February 2, 2025 • 33 mins
Join us in this empowering episode where we dive into the transformative world of content creation with the innovative team from KiteSite. Discover how a simple TikTok interaction led to a partnership that's revolutionising the user-generated content (UGC) landscape for creators, especially entrepreneurial women over 40.
In This Episode, You'll Learn:
- The KiteSite Journey: How KiteSite's tools help creators streamline operations and maximize earnings.
- Personal Branding Mastery: Kristen discusses her journey post-motherhood, emphasizing the importance of authenticity in personal branding and its impact on the UGC market.
- Demystifying Market Saturation: We explore the untapped potential of creators over 40, encouraging them to embrace their unique perspectives.
- AI in Content Creation: Insights into how artificial intelligence can complement the human touch in content creation.
- Practical Creator Strategies: From negotiation tactics to pricing, learn how to maintain engagement and effectively monetize your content.
Whether you're just starting out or looking to enhance your content creation strategy, this episode is filled with actionable advice, inspiring stories from the High Five Collective community, and expert insights to guide you towards a successful and sustainable creative career. Tune in to learn how to leverage your passion into a thriving career with minimal administrative hassle.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Okey-dokey.
(00:00):
Today is a little bit of adifferent episode.
We were interviewed on the UGCpodcast with the guys from
Kitesite, which was reallyexciting for us.
We have been following alongand kind of not working
alongside but hanging out withthe guys from Kitesite.
They have done an incrediblejob.
They're actually the foundersof Creative Flow Australian UGC
platform and from there they sawa problem where UGC content
(00:22):
creators the biggest part of thejob if you are a UGC content
creator you may know this is theadmin, the back and forth, the
toing and froing from brands,the getting paid, the adding up
sales all the things that areinvolved in a UGC content
creator's journey.
Now they saw that as being abit of a problem, something that
slows content creators down togetting paid and getting more
jobs.
So they've designed KiteSite.
(00:42):
They're absolutely amazing.
We've used it a couple of timesand it's been phenomenal.
It's got a great affiliateprogram.
The big vision for the boys isabout building KiteSite, a tool
designed to maximize creators'earnings by cutting down unpaid
work, and that means so much tocontent creators.
It can help creators get branddeals, get paid upfront, secure
(01:03):
more retainer jobs, and that isstability, it's consistency and
it's real income.
So, anyway, we had a chat withthe boys today.
They asked us questions aroundour community, around personal
branding, about building yourUGC journey.
So we're going to jump right oninto it because we had an
absolute blast.
All right, let's go.
Are you ready to master the artof creating content that
converts?
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Hey, I'm Mia, a mom of two who went from being a
burnt out ambo to six-figurecontent creator in less than a
year, all while navigating alate ADHD diagnosis.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
And I'm Kristen, also a mom of two and a former
corporate branding queen turnedentrepreneur.
My dyslexic brain seesmarketing very differently and
that's my superpower, andtogether we're showing women
like you, how to master videomarketing and create content
that generates income.
Whether you're just startingout or ready to scale.
We are breaking down everythingfrom landing brand deals to
building your own empire.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
Welcome to.
I Am that Content Creatorpodcast where we turn scroll
stopping content into seriousincome.
No filters, no fluff, just realstrategies from two neuro
divergent mums who get it.
So let's turn your phone into avideo marketing machine and
let's go, let's go, guys, beprofessional guys.
Oh my God, good, good, good,I'm sure done.
(02:13):
I'm excited to be here and talkall things UGC.
We talk about it all day, everyday.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
Yeah, we've been in contact for, I think, well over
a year now.
Yeah, and see what you guys arebuilding while we've been
building KiteSite as well.
Firstly, I'd just love to askyou guys how did you both meet
each other and join up forces tocreate this awesome community?
Speaker 1 (02:35):
I'll lead this one because it starts with me that I
love a cheeky DM.
I love jumping in with a voicenote and I've been following Mia
for ages on TikTok and justreally resonated with her her
personal brand, the way that sheshared her stories and we kind
of.
I could see from my point ofview which is brand and
marketing and personal brandingthat there was this misalignment
(02:56):
between all these new creatorscoming on that were trying to
build a financial stabilitythrough UGC or affiliate
marketing and that's kind ofwhat Mia was doing.
But they were missing this linkthat I could bring, which was
around personal branding andbusiness branding and marketing.
And I could see Mia and Iactually asked her to be on my
original podcast as well.
So we had a few littlecommunications and all of a
(03:17):
sudden I jumped in her DMs and Iwas like right, I've had an
idea.
I'm just going to put it out tothe universe.
This might be really weird andrandom and like not your thing,
but I think we need to create acourse or something that teaches
people how to marry UGC,affiliate marketing, brand and
marketing and build likerockstar personal brands,
understand how they're going tobuild their own business online
(03:37):
and make money and all that.
And I sent that to her and Iwas like okay, and then
instantly, I think in one of ourcarousel posts on our Instagram
actually we've got the realvoice note that happened and
like her message straight backwas like I didn't even need to
listen to this and I was in.
I was like ah, and it literallyjust started Like we've never
actually met in person.
It's going to happen in 2025,people.
It's going to happen, it has to.
(03:58):
But we've since been Slackchatting basically every day.
We're basically a marriedcouple that Slack chat every
single day.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Yeah, we're basically the same person.
We're the same person.
Our kids are the same age, ourpartners are the same name.
We think exactly the same, soit's been a match made in heaven
.
Yeah, and yeah, yeah,everything.
And our partners are the sameperson too Like what the hell.
But it's amazing what you cando and who you can meet through
TikTok and this whole contentcreation world, so it's been
(04:28):
pretty cool.
That's awesome.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
And before you guys started this community, were you
both doing UGC on the sidepart-time, or were you full-time
, or what was the deal?
Speaker 2 (04:38):
Yeah, so my story is a little bit random.
I was a full-time paramedic.
I had babies and I was onmaternity leave and I was that
desperate not to go back to workand I had no plan B and I just
quit one day like shit, okay,I've got to find something to do
.
And I was just randomlyscrolling on TikTok and I saw
this guy in the US talk aboutUGC.
(04:59):
I think that's about threeyears ago now, so when it was
just starting to hype up wasn'treally a thing in Australia yet
and I thought you know what,I've got nothing to lose.
So I just jumped on it and Iended up replacing my wage in
six weeks of doing UGC.
I was like, okay, holy shit,this is something, I'm just
going to go with it.
And we were able to selleverything, jump in a caravan,
(05:20):
travel around Australia and UGCfunded our whole entire trip.
So that was the start of myjourney and I, you know, as
creators do you bring affiliatemarketing into things, digital
products and it kind of justsnowballed into what we've got
today with the High PubCollective.
So I was a full-time UGCcreator, yeah, for a good while,
and I still do it today.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
Amazing.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
And how about you?
Well, my story is polaropposite in terms of I was in a
corporate career for 10 years.
I came out of uni, walkedstraight into a corporate career
as a graphic designer and thenI moved into the brand marketing
campaigns team.
So I moved up the ranks andthen, after about 10 years of
being in that corporate career,I was made redundant.
And it was one of those momentswhere I was like, oh well, what
(06:02):
do I do now?
And I had that thing in theback of your head.
That's like no one's going tohire me, I'm no good, Nobody
wants me, even though I'd builtan incredible career and done
some incredible things.
But you know, the impostersyndrome hits and I remember
getting a phone call from a goodfriend that was like, hey, do
you want to do some design forme?
And I was like, yeah, sure.
So I did that, I moved intothat and then, all of a sudden,
(06:25):
I set up my business.
I started brand and marketingconsultancy and so I went and I
did that.
I also started a project calledthe Own it Project, which is
working with young women aroundtheir confidence and their
personal brand and building thatresilience within them.
But I've always had this likejust this pull to women and now
moms certainly women 40 plus inthis space that want to do
(06:48):
something and be something butfeel like they can't do it, and
my passion is to help them, showthem that they can do it and
build a personal brand onlineand what that means to them.
