We recently connected with Jessie W and have shared our conversation below.
Jessie , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
In 2018, I was a stay at home mom of two teenagers. I was watching some other moms on YouTube, sharing their recipes, cleaning tips and tricks , while also making extra money from being part of the YouTube Parnter Program. I don’t do anything half hearted so I research how to make money on youtube. At the time you needed 1k subscribers and 4k watch time hours before I could apply to be monetized. I started posting videos of myself cleaning and cooking with 0 subscribers. It took me 6 months to gain a following and meet the criteria. Once I was monetized I also started getting brands wanting to send me things to promote on my channel. I remember quoting a food subscription service $100 to promote on my channel and being so excited that they accepted my rate. Things after that kept getting better and better. I gained more followers and worked with so many amazing brands. I was able to still stay home with my kids, flex my creativity in my videos and earn an income at the same time. I wish I started my youtube channel earlier than I did. If I was to start my channel now with the knowledge I’ve gained over the past 5 years, I would make sure to network more with other content creators and always keep an eye on trending topics to stay relevant.
Jessie , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’m Jessie, a married stay at home mom and content creator. I make lifestyle videos about my home. I share cleaning, organizing and some renovations on our forever home. I have been a stay at home mom since I was 19 years so so I jokingly say I am a professional homemaker. I started making content to meet other like-minded people and also to make a little fun money. I have always loved taking care of my home and love having a platform to share all of my decorating.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I think the first step in building an audience on social media is to start! It can be daunting to put yourself out there for the world to see but as long as you stay true to yourself , people will gravitate towards you. I just started posting on Instagram and made sure to use relevant hashtags so I would be seen by like minded people. I was posting at least once a day and making sure to include interactive polls, question boxes to get feedback from my audience.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding aspect is to see what I have created is enjoyed by other people. Taking time to make sure everything is created in my vision and then releasing it into the world for other people to enjoy, get inspired by or to get motivated is the best reward.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessielifestyleathome
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@jessielifestyleathome
