On today’s episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we’re talking about online learning with my guests, Celeste Olds and Megan Auman. Specifically, we’re focusing on CreativeLive and how this particular platform works. If you’re interested in getting a behind-the-scenes glimpse of how classes are produced, or if you’re considering pitching a class to CreativeLive, this episode is for you.

Celeste Olds joined CreativeLive in 2010 and is now the Executive Producer of Production Operations. She’s been with the company for a long time and understands the mission and driving forces behind it. Megan Auman is a seasoned CreativeLive instructor. She’s also a designer, metalsmith, educator, and entrepreneur. Her eponymous jewelry line is sold in stores across the US and online. In 2009, Megan founded Designing an MBA to help designers and makers develop their business skills.

We discuss:

• Why CreativeLive classes include a live studio audience and the advantages and challenges this presents
• What kinds of classes CreativeLive is interested in and what a potential instructor should do in order to pitch a class
• How the “freemium” model works and why it’s an important part of the CreativeLive business model
• How teaching a class with CreativeLive can impact your business
• and more…

I taught a class called Email Marketing for Crafters on CreativeLive last summer and I talk a bit about what that experience was like for me (for more reflections about that class see my blog post, “What It’s Like to Teach a Class at CreativeLive”)

And, of course, I ask Celeste and Megan to recommend great stuff they’re enjoying right now.

Celeste recommends:

• The Profit
• 28 to Make
• forScore

Megan recommends:

• The Manus X Machina exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
• Badass: Making Users Awesome by Kathy Sierra
• This talk that Brigitte Lyons gave at Tara Gentile’s Quiet Power Summit

And I recommend:

• First Day Back
• Quilt Snips videos by Missouri Star on Facebook

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Today’s episode is sponsored by The Merriweather Council – a resource for handmade shop owners who want to learn about how to effectively market their business online from someone who has actually done it. For more information, visit merriweathercouncil.com.

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