So I kind of started there andwithout even I mean I've done
affiliate marketing, I've doneUGC, without ever doing it as
such, because that's just howyou build a personal brand is
building something that you cansell anything, basically if
(07:09):
you're trustworthy, authenticand you can connect with people
on a level that is true and real.
And so, yeah, then when I metMia and those stories aligned
like I just started my businessonline and it just grew.
I did consultancy, I worked fordifferent companies with brand
and marketing and design andpersonal branding, and stories
align Like I just started mybusiness online and it just grew
.
I did consultancy, I did, Iworked for different companies
(07:30):
with brand and marketing anddesign and personal branding,
and then this just happened andit just beautifully amalgamated
into what we have now, whichstill blows my mind that we've
created this and are workingwith hundreds and thousands of
women that just now get to dowhat we can show them what to do
Like it's really really cool.
So my story is very differentthat I came from that background
, but then Mia's story hashelped me see what is possible
(07:51):
and how to make it possiblequickly for women.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
I think that's what I love the most With UGC and
you're doing a lot of branddeals along your way too.
But I've sort of gotten herinto the real UGC, like doing
the UGC ads for brands too,because it's so much fun, you
get so creative and it's just anice supplement to your income
as well, and it's nicely paid.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Like I used to do it for free and now I get paid, I'm
like, oh, that's heaps more funthan doing it for free.
Just a bit.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
And Kristen, you mentioned that you're really
passionate about helping, likethe women that are sort of 40 or
older.
How have you guys gone abouttargeting and attracting that
particular demographic with yourcommunity?
Speaker 1 (08:29):
I think there's a few things I think for me
personally.
I remember when I had abusiness the Own it Project and
that was all going beautifully,and then I became a mum and I
was like, I'm still going to beable to do it.
I'm going to do everything Ican do now.
And then you have your baby andand then all of a sudden you
realize that you're not ascapable, but you don't have the
time, the headspace and all ofthat.
(08:49):
So that's where that businessdidn't slip away, but that's
where it changed.
And so I think in that changing, you become somebody different.
You can share those stories andagain it's becoming authentic
with sharing your story and yourjourney for connection.
And as soon as you start doingthat, people become magnetic to
(09:10):
you because they see themselvesin you and they align with you
and they go oh, that's me.
Or oh, wow, she's doing thatand I've I've just had a baby
and she can do that.
Or you know me, as, for example, her traveling in the caravan
oh, she's traveling in a caravanand she's getting paid for UGC,
like for me.
We're attracting the peoplethat that need us in that moment
because they're scrolling onInstagram.
They're in that potentiallydesperate state that we've been
(09:32):
in, or that I know women can bein, where Mia and I don't want
to go back to nine to five, likewe were not built for nine to
five.
We're a little Euro spicy We'vegot potentially 80, 80.
Yeah, nobody's telling me whatto do.
I will tell me what to do Me,and I can tell each other what
to do, but I don't want a boss.
And so there's.
We know that, when you become amother, a lot of women, if
(09:54):
you've got that little bit ofentrepreneurial spirit, a little
bit of neuro spicy, a littlebit of don't tell me what to do,
you're looking for a solutionto pay the bills.
You're looking for a way tomake an income so that you don't
have to send your kids tochildcare for five days a week,
so that you can still supportyour family, but you're not
having to kind of navigate thisspace of motherhood.
(10:14):
And so for us, if you speakauthentically about your journey
in this online space, you willattract the right person, and
that's basically what a personalbrand is, and basically what
we've done to build thataudience is speak exactly to
their pain points, tell themthat we can help them, show them
how, and then give them thetools inside our community to
(10:36):
actually achieve that, so thatthey're not running blind.
They've got the playbook of howto become successful at UGC and
beyond if they choose to gothat far.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
Yeah, and some of our best creators inside our
community are in their fortiesand fifties and sixties, so it's
just proof that age is itdoesn't matter, with UGC that's
awesome.
Speaker 3 (10:55):
In fact, maybe it's even an advantage to be, you
know, the usual creator at 20years old, because there's so
many of them.
Absolutely, yep, exactly.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Absolutely, and the you know.
The other part of that I thinkthat's important just to touch
on is women, probably 35 plus,but certainly 40s, or we are
usually the buyer in thehousehold.
So we will buy the products.
We will, you know, see theadvertising and we need to see
ourselves in the person we'rebuying from, because people buy
from people.
So that's where the whole inthe UGC space, this age really
(11:26):
does matter, because sometimeswe've got maybe the income or,
you know, we've certainly gotthat connection that people are
looking for.
So I think that's part of howwe've built our community.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
Yeah, makes total sense.
And, Mia, you mentioned earlierin the podcast that you were
just completely crushing itreally quickly when you started
your university journey.
Do you think there's still thatsame opportunity to start up
and get going and win a bunch ofdeals?
Yeah, more competition now.
Speaker 2 (11:58):
Absolutely.
I think it comes down to youknow, like we talked before your
personal brand and how mucheffort you put in.
Comes down to you know, like wetalked before, your personal
brand and how much effort youput in.
But I mean, even though I gotreally successful early on, when
it was sort of just becoming abig thing, and now there seems
to be lots and lots of UGCcreators, even back then there
was people saying it's saturated, there's too many UGC creators,
(12:19):
but there's not Every brand.
When you think about it, everysingle brand needs content and
that content tires and then theyneed more content and more
content and more content.
So you know, we've got umcreators in our membership who
are doing four or five, four tofive figure months consistently
(12:40):
and it's just changing theirlife.
There's, there's enough foreveryone and it's still yeah,
still going hard.
Yeah, that's really cooleveryone.
And it's still yeah, stillgoing hard.
Speaker 3 (12:45):
Yep, that's really cool.
Okay, now let's get into thecontent creation side of
monetization.
What are the biggest mistakesthat you see your students make?
Or just new creators in general?
Yeah, when they get started.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
I think for our members, it's overthinking it,
just getting too caught up inyour head, overthinking things
instead of just taking messyaction.
And that's why UGC is abeautiful thing for beginners,
because you can actually getpaid and get a lot of jobs as a
beginner without being polished,have really great editing Like.
(13:18):
Brands want this realness, thiscontent that isn't super
overthought.
And I think that's where a lotof creators go wrong.
They think that, yeah, theycan't do it.
Something's wrong with them.
Should I do this or should I dothat, when really you've just
got to get yourself out thereand just do it messy action.
Speaker 3 (13:35):
Yeah, that makes total sense.
I spoke with a creator.
I've been speaking with heapsof creators over the last six
months.
I've had probably 20 phonecalls just this week with
creators, zoom calls, and it'sjust fascinating to see, like
the variance in pricing.
So I spoke to one creator andthey're charging $1,000 or more
a video this week one that'scharging $15 US.
(14:00):
Wow, that kind of broke myheart that she was charging like
so little.
Yeah, I was like, please, likeminimum $100.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Yeah, oh, minimum yeah.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
But how do you like?
Do you find that that's a bigthing, that people don't value
their work and they underchargejust because they're so keen to
lock in a?
Speaker 2 (14:19):
deal.
Yeah, yeah, and definitely whenyou're first starting out,
there is that imposter syndrome.
You're not used to chargingthese brands money and until you
sort of sit down and figure out, okay, this actually takes me
quite a while to do and I'vejust charged $100 for a video
and I've just, you know, youjust have made bugger all money.
It can take a little while tobuild up that confidence and
(14:41):
just be like made bugger allmoney.
It can take a little while tobuild up that confidence and
just be like you know what?
No, I am charging 500 bucks or800 bucks for that video because
this is my time and my contentis super valuable to these
brands.
And look, there's a lot ofbrands out there that will take
new careers for a ride, gettingcontent for nothing or unlimited
usage rights and all this stuff.
But it's a learning process andI think every UDC creator
(15:04):
starts out the same not knowingwhat to charge or, you know,
second-guessing themselves.
