing that project sometime next week. I feel a huge weight lifted off of my shoulders. I was really beginning to resent that obligation.
Question(s): What obligations are you involved in that you’re not enjoying anymore? Is it time to let them go? What could you do with that freed up time?
The main producer was so kind and offered to give me a glowing reference-this truly made my day!
Change #2-AirMedia Fellowship Will Be Ending
For the past couple of months I’ve had a 2 hour meeting every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon from 2:00 pm-4:00 pm MTN. I’ve been in community with other incredible podcasters and have learned so much. In fact, I plan on writing a review of the program soon. That said, I’m looking to continue being in community with the other podcasters in my cohort-I am also VERY excited to have that time freed up. It was the equivalent of taking a college course.
My brain is tired.
Question: What obligation takes up A LOT of your time? What could you do if you had more time available to grow your brand?
Change #3-Spend More Time Marketing
I run a social media lite online brand. Which means that I prioritize social media last on my list as a way to market my brand. As I go into Q2 and Q3 I plan on focusing on marketing strategy leaning heavily on podcast guesting and a couple of other marketing activities.
What could this look like?
Podcast Guesting-I’m trying to decide what my interview goal will be for the rest of the year. I absolutely LOVE being a guest on podcasts and bringing my best to audiences who are new to me. I’m very excited about this area of focus. What do you think my podcast guesting goal will be? How do you think I’ll do this?
30 Podcasts
60 Podcasts
100 Podcasts?
A totally different number?
Focusing on content design with AI Search in mind-This one is notable because I actually do not use AI that often in my business. Maybe this could really be referred to as “Focusing on learning about AI Search” which is definitely an emerging area of online expertise.
Collaborations-I love working with and learning from other online content creators. I’m thinking about what collaborations would be fun to work on and how we could serve and excite our communities. The people that I’ve worked with and met have made the biggest impact on my brand. Period.
An Online Summit-I’m thinking about hosting an online summit in early September. There’s a specific topic that I would like to cover and I think it will be a fun challenge to work on.
Media mentions are also an important part of my brand strategy. I’m a member of the Colorado chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists so I have ongoing access to amazing journalists in my state.
Question: Are you marketing your work/products enough?
Change #4-Focus on Community
One of my absolute favorite things to do is to meet and hang out with Creators Getting Paid community members. I am inspired by you, energized and reminded to stay focus on my mission. In the past month I’ve gotten to hang out with
(Latinas in Podcasting) of Latinos GSD, Charles whose project I missed getting the name of his business and of Nosey AF to name just a few of the wonderful people that I’ve had a chance to be in community with “in real life”I really want to host local meetups.
For the past couple of years this has been on my mind. I’ve actually waited for someone else to do this in town. It still hasn’t happened in the way that I’m imagining-this is a sign that it’s time for me to implement my idea.
If this is you-noticing that there’s a gap in the market….that you may have a solution/resource/etc. that people are looking for.
Question: Are you connecting enough with your community?
Change #5-Content Design
Last night myself,
and Corey Gumbs of the talked about content design specific to our newsletters and then expanded the conversation to our overall brands. You can watch a replay of the livestream HERE. I apologize in advance for my tech issues, there was an aggressive weather change (snow was coming in) and it was affecting my cell service LOL!Here are some additional points that we didn’t get a chance to cover in the conversation but we didn’t have time to cover:
What are the results that you’re looking for?
Broaden impact
Expand awareness
Entertain people
And, of course, make more than enough money to have a financially healthy brand.
Question: Have you thought about content design as it relates to your goals?
31 Day Podcast Challenge
Angela recently completed a 28 day podcasting challenge in February. I’m very seriously thinking about doing this in MAY-yep, 2 weeks from today. I might be crazy, but I think it’s perfect timing for marketing my brand as we head into summer. In fact, I work A LOT during the summer months because my goal is to take mid-November through mid-January off. A lot of the success that I experience each year is connected to the hard work that I engage in during the summer months.
Quarter 2 is an Opportunity
If you didn’t meet the goals that you set for yourself for Q1-don’t feel badly about it. Especially if you’re in the US dealing with…all the stuff. Think of this as a time to start fresh and evaluate what has and has not been working.
Let us support you as you work towards your goals.
Happy Friday,
Michelle
A: 40 guest spots for thee this year yet