Podcast
The Creator Spotlight Podcast
Hosted by Creator Spotlight · EN
Every week we spend an hour in conversation with a notable creator, discussing their approach to audience growth, monetization, and content production. Hosted by Francis Zierer (Twitter and LinkedIn). New episodes every Tuesday. This podcast is part of our newsletter, Creator Spotlight.
52episodes
Episodes
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Ep. 103: Building a newsletter to fight the algorithm ft. Matt Kiser
Mar 2400:59:27Tap to summarizeMatt Kiser is the creator and editor WTF Just Happened Today?, a political news newsletter with over 200,000 subscribers built entirely on a pay-what-you-want membership model. In this episode Matt breaks down how he grew from zero to 100,000 subscribers in six months, the editorial philosophy behind curating the news every day for nine years, and the biggest mistakes he made along the way.Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles__Matt KiserNewsletterLinkedInBlueskyGitHub__Timestamps00:00 Introducing Matt Kiser01:18 Zero to 100k in six months11:06 Building the skill of aggregation and curation17:41 The death of objectivity18:37 From 100k to 200k subscribers20:36 Don’t hate the media, become the media29:18 Transparency with the revenue model35:40 The AI podcast controversy46:46 Biggest mistakes and learning moments50:23 A deeper connection with the audience
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Ep. 103: Building a newsletter to fight the algorithm ft. Matt Kiser
Mar 2400:59:27Tap to summarizeMatt Kiser is the creator and editor WTF Just Happened Today, a political news newsletter with over 200,000 subscribers built entirely on a pay-what-you-want membership model. In this episode Matt breaks down how he grew from zero to 100,000 subscribers in six months, the editorial philosophy behind curating the news every day for nine years, and the biggest mistakes he made along the way. Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles __ Matt Kiser Newsletter LinkedIn Bluesky GitHub __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Matt Kiser 01:18 Zero to 100k in six months 11:06 Building the skill of aggregation and curation 17:41 The death of objectivity 18:37 From 100k to 200k subscribers 20:36 Don’t hate the media, become the media 29:18 Transparency with the revenue model 35:40 The AI podcast controversy 46:46 Biggest mistakes and learning moments 50:23 A deeper connection with the audience
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Ep. 102: The creator earning $200k+ posting on LinkedIn ft. Vin Matano
Mar 1700:58:57Tap to summarizeVin Matano is a B2B influencer marketing agency owner and part-time creator who made $200K as a creator and $2.5M through his agency Creator Buzz in 2025. In this episode, we get into how he lands and keeps long-term brand deals, his LinkedIn content strategy, and how he built Creatorbuzz from zero to $2.5M in its first full year.Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/p/vin-matano __Get started with Taplio for freeUse code: CREATOR1X1__Vin MatanoLinkedInYouTubeTwitter/XInstagramCreatorbuzz__Timestamps00:00 Introducing Vin Matano01:30 From $94k to $200k in one year05:32 Getting brand deals and overdelivering13:48 How many followers do you need for brand deals?20:10 Partnering brands with creators25:53 Making $2.5M in a year28:50 The challenges of being a new founder31:34 Getting leads with social media37:24 The three types of LinkedIn posts to go viral44:38 Debunking LinkedIn myths49:25 The third generation of B2B marketing54:12 Changing how success is measured
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Ep. 102: The creator earning $200k+ posting on LinkedIn ft. Vin Matano
Mar 1700:58:57Tap to summarizeVin Matano is a B2B influencer marketing agency owner and part-time creator who made $200K as a creator and $2.5M through his agency Creator Buzz in 2025. In this episode, we get into how he lands and keeps long-term brand deals, his LinkedIn content strategy, and how he built Creatorbuzz from zero to $2.5M in its first full year. Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/p/vin-matano __ Get started with Taplio for free Use code: CREATOR1X1 __ Vin Matano LinkedIn YouTube Twitter/X Instagram Creatorbuzz __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Vin Matano 01:30 From $94k to $200k in one year 05:32 Getting brand deals and overdelivering 13:48 How many followers do you need for brand deals? 20:10 Partnering brands with creators 25:53 Making $2.5M in a year 28:50 The challenges of being a new founder 31:34 Getting leads with social media 37:24 The three types of LinkedIn posts to go viral 44:38 Debunking LinkedIn myths 49:25 The third generation of B2B marketing 54:12 Changing how success is measured
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Ep. 101: Building a 70k+ subscriber newsletter by word of mouth ft. Rachel Meade Smith
Mar 1000:55:52Tap to summarizeRachel Meade Smith is the founder of Words of Mouth, a weekly newsletter focused on finding meaningful work. In this episode, we discuss how she built and monetised a values-driven newsletter to 72,000 subscribers over 10 years without ever running a single ad.Preorder Search Work now: https://orbooks.com/catalog/search-work/__Rachel Meade SmithWords of MouthWebsiteLinkedInInstagram Book__Timestamps00:00 Introducing Rachel Meade Smith and Words of Mouth01:38 10 years of values based curation07:17 Growing to 70k subscribers organically13:03 72% open rate, 22% clickthrough rate14:07 Monestizing while maintaining strong ethics20:07 4 ways the newsletter is monetized37:29 Developing beyond purely aggregation43:21 The art of aggregation, curation, and editing46:13 The process and expense of writing a book