But if you're confident in yourpricing, then nine times out of
ten, the brand is going to feelthat and pick it up and be like
, okay, she knows what she'sdoing, she's confident in her
pricing, let's go with that.
So, yeah, it is sad to see youknow creators doing a lot of
work for nothing and sometimesyou do do that in the start to
(15:27):
build up your portfolio and yourconfidence.
But yeah.
I've been raising my pricespretty regularly this whole
entire time and I've neverreally had much pushback Awesome
.
Speaker 3 (15:36):
Cool and you focus on building magnetic personal
brands in the High PipeCollective community.
What are the key elements thatmake a creator stand out to
brands?
Speaker 1 (15:47):
I think like the biggest thing is it's the
confidence to show up on cameraLike it's that scroll stopping
something about you.
And that usually comes with afeeling, like if you can make
somebody feel something whenthey see your content, that is a
powerful personal brand and itcan come from the way you dress.
(16:07):
Like I'm really big on.
You know, mia and I have ouryellow and our pink jackets and
we've had that from the get go.
That's part of our branding andit becomes something that when
you put that on, you feeldifferently.
Like Mia and I have donepodcasts where we've been in
jumpers and whatever and that'scool.
And then the second we've putthe jacket on.
It's a mental shift and I'mreally big on dressing how you
(16:27):
need to feel and it can soundvery superficial but at the same
time, if you practice that, youwill see a change and so little
things like that can bring anenergy to the screen.
They can bring a magnetism tothe screen.
They can bring that scrollstopping something, that
someone's going through yourcontent and all of a sudden
they're like, oh, that's thatcreative.
So it really does become abouta feeling and I think that
(16:53):
people often think with apersonal brand.
It's got to be the way youdress, it's got to be the way
you show up all the time and itdoes.
But it's more about youbringing a feeling to the screen
.
And if you stop right now,whatever you're doing in podcast
land, and think about a contentcreator or somebody that you
know on your feed, there'ssomething about them you
remember.
Like, right now, if I ask yousomeone, I bet someone pops into
(17:15):
your head.
It might be what they wear, itmight be what they say, it might
be how they put their contenton the screen, but there will be
someone.
And so it's really important.
When you're a content creatorand you're thinking about, okay,
well, how do I build a personalbrand and become magnetic to
brands, you need to think aboutthat person that you've just
thought about.
What makes you stop, what makesyou remember them?
(17:37):
Because brands notice and youknow, coming from brand and
marketing, I've worked oncampaigns at hundreds of
thousands of dollars adcampaigns and you sit down, you
analyze scripting and youanalyze all of those things and,
at the end of the day, nomatter what, it comes back to
how you've made somebody feel,and that can be color choices,
(17:57):
it can be lighting, it can bereally subtle things that can
make the biggest amount ofdifference.
So, as a content creator,practicing that is so important
and that means hitting recordand publishing content
constantly until you feel socomfortable and confident that
it's kind of brands will come toyou because they see your
(18:20):
content and they can feel yourenergy, they can see that you're
capable and confident.
And the only way that isachievable is by hitting record.
And, like Mia and I will tellyou, you can dispute that a
million times over, but I callBS.
If you're not hitting record,you're not getting better.
It's confidence is a muscletrain, the damn muscle, and
(18:47):
that's what we do inside ourcommunity is.
You know, we're certainlyspeaking to women 40 plus and
sometimes those women are reallyconfident in themselves but
really really not confident atall because they've lived a life
and they've.
They're looking at these 20year olds who are beautiful and
fresh and thinking I can't dothat.
I'm too old, you know, I've gotwrinkles, I've got.
I don't dress up for the camera, I don't put makeup on.
That doesn't make an ounce ofdifference.
Show up, create content, getbetter and better, and that
that's the magic sauce, likereally nothing else is but you
(19:09):
just continuing to create andfind something that works for
you.
Don't copy, never copy.
You've got your own something.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
You just got to find it and shine a light on it and
we do a lot of things inside ourmembership not just UGC, but we
do, you know, branding, digitalproducts, all that sort of
stuff and sometimes members willcome in not expecting to do UGC
.
But the minute that they do itand they learn the fundamentals
and they start getting thesebrand deals, their confidence
just skyrockets.
(19:36):
Because when you've got a brandpaying you money to create
content and you have to show upand you have to make it good and
you have to do the editing andall that sort of stuff, it
trickles into your own contentand we just see it before our
eyes, just going holy shit, theyhave improved so so much since
starting UGC.
That's awesome, yeah track abit.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
I'd love just to hear from you guys about where
you're getting your clients from, and both for the community but
also for your personal UGC.
What's your best channels toacquire new customers?
Speaker 2 (20:11):
Yeah, so I don't pitch.
I haven't pitched at all Well,maybe here and there over the
years, but I really focus on mypersonal brand and being
discovered by brands on TikTokand Instagram, so they just land
in my inbox whenever and youknow I haven't had to actually
go and chase the work, which hasbeen really really nice, but
(20:32):
how has that happened for you,mia, to help somebody that's
thinking now Like how has thatbeen the secret sauce for you?
So I think for me it's just beencreating a lot of content,
building my own personal brand.
When I first started out, I didcreate a UGC only account where
that's all I did and that's allI talked about, which I think
did help me in the beginning,because it was a big banner to
(20:53):
say I do UGC, so brands werecontacting me that way.
But when I pivoted into youknow more of my own personal
brand and stopped talkingspecifically about UGC, I still
had brands coming to me becausethey could see me show up
constantly, they could see mytype of content, they could see
you know my personality and youknow, as my audience grew, I got
(21:16):
brand deals so they wantedcontent posted on my page as
well.
But I think it was just me andmy personal brand that attracted
all those jobs over the years?
Speaker 3 (21:24):
Can you speak about posting consistently and
constantly showing up?
Is that once a day you'reputting something out there, or
is it what's sort of the cadence?
Speaker 2 (21:33):
Like to say to people consistently means you've got
to post two, three times everysingle day.
I go through waves, especiallyas a mum, but consistency to me
looks like.
Over three years I've shown upregularly online and built an
audience and I haven't really,you know, gone viral many times.
(21:55):
It's not about the numbers orthe metrics I've had pretty low
following counts for most ofthis time but it's just that
genuine, authentic contentshowing up consistently whatever
consistent looks like to youand building on your skills and
knowledge and you know I do alot of journey type content, so
I document a lot of what I'mdoing and so I think even when
(22:18):
you say consistent like I don'twant people to think because
there's some content creatorsthat you see, the content that's
so over polished and perfectand that takes a lot of time, a
lot of effort and a lot ofenergy and that can't, that's
not always consistent for people.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
So, you know, when we certainly say consistent, we
mean show up when you can, don'tworry about everything being
perfect.
You might have some that areperfect, but if you just need to
get the ball rolling and getbrand deals and build that
personal brand, just show uphowever it is and bring yourself
to the table and I think that'scertainly what Mia did in her
(22:54):
journey is just continuouslyshowed up and shared, rather
than the over polished, overperfect.
You know, and we both probablywell, we do both enjoy TikTok
more because we can just be ourmessy, wonderful selves, where
Instagram does feel a bit morepolished and that's just the
algorithm and life.
And that's why we lovepodcasting, because we can be
(23:16):
ourselves and things like that.
So for us, I think theconsistency thing is find what
you can do consistently.
Is it a story once a day?
Is it stories in general?
Because you don't need to betoo polished.
And then you do three reels aweek, or it's TikToks or
whatever it is.
But it doesn't have to beperfect, it just needs to be
(23:36):
progress which is showing up andcreating.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
In saying that I think why a lot of people
generally the older creatorslove UGC is that you can still
get paid for your contentwithout having to build this big
brand and post every single day.
You can pitch directly tobrands or go on apps and find
work in other ways if you don'twant to spend all that time
(24:01):
consistently creating your owncontent and building your brand.
So that's the beauty of UGC.
Speaker 3 (24:05):
That's so true.
That's a really good point, andwhat would you recommend for a
creator that's having a slowermonth or slower period?
I imagine it's going to besomething similar to what you
guys have been speaking about.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
Yeah Well, we really believe in diversifying your
income.
Especially if you're creating alot of content, why not bring
some affiliate marketing into it, or a digital product, or
building your personal brand inother ways?
We've got other creators insideour membership who do virtual
assisting or social mediamanagement and they sort of
(24:37):
build on their skills anddiversify their income so that
they're not solely relying onjust getting UGC jobs, and for
me that's been a lifesaverbecause, yeah, sometimes you'll
have slow months, but I've gotthis recurring income coming in
from affiliate programs ordigital products that are
selling in the background.
So, yeah, it's super important.
Speaker 1 (24:57):
It's the exact reason that when we set up our
community, we set it up to be anaffiliate program.
So we offer 40% commission ifyou join and you share us.
We want to pay you as a creatorso you can join and learn the
skillset and grow your businessbut also be an affiliate for our
program and earn that 40%commission.
So for us, that was a reallyimportant part of this journey
(25:18):
is diversify.
We both diversify our income.
We had before, we still do now,and now, as a team, we look at
how we're going to do that forour business, because you can't
rely on just one thing and, asMia will say and many of our
creators, the UGC side isamazing, but you can also burn
out quite quickly.
Many of our creators, the UGCside is amazing, but you can
also burn out quite quickly.
So how can you balance that sothat you're you know you're able
(25:39):
to withstand an income that youalso enjoy and I think that's
been part of what we shareinside the community is okay.
How do you, how can youdiversify?
So when the months are a bitslow, you can do this and when
the UGC is coming in, you canoutsource some things or you can
take the reins and really gofor it there and let you know
the other business you'rebuilding fall back a bit just
because you need to do thisright now.
Speaker 2 (26:01):
So it's that balance that we probably enjoy the most
is sharing that with ourcommunity and how they can do
that to make an income that theycan sit back and enjoy and do
it whenever they choose, whenthey want, on their terms is
really and we're a bit of aholistic membership in that we
really encourage our creators tobuild an email list and, you
(26:21):
know, look at all these otherthings that will build a
personal brand that you know youcan basically sell anything and
with the skills that they usecreating content for brands that
converts, they're able to bringthat into their own business as
well.
Speaker 3 (26:36):
Awesome.
I've got two final questionsfor you.
The second last one is how doyou approach negotiating rates
and setting boundaries withbrands?
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Yeah, you just have to be confident.
We've actually we're helpingour members inside our
membership with that, with someAI agents that we've built that
helps them negotiate these branddeals with their emails,
because it can be a little bitintimidating trying to ask for
more money from a brand.
So we've created AI agents tohelp them not only with
(27:06):
scripting pitch emails and theirUGC content, but also how to
negotiate with brands and get abetter deal and get paid for
what you're worth.
But I think it just comes downto you can only ask and they can
only say no, so why not Awesome?
Speaker 3 (27:20):
And final question what do you think the future for
UGC holds Like?
Is it bright or is AI going tobe a huge threat?
Yeah, it's a weird time, isn'tit?
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Yes, we really encourage our members to embrace
AI, otherwise you might getleft behind.
So, like I said before, we'reusing AI agents to help them
with their scripting concepts.
Obviously, it always needs ahuman touch, but it's helping
them create better scripts, comeup with better concept ideas so
they are able to stand out.
(27:52):
Saves a huge amount of time aswell.
Time, yep, yep.
So we really believe, if you'renot utilising AI in your
business, you probably should.
Otherwise, you are going to getleft behind.
In saying that the AI avatarsthat are coming out now, I don't
know how I feel about that.
It's really hard to know wherethings are going to go, but if
you're on top of AI, youunderstand it, you know how to
(28:14):
use it.
You're going to be better offthan if you just completely
ignore it and just put your headin the sand and go no, no,
brands are just going to usepeople and I'll be fine If you
learn the skills and understand.
Okay, well, I know how to makea good UGC video.
I know how to write a goodscript.
I know how to use these AIprograms to perhaps change
backgrounds or, you know, createthese avatars.
(28:36):
Then you're going to, you know,last in the scene longer than
if you put your head in the sand.
But where all this is going togo, no idea.
I hope that people are alwaysgoing to be drawn to real humans
.
But yeah, you just can't deal.
Speaker 1 (28:51):
The part to remember too in this process is brands
are far behind us.
Entrepreneurs and creators Likebrands are still.
Some of them aren't even onTikTok.
Some of them are too scared toeven look what TikTok's about or
their social media.
So, even though it's coming upand it, you know, ai is going to
change the way we do mostthings, I think it's still
(29:11):
really important that there'sstill human life and we're still
here and we're going to beneeded and we're also needed if
it's not, you know, if AI, ifUGC does change, there's also
going to need to be that humanelement of a human still needs
to understand the process toengage another human, so they
might be driving part of this.
(29:32):
So there's always going to be aplace for an entrepreneur that
is willing to look outside thebox and embrace what's coming
and then use it as a tool intheir toolbox rather than the
driving force.
So if you can stay with thecurve and embrace it and learn
how to use it and then how tospeak to brands in a better way
(29:53):
that they can understand andfeel comfortable with where this
is going, I think you'll alwaysstay ahead and I think that's
that they can understand it,feel comfortable with where this
is going.
I think you'll always stayahead and I think that's don't
fear it, but use it and embraceit, and that's really important.
From a branding business pointof view, brands are a little bit
further behind, and there'snothing wrong with that, but as
creators, we get to now showthem a way that's different and
(30:14):
be that driving force.
So I think, you know, keepingthat in mind is the other thing
when you're negotiating andpricing yourself, remembering
that, that you're ahead of thecurve because you're taking that
leap of faith to help a brandwhen they need you.
At the end of the day, theyneed you.
So, when it comes tonegotiation and pricing,
remember that as well.
They've come to you.
Potentially, they need yourhelp.
(30:34):
So, you know, go forth withthat and be really comfortable
and confident with that because,yeah, they need you and they're
going to need somebody.
So be hold strong in that.
And yeah, with the AI stuff,just embrace it but use it to
your advantage and use it as alittle.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
If anything, it's going to help you scale your UGC
business.
I've actually cloned my voiceusing 11 labs and I've, you know
, sped out a heap of scripts inlike two seconds.
So it's, it's yeah, it's goingto be great, yeah.
Speaker 3 (31:03):
Well, thank you so much, Mia and Kristen, for
joining us.
Thanks for having us.
Yeah and yeah.
Please, please, give a plug tothe High Five Collective and how
people can reach out.
Speaker 1 (31:19):
Do you want to do it, mia?
And with our little, we've gota code for everyone.
So, if you're listening, we'vegot a code that, if there's
anything that sparks yourinterest today, please drop in
our DMs and hit us up.
We love a cheeky DM, don't we,mia?
Just a couple, just a couple.
But we do have a code, just foranyone listening now, which is
20KITE, which gives you 20% offanything at the checkout,
(31:40):
anything in our services thatyou would like, so you can
invest in that and come join us.
We do have a community ofhundreds of content creators,
mostly women, that they're notall 40 plus, but most of moms,
if not.
We're all in this space ofwanting to create an online
business and UGC.
For me and I if you haven't gotthat across the whole podcast,
we know that it's the startingblock, like if you can get good
(32:02):
at content and get paid for it,like you know, without blowing
our own trumpet.
I suppose the one thing thatI've noticed from my background
is there's lots of people thatwill sell you the secret sauce
of how to create better contentand how to do this and all that,
but we're actually giving youthe skill set that gets you paid
within 30 days or less and then, once you've got that skill set
at any point in your journey,you can turn back to it.
(32:24):
Mia and I just did some UGCbefore Christmas because we were
like huh, christmas presentssuck, so we did some UGC, like
it's a skill that you have forlife, that'll help you sell your
course, your coaching programand any of that.