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Ep. 101: Building a 70k+ subscriber newsletter by word of mouth ft. Rachel Meade Smith
Mar 1000:55:52Tap to summarizeRachel Meade Smith is the founder of Words of Mouth, a weekly newsletter focused on finding meaningful work. In this episode, we discuss how she built and monetised a values-driven newsletter to 72,000 subscribers over 10 years without ever running a single ad. Preorder Search Work now: https://orbooks.com/catalog/search-work/ __ Rachel Meade Smith Words of Mouth Website LinkedIn Instagram Book __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Rachel Meade Smith and Words of Mouth 01:38 10 years of values based curation 07:17 Growing to 70k subscribers organically 13:03 72% open rate, 22% clickthrough rate 14:07 Monestizing while maintaining strong ethics 20:07 4 ways the newsletter is monetized 37:29 Developing beyond purely aggregation 43:21 The art of aggregation, curation, and editing 46:13 The process and expense of writing a book
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Ep. 100: A $2.5M bet on quality food journalism ft. Caper
Mar 300:34:01Tap to summarizeCaper is a new media company covering the people, money, ambition, power and chaos that fuels the food world. In this episode we speak to Max Tcheyan, the co-founder and CEO, as well as three of the founding journalists. Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles __ Get 10,000 free monthly credits at Eleven Labs: https://elevenlabs.io/ __ Caper Newsletter Caper LinkedIn In this episode Max Emma Annie Chris __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Caper Media 01:00 The gap in the market 03:45 Who is the audience? 07:29 How equity changes journalism 15:46 Food journalism that makes a difference 23:46 Building a team of founders 26:30 The $2.5M bet 29:28 Doing something that matters
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Ep. 100: A $2.5M bet on quality food journalism ft. Caper
Mar 300:34:01Tap to summarizeCaper is a new media company covering the people, money, ambition, power and chaos that fuels the food world. In this episode we speak to Max Tcheyan, the co-founder and CEO, as well as three of the founding journalists.Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles__Get 10,000 free monthly credits at Eleven Labs: https://elevenlabs.io/__CaperNewsletterCaperLinkedInIn this episodeMaxEmmaAnnieChris__Timestamps00:00 Introducing Caper Media01:00 The gap in the market03:45 Who is the audience?07:29 How equity changes journalism15:46 Food journalism that makes a difference23:46 Building a team of founders26:30 The $2.5M bet29:28 Doing something that matters
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Ep. 99: How to build and sell to audiences online ft. Daniel Berk
Feb 2400:56:10Tap to summarizeDaniel Berk is beehiiv’s first sales hire-turned-strategist, cofounder of a local newsletter Palmetto Parents, and cohost of the Two Dads in Tech podcast. In this episode we discuss his journey from chaotic notebooks to 25,000 LinkedIn followers, how he helps creators and enterprise media businesses grow and monetize, and how to run a profitable newsletter and podcast. Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles __ Get started with Taplio for free at https://taplio.com/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=nl_creatorspotlight_0126_011526 Use code: CREATOR1X1 __ Daniel Berk LinkedIn Twitter/X Threads Podcast __ Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Daniel Berk 01:34 13 years of writing newsletters 05:25 The problem every creator and business has 11:13 Adapting to the AI driven web 14:24 Best and worst social media platforms 21:58 Why a big LinkedIn platform is so important 29:16 Making $60k with a podcast side-project 38:33 Building a community driven local newsletter 46:38 Outcome vs output driven creators 50:26 The value of writing every day
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Ep. 99: How to build and sell to audiences online ft. Daniel Berk
Feb 2400:56:10Tap to summarizeDaniel Berk is beehiiv’s first sales hire-turned-strategist, cofounder of a local newsletter Palmetto Parents, and cohost of the Two Dads in Tech podcast. In this episode we discuss his journey from chaotic notebooks to 25,000 LinkedIn followers, how he helps creators and enterprise media businesses grow and monetize, and how to run a profitable newsletter and podcast.Read the newsletter: https://www.creatorspotlight.com/profiles __Get started with Taplio for free at https://taplio.com/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=nl_creatorspotlight_0126_011526Use code: CREATOR1X1 __Daniel BerkLinkedInTwitter/XThreadsPodcast__Timestamps00:00 Introducing Daniel Berk01:34 13 years of writing newsletters05:25 The problem every creator and business has11:13 Adapting to the AI driven web14:24 Best and worst social media platforms21:58 Why a big LinkedIn platform is so important29:16 Making $60k with a podcast side-project38:33 Building a community driven local newsletter46:38 Outcome vs output driven creators50:26 The value of writing every day
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