So that's what our community isabout.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Get paid to get better at content.
Speaker 1 (32:41):
Yeah, and come follow us.
Hive Hub Collective.
Come over there, hit, follow,we're always there, literally
yeah, now we are.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
Thank you so much for sharing that amazing value to
our listeners and coming on thepodcast.
That was awesome, great.
Speaker 1 (32:56):
Thanks, george.
Thank you so much, it wasamazing.
Speaker 3 (32:58):
Awesome.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
See you, bye.
There's so many good ones too.
Okey-dokey.
(00:00):
Today is a little bit of adifferent episode.
We were interviewed on the UGCpodcast with the guys from
Kitesite, which was reallyexciting for us.
We have been following alongand kind of not working
alongside but hanging out withthe guys from Kitesite.
They have done an incrediblejob.
They're actually the foundersof Creative Flow Australian UGC
platform and from there they sawa problem where UGC content
(00:22):
creators the biggest part of thejob if you are a UGC content
creator you may know this is theadmin, the back and forth, the
toing and froing from brands,the getting paid, the adding up
sales all the things that areinvolved in a UGC content
creator's journey.
Now they saw that as being abit of a problem, something that
slows content creators down togetting paid and getting more
jobs.
So they've designed KiteSite.
(00:42):
They're absolutely amazing.
We've used it a couple of timesand it's been phenomenal.
It's got a great affiliateprogram.
The big vision for the boys isabout building KiteSite, a tool
designed to maximize creators'earnings by cutting down unpaid
work, and that means so much tocontent creators.
It can help creators get branddeals, get paid upfront, secure
(01:03):
more retainer jobs, and that isstability, it's consistency and
it's real income.
So, anyway, we had a chat withthe boys today.
They asked us questions aroundour community, around personal
branding, about building yourUGC journey.
So we're going to jump right oninto it because we had an
absolute blast.
All right, let's go.
Are you ready to master the artof creating content that
converts?
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Hey, I'm Mia, a mom of two who went from being a
burnt out ambo to six-figurecontent creator in less than a
year, all while navigating alate ADHD diagnosis.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
And I'm Kristen, also a mom of two and a former
corporate branding queen turnedentrepreneur.
My dyslexic brain seesmarketing very differently and
that's my superpower, andtogether we're showing women
like you, how to master videomarketing and create content
that generates income.
Whether you're just startingout or ready to scale.
We are breaking down everythingfrom landing brand deals to
building your own empire.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
Welcome to.
I Am that Content Creatorpodcast where we turn scroll
stopping content into seriousincome.
No filters, no fluff, just realstrategies from two neuro
divergent mums who get it.
So let's turn your phone into avideo marketing machine and
let's go, let's go, guys, beprofessional guys.
Oh my God, good, good, good,I'm sure done.
(02:13):
I'm excited to be here and talkall things UGC.
We talk about it all day, everyday.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
Yeah, we've been in contact for, I think, well over
a year now.
Yeah, and see what you guys arebuilding while we've been
building KiteSite as well.
Firstly, I'd just love to askyou guys how did you both meet
each other and join up forces tocreate this awesome community?
Speaker 1 (02:35):
I'll lead this one because it starts with me that I
love a cheeky DM.
I love jumping in with a voicenote and I've been following Mia
for ages on TikTok and justreally resonated with her her
personal brand, the way that sheshared her stories and we kind
of.
I could see from my point ofview which is brand and
marketing and personal brandingthat there was this misalignment
(02:56):
between all these new creatorscoming on that were trying to
build a financial stabilitythrough UGC or affiliate
marketing and that's kind ofwhat Mia was doing.
But they were missing this linkthat I could bring, which was
around personal branding andbusiness branding and marketing.
And I could see Mia and Iactually asked her to be on my
original podcast as well.
So we had a few littlecommunications and all of a
(03:17):
sudden I jumped in her DMs and Iwas like right, I've had an
idea.
I'm just going to put it out tothe universe.
This might be really weird andrandom and like not your thing,
but I think we need to create acourse or something that teaches
people how to marry UGC,affiliate marketing, brand and
marketing and build likerockstar personal brands,
understand how they're going tobuild their own business online
(03:37):
and make money and all that.
And I sent that to her and Iwas like okay, and then
instantly, I think in one of ourcarousel posts on our Instagram
actually we've got the realvoice note that happened and
like her message straight backwas like I didn't even need to
listen to this and I was in.
I was like ah, and it literallyjust started Like we've never
actually met in person.
It's going to happen in 2025,people.
It's going to happen, it has to.
(03:58):
But we've since been Slackchatting basically every day.
We're basically a marriedcouple that Slack chat every
single day.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Yeah, we're basically the same person.
We're the same person.
Our kids are the same age, ourpartners are the same name.
We think exactly the same, soit's been a match made in heaven
.
Yeah, and yeah, yeah,everything.
And our partners are the sameperson too Like what the hell.
But it's amazing what you cando and who you can meet through
TikTok and this whole contentcreation world, so it's been
(04:28):
pretty cool.
That's awesome.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
And before you guys started this community, were you
both doing UGC on the sidepart-time, or were you full-time
, or what was the deal?
Speaker 2 (04:38):
Yeah, so my story is a little bit random.
I was a full-time paramedic.
I had babies and I was onmaternity leave and I was that
desperate not to go back to workand I had no plan B and I just
quit one day like shit, okay,I've got to find something to do
.
And I was just randomlyscrolling on TikTok and I saw
this guy in the US talk aboutUGC.
(04:59):
I think that's about threeyears ago now, so when it was
just starting to hype up wasn'treally a thing in Australia yet
and I thought you know what,I've got nothing to lose.
So I just jumped on it and Iended up replacing my wage in
six weeks of doing UGC.
I was like, okay, holy shit,this is something, I'm just
going to go with it.
And we were able to selleverything, jump in a caravan,
(05:20):
travel around Australia and UGCfunded our whole entire trip.
So that was the start of myjourney and I, you know, as
creators do you bring affiliatemarketing into things, digital
products and it kind of justsnowballed into what we've got
today with the High PubCollective.
So I was a full-time UGCcreator, yeah, for a good while,
and I still do it today.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
Amazing.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
And how about you?
Well, my story is polaropposite in terms of I was in a
corporate career for 10 years.
I came out of uni, walkedstraight into a corporate career
as a graphic designer and thenI moved into the brand marketing
campaigns team.
So I moved up the ranks andthen, after about 10 years of
being in that corporate career,I was made redundant.
And it was one of those momentswhere I was like, oh well, what
(06:02):
do I do now?
And I had that thing in theback of your head.
That's like no one's going tohire me, I'm no good, Nobody
wants me, even though I'd builtan incredible career and done
some incredible things.
But you know, the impostersyndrome hits and I remember
getting a phone call from a goodfriend that was like, hey, do
you want to do some design forme?
And I was like, yeah, sure.
So I did that, I moved intothat and then, all of a sudden,
(06:25):
I set up my business.
I started brand and marketingconsultancy and so I went and I
did that.
I also started a project calledthe Own it Project, which is
working with young women aroundtheir confidence and their
personal brand and building thatresilience within them.
But I've always had this likejust this pull to women and now
moms certainly women 40 plus inthis space that want to do
(06:48):
something and be something butfeel like they can't do it, and
my passion is to help them, showthem that they can do it and
build a personal brand onlineand what that means to them.
So I kind of started there andwithout even I mean I've done
affiliate marketing, I've doneUGC, without ever doing it as
such, because that's just howyou build a personal brand is
building something that you cansell anything, basically if
(07:09):
you're trustworthy, authenticand you can connect with people
on a level that is true and real.
And so, yeah, then when I metMia and those stories aligned
like I just started my businessonline and it just grew.
I did consultancy, I worked fordifferent companies with brand
and marketing and design andpersonal branding, and stories
align Like I just started mybusiness online and it just grew
.
I did consultancy, I did, Iworked for different companies
(07:30):
with brand and marketing anddesign and personal branding,
and then this just happened andit just beautifully amalgamated
into what we have now, whichstill blows my mind that we've
created this and are workingwith hundreds and thousands of
women that just now get to dowhat we can show them what to do
Like it's really really cool.
So my story is very differentthat I came from that background
, but then Mia's story hashelped me see what is possible
(07:51):
and how to make it possiblequickly for women.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
I think that's what I love the most With UGC and
you're doing a lot of branddeals along your way too.
But I've sort of gotten herinto the real UGC, like doing
the UGC ads for brands too,because it's so much fun, you
get so creative and it's just anice supplement to your income
as well, and it's nicely paid.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Like I used to do it for free and now I get paid, I'm
like, oh, that's heaps more funthan doing it for free.
Just a bit.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
And Kristen, you mentioned that you're really
passionate about helping, likethe women that are sort of 40 or
older.
How have you guys gone abouttargeting and attracting that
particular demographic with yourcommunity?
Speaker 1 (08:29):
I think there's a few things I think for me
personally.
I remember when I had abusiness the Own it Project and
that was all going beautifully,and then I became a mum and I
was like, I'm still going to beable to do it.
I'm going to do everything Ican do now.
And then you have your baby andand then all of a sudden you
realize that you're not ascapable, but you don't have the
time, the headspace and all ofthat.
(08:49):
So that's where that businessdidn't slip away, but that's
where it changed.
And so I think in that changing, you become somebody different.
You can share those stories andagain it's becoming authentic
with sharing your story and yourjourney for connection.
And as soon as you start doingthat, people become magnetic to
(09:10):
you because they see themselvesin you and they align with you
and they go oh, that's me.
Or oh, wow, she's doing thatand I've I've just had a baby
and she can do that.
Or you know me, as, for example, her traveling in the caravan
oh, she's traveling in a caravanand she's getting paid for UGC,
like for me.
We're attracting the peoplethat that need us in that moment
because they're scrolling onInstagram.
They're in that potentiallydesperate state that we've been
(09:32):
in, or that I know women can bein, where Mia and I don't want
to go back to nine to five, likewe were not built for nine to
five.
We're a little Euro spicy We'vegot potentially 80, 80.
Yeah, nobody's telling me whatto do.
I will tell me what to do Me,and I can tell each other what
to do, but I don't want a boss.
And so there's.
We know that, when you become amother, a lot of women, if
(09:54):
you've got that little bit ofentrepreneurial spirit, a little
bit of neuro spicy, a littlebit of don't tell me what to do,
you're looking for a solutionto pay the bills.
You're looking for a way tomake an income so that you don't
have to send your kids tochildcare for five days a week,
so that you can still supportyour family, but you're not
having to kind of navigate thisspace of motherhood.
(10:14):
And so for us, if you speakauthentically about your journey
in this online space, you willattract the right person, and
that's basically what a personalbrand is, and basically what
we've done to build thataudience is speak exactly to
their pain points, tell themthat we can help them, show them
how, and then give them thetools inside our community to
(10:36):
actually achieve that, so thatthey're not running blind.
They've got the playbook of howto become successful at UGC and
beyond if they choose to gothat far.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
Yeah, and some of our best creators inside our
community are in their fortiesand fifties and sixties, so it's
just proof that age is itdoesn't matter, with UGC that's
awesome.
Speaker 3 (10:55):
In fact, maybe it's even an advantage to be, you
know, the usual creator at 20years old, because there's so
many of them.
Absolutely, yep, exactly.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Absolutely, and the you know.
The other part of that I thinkthat's important just to touch
on is women, probably 35 plus,but certainly 40s, or we are
usually the buyer in thehousehold.
So we will buy the products.
We will, you know, see theadvertising and we need to see
ourselves in the person we'rebuying from, because people buy
from people.
So that's where the whole inthe UGC space, this age really
(11:26):
does matter, because sometimeswe've got maybe the income or,
you know, we've certainly gotthat connection that people are
looking for.
So I think that's part of howwe've built our community.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
Yeah, makes total sense.
And, Mia, you mentioned earlierin the podcast that you were
just completely crushing itreally quickly when you started
your university journey.
Do you think there's still thatsame opportunity to start up
and get going and win a bunch ofdeals?
Yeah, more competition now.
Speaker 2 (11:58):
Absolutely.
I think it comes down to youknow, like we talked before your
personal brand and how mucheffort you put in.
Comes down to you know, like wetalked before, your personal
brand and how much effort youput in.
But I mean, even though I gotreally successful early on, when
it was sort of just becoming abig thing, and now there seems
to be lots and lots of UGCcreators, even back then there
was people saying it's saturated, there's too many UGC creators,
(12:19):
but there's not Every brand.
When you think about it, everysingle brand needs content and
that content tires and then theyneed more content and more
content and more content.
So you know, we've got umcreators in our membership who
are doing four or five, four tofive figure months consistently
(12:40):
and it's just changing theirlife.
There's, there's enough foreveryone and it's still yeah,
still going hard.
Yeah, that's really cooleveryone.
And it's still yeah, stillgoing hard.
Speaker 3 (12:45):
Yep, that's really cool.
Okay, now let's get into thecontent creation side of
monetization.
What are the biggest mistakesthat you see your students make?
Or just new creators in general?
Yeah, when they get started.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
I think for our members, it's overthinking it,
just getting too caught up inyour head, overthinking things
instead of just taking messyaction.
And that's why UGC is abeautiful thing for beginners,
because you can actually getpaid and get a lot of jobs as a
beginner without being polished,have really great editing Like.
(13:18):
Brands want this realness, thiscontent that isn't super
overthought.
And I think that's where a lotof creators go wrong.
They think that, yeah, theycan't do it.
Something's wrong with them.
Should I do this or should I dothat, when really you've just
got to get yourself out thereand just do it messy action.
Speaker 3 (13:35):
Yeah, that makes total sense.
I spoke with a creator.
I've been speaking with heapsof creators over the last six
months.
I've had probably 20 phonecalls just this week with
creators, zoom calls, and it'sjust fascinating to see, like
the variance in pricing.
So I spoke to one creator andthey're charging $1,000 or more
a video this week one that'scharging $15 US.
(14:00):
Wow, that kind of broke myheart that she was charging like
so little.
Yeah, I was like, please, likeminimum $100.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Yeah, oh, minimum yeah.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
But how do you like?
Do you find that that's a bigthing, that people don't value
their work and they underchargejust because they're so keen to
lock in a?
Speaker 2 (14:19):
deal.
Yeah, yeah, and definitely whenyou're first starting out,
there is that imposter syndrome.
You're not used to chargingthese brands money and until you
sort of sit down and figure out, okay, this actually takes me
quite a while to do and I'vejust charged $100 for a video
and I've just, you know, youjust have made bugger all money.
It can take a little while tobuild up that confidence and
(14:41):
just be like made bugger allmoney.
It can take a little while tobuild up that confidence and
just be like you know what?
No, I am charging 500 bucks or800 bucks for that video because
this is my time and my contentis super valuable to these
brands.
And look, there's a lot ofbrands out there that will take
new careers for a ride, gettingcontent for nothing or unlimited
usage rights and all this stuff.
But it's a learning process andI think every UDC creator
(15:04):
starts out the same not knowingwhat to charge or, you know,
second-guessing themselves.
But if you're confident in yourpricing, then nine times out of
ten, the brand is going to feelthat and pick it up and be like
, okay, she knows what she'sdoing, she's confident in her
pricing, let's go with that.
So, yeah, it is sad to see youknow creators doing a lot of
work for nothing and sometimesyou do do that in the start to
(15:27):
build up your portfolio and yourconfidence.
But yeah.
I've been raising my pricespretty regularly this whole
entire time and I've neverreally had much pushback Awesome
.
Speaker 3 (15:36):
Cool and you focus on building magnetic personal
brands in the High PipeCollective community.
What are the key elements thatmake a creator stand out to
brands?
Speaker 1 (15:47):
I think like the biggest thing is it's the
confidence to show up on cameraLike it's that scroll stopping
something about you.
And that usually comes with afeeling, like if you can make
somebody feel something whenthey see your content, that is a
powerful personal brand and itcan come from the way you dress.
(16:07):
Like I'm really big on.
You know, mia and I have ouryellow and our pink jackets and
we've had that from the get go.
That's part of our branding andit becomes something that when
you put that on, you feeldifferently.
Like Mia and I have donepodcasts where we've been in
jumpers and whatever and that'scool.
And then the second we've putthe jacket on.
It's a mental shift and I'mreally big on dressing how you
(16:27):
need to feel and it can soundvery superficial but at the same
time, if you practice that, youwill see a change and so little
things like that can bring anenergy to the screen.
They can bring a magnetism tothe screen.
They can bring that scrollstopping something, that
someone's going through yourcontent and all of a sudden
they're like, oh, that's thatcreative.
So it really does become abouta feeling and I think that
(16:53):
people often think with apersonal brand.
It's got to be the way youdress, it's got to be the way
you show up all the time and itdoes.
But it's more about youbringing a feeling to the screen
.
And if you stop right now,whatever you're doing in podcast
land, and think about a contentcreator or somebody that you
know on your feed, there'ssomething about them you
remember.
Like, right now, if I ask yousomeone, I bet someone pops into
(17:15):
your head.
It might be what they wear, itmight be what they say, it might
be how they put their contenton the screen, but there will be
someone.
And so it's really important.
When you're a content creatorand you're thinking about, okay,
well, how do I build a personalbrand and become magnetic to
brands, you need to think aboutthat person that you've just
thought about.
What makes you stop, what makesyou remember them?
(17:37):
Because brands notice and youknow, coming from brand and
marketing, I've worked oncampaigns at hundreds of
thousands of dollars adcampaigns and you sit down, you
analyze scripting and youanalyze all of those things and,
at the end of the day, nomatter what, it comes back to
how you've made somebody feel,and that can be color choices,
(17:57):
it can be lighting, it can bereally subtle things that can
make the biggest amount ofdifference.
So, as a content creator,practicing that is so important
and that means hitting recordand publishing content
constantly until you feel socomfortable and confident that
it's kind of brands will come toyou because they see your
(18:20):
content and they can feel yourenergy, they can see that you're
capable and confident.
And the only way that isachievable is by hitting record.
And, like Mia and I will tellyou, you can dispute that a
million times over, but I callBS.
If you're not hitting record,you're not getting better.
It's confidence is a muscletrain, the damn muscle, and
(18:47):
that's what we do inside ourcommunity is.
You know, we're certainlyspeaking to women 40 plus and
sometimes those women are reallyconfident in themselves but
really really not confident atall because they've lived a life
and they've.
They're looking at these 20year olds who are beautiful and
fresh and thinking I can't dothat.
I'm too old, you know, I've gotwrinkles, I've got.
I don't dress up for the camera, I don't put makeup on.
That doesn't make an ounce ofdifference.
Show up, create content, getbetter and better, and that
that's the magic sauce, likereally nothing else is but you
(19:09):
just continuing to create andfind something that works for
you.
Don't copy, never copy.
You've got your own something.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
You just got to find it and shine a light on it and
we do a lot of things inside ourmembership not just UGC, but we
do, you know, branding, digitalproducts, all that sort of
stuff and sometimes members willcome in not expecting to do UGC
.
But the minute that they do itand they learn the fundamentals
and they start getting thesebrand deals, their confidence
just skyrockets.
(19:36):
Because when you've got a brandpaying you money to create
content and you have to show upand you have to make it good and
you have to do the editing andall that sort of stuff, it
trickles into your own contentand we just see it before our
eyes, just going holy shit, theyhave improved so so much since
starting UGC.
That's awesome, yeah track abit.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
I'd love just to hear from you guys about where
you're getting your clients from, and both for the community but
also for your personal UGC.
What's your best channels toacquire new customers?
Speaker 2 (20:11):
Yeah, so I don't pitch.
I haven't pitched at all Well,maybe here and there over the
years, but I really focus on mypersonal brand and being
discovered by brands on TikTokand Instagram, so they just land
in my inbox whenever and youknow I haven't had to actually
go and chase the work, which hasbeen really really nice, but
(20:32):
how has that happened for you,mia, to help somebody that's
thinking now Like how has thatbeen the secret sauce for you?
So I think for me it's just beencreating a lot of content,
building my own personal brand.
When I first started out, I didcreate a UGC only account where
that's all I did and that's allI talked about, which I think
did help me in the beginning,because it was a big banner to
(20:53):
say I do UGC, so brands werecontacting me that way.
But when I pivoted into youknow more of my own personal
brand and stopped talkingspecifically about UGC, I still
had brands coming to me becausethey could see me show up
constantly, they could see mytype of content, they could see
you know my personality and youknow, as my audience grew, I got
(21:16):
brand deals so they wantedcontent posted on my page as
well.
But I think it was just me andmy personal brand that attracted
all those jobs over the years?
Speaker 3 (21:24):
Can you speak about posting consistently and
constantly showing up?
Is that once a day you'reputting something out there, or
is it what's sort of the cadence?
Speaker 2 (21:33):
Like to say to people consistently means you've got
to post two, three times everysingle day.
I go through waves, especiallyas a mum, but consistency to me
looks like.
Over three years I've shown upregularly online and built an
audience and I haven't really,you know, gone viral many times.
(21:55):
It's not about the numbers orthe metrics I've had pretty low
following counts for most ofthis time but it's just that
genuine, authentic contentshowing up consistently whatever
consistent looks like to youand building on your skills and
knowledge and you know I do alot of journey type content, so
I document a lot of what I'mdoing and so I think even when
(22:18):
you say consistent like I don'twant people to think because
there's some content creatorsthat you see, the content that's
so over polished and perfectand that takes a lot of time, a
lot of effort and a lot ofenergy and that can't, that's
not always consistent for people.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
So, you know, when we certainly say consistent, we
mean show up when you can, don'tworry about everything being
perfect.
You might have some that areperfect, but if you just need to
get the ball rolling and getbrand deals and build that
personal brand, just show uphowever it is and bring yourself
to the table and I think that'scertainly what Mia did in her
(22:54):
journey is just continuouslyshowed up and shared, rather
than the over polished, overperfect.
You know, and we both probablywell, we do both enjoy TikTok
more because we can just be ourmessy, wonderful selves, where
Instagram does feel a bit morepolished and that's just the
algorithm and life.
And that's why we lovepodcasting, because we can be
(23:16):
ourselves and things like that.
So for us, I think theconsistency thing is find what
you can do consistently.
Is it a story once a day?
Is it stories in general?
Because you don't need to betoo polished.
And then you do three reels aweek, or it's TikToks or
whatever it is.
But it doesn't have to beperfect, it just needs to be
(23:36):
progress which is showing up andcreating.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
In saying that I think why a lot of people
generally the older creatorslove UGC is that you can still
get paid for your contentwithout having to build this big
brand and post every single day.
You can pitch directly tobrands or go on apps and find
work in other ways if you don'twant to spend all that time
(24:01):
consistently creating your owncontent and building your brand.
So that's the beauty of UGC.
Speaker 3 (24:05):
That's so true.
That's a really good point, andwhat would you recommend for a
creator that's having a slowermonth or slower period?
I imagine it's going to besomething similar to what you
guys have been speaking about.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
Yeah Well, we really believe in diversifying your
income.
Especially if you're creating alot of content, why not bring
some affiliate marketing into it, or a digital product, or
building your personal brand inother ways?
We've got other creators insideour membership who do virtual
assisting or social mediamanagement and they sort of
(24:37):
build on their skills anddiversify their income so that
they're not solely relying onjust getting UGC jobs, and for
me that's been a lifesaverbecause, yeah, sometimes you'll
have slow months, but I've gotthis recurring income coming in
from affiliate programs ordigital products that are
selling in the background.
So, yeah, it's super important.
Speaker 1 (24:57):
It's the exact reason that when we set up our
community, we set it up to be anaffiliate program.
So we offer 40% commission ifyou join and you share us.
We want to pay you as a creatorso you can join and learn the
skillset and grow your businessbut also be an affiliate for our
program and earn that 40%commission.
So for us, that was a reallyimportant part of this journey
(25:18):
is diversify.
We both diversify our income.
We had before, we still do now,and now, as a team, we look at
how we're going to do that forour business, because you can't
rely on just one thing and, asMia will say and many of our
creators, the UGC side isamazing, but you can also burn
out quite quickly.
Many of our creators, the UGCside is amazing, but you can
also burn out quite quickly.
So how can you balance that sothat you're you know you're able
(25:39):
to withstand an income that youalso enjoy and I think that's
been part of what we shareinside the community is okay.
How do you, how can youdiversify?
So when the months are a bitslow, you can do this and when
the UGC is coming in, you canoutsource some things or you can
take the reins and really gofor it there and let you know
the other business you'rebuilding fall back a bit just
because you need to do thisright now.
Speaker 2 (26:01):
So it's that balance that we probably enjoy the most
is sharing that with ourcommunity and how they can do
that to make an income that theycan sit back and enjoy and do
it whenever they choose, whenthey want, on their terms is
really and we're a bit of aholistic membership in that we
really encourage our creators tobuild an email list and, you
(26:21):
know, look at all these otherthings that will build a
personal brand that you know youcan basically sell anything and
with the skills that they usecreating content for brands that
converts, they're able to bringthat into their own business as
well.
Speaker 3 (26:36):
Awesome.
I've got two final questionsfor you.
The second last one is how doyou approach negotiating rates
and setting boundaries withbrands?
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Yeah, you just have to be confident.
We've actually we're helpingour members inside our
membership with that, with someAI agents that we've built that
helps them negotiate these branddeals with their emails,
because it can be a little bitintimidating trying to ask for
more money from a brand.
So we've created AI agents tohelp them not only with
(27:06):
scripting pitch emails and theirUGC content, but also how to
negotiate with brands and get abetter deal and get paid for
what you're worth.
But I think it just comes downto you can only ask and they can
only say no, so why not Awesome?
Speaker 3 (27:20):
And final question what do you think the future for
UGC holds Like?
Is it bright or is AI going tobe a huge threat?
Yeah, it's a weird time, isn'tit?
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Yes, we really encourage our members to embrace
AI, otherwise you might getleft behind.
So, like I said before, we'reusing AI agents to help them
with their scripting concepts.
Obviously, it always needs ahuman touch, but it's helping
them create better scripts, comeup with better concept ideas so
they are able to stand out.
(27:52):
Saves a huge amount of time aswell.
Time, yep, yep.
So we really believe, if you'renot utilising AI in your
business, you probably should.
Otherwise, you are going to getleft behind.
In saying that the AI avatarsthat are coming out now, I don't
know how I feel about that.
It's really hard to know wherethings are going to go, but if
you're on top of AI, youunderstand it, you know how to
(28:14):
use it.
You're going to be better offthan if you just completely
ignore it and just put your headin the sand and go no, no,
brands are just going to usepeople and I'll be fine If you
learn the skills and understand.
Okay, well, I know how to makea good UGC video.
I know how to write a goodscript.
I know how to use these AIprograms to perhaps change
backgrounds or, you know, createthese avatars.
(28:36):
Then you're going to, you know,last in the scene longer than
if you put your head in the sand.
But where all this is going togo, no idea.
I hope that people are alwaysgoing to be drawn to real humans
.
But yeah, you just can't deal.
Speaker 1 (28:51):
The part to remember too in this process is brands
are far behind us.
Entrepreneurs and creators Likebrands are still.
Some of them aren't even onTikTok.
Some of them are too scared toeven look what TikTok's about or
their social media.
So, even though it's coming upand it, you know, ai is going to
change the way we do mostthings, I think it's still
(29:11):
really important that there'sstill human life and we're still
here and we're going to beneeded and we're also needed if
it's not, you know, if AI, ifUGC does change, there's also
going to need to be that humanelement of a human still needs
to understand the process toengage another human, so they
might be driving part of this.
(29:32):
So there's always going to be aplace for an entrepreneur that
is willing to look outside thebox and embrace what's coming
and then use it as a tool intheir toolbox rather than the
driving force.
So if you can stay with thecurve and embrace it and learn
how to use it and then how tospeak to brands in a better way
(29:53):
that they can understand andfeel comfortable with where this
is going, I think you'll alwaysstay ahead and I think that's
that they can understand it,feel comfortable with where this
is going.
I think you'll always stayahead and I think that's don't
fear it, but use it and embraceit, and that's really important.
From a branding business pointof view, brands are a little bit
further behind, and there'snothing wrong with that, but as
creators, we get to now showthem a way that's different and
(30:14):
be that driving force.
So I think, you know, keepingthat in mind is the other thing
when you're negotiating andpricing yourself, remembering
that, that you're ahead of thecurve because you're taking that
leap of faith to help a brandwhen they need you.
At the end of the day, theyneed you.
So, when it comes tonegotiation and pricing,
remember that as well.
They've come to you.
Potentially, they need yourhelp.
(30:34):
So, you know, go forth withthat and be really comfortable
and confident with that because,yeah, they need you and they're
going to need somebody.
So be hold strong in that.
And yeah, with the AI stuff,just embrace it but use it to
your advantage and use it as alittle.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
If anything, it's going to help you scale your UGC
business.
I've actually cloned my voiceusing 11 labs and I've, you know
, sped out a heap of scripts inlike two seconds.
So it's, it's yeah, it's goingto be great, yeah.
Speaker 3 (31:03):
Well, thank you so much, Mia and Kristen, for
joining us.
Thanks for having us.
Yeah and yeah.
Please, please, give a plug tothe High Five Collective and how
people can reach out.
Speaker 1 (31:19):
Do you want to do it, mia?
And with our little, we've gota code for everyone.
So, if you're listening, we'vegot a code that, if there's
anything that sparks yourinterest today, please drop in
our DMs and hit us up.
We love a cheeky DM, don't we,mia?
Just a couple, just a couple.
But we do have a code, just foranyone listening now, which is
20KITE, which gives you 20% offanything at the checkout,
(31:40):
anything in our services thatyou would like, so you can
invest in that and come join us.
We do have a community ofhundreds of content creators,
mostly women, that they're notall 40 plus, but most of moms,
if not.
We're all in this space ofwanting to create an online
business and UGC.
For me and I if you haven't gotthat across the whole podcast,
we know that it's the startingblock, like if you can get good
(32:02):
at content and get paid for it,like you know, without blowing
our own trumpet.
I suppose the one thing thatI've noticed from my background
is there's lots of people thatwill sell you the secret sauce
of how to create better contentand how to do this and all that,
but we're actually giving youthe skill set that gets you paid
within 30 days or less and then, once you've got that skill set
at any point in your journey,you can turn back to it.
(32:24):
Mia and I just did some UGCbefore Christmas because we were
like huh, christmas presentssuck, so we did some UGC, like
it's a skill that you have forlife, that'll help you sell your
course, your coaching programand any of that.
So that's what our community isabout.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Get paid to get better at content.
Speaker 1 (32:41):
Yeah, and come follow us.
Hive Hub Collective.
Come over there, hit, follow,we're always there, literally
yeah, now we are.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
Thank you so much for sharing that amazing value to
our listeners and coming on thepodcast.
That was awesome, great.
Speaker 1 (32:56):
Thanks, george.
Thank you so much, it wasamazing.
Speaker 3 (32:58):
Awesome.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
See you, bye.
There's so many good ones too.
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