How Chelsey White Maximizes Her Efficiency as a Content Creator | The Food Blogger Pro Podcast

Like what is the day to day, week to week look like when you're producing content, developing recipes? Are you doing editing yourself? Do you have a team that you work with? How, how do you, how do you scale all of that and stay sane?

I literally am a one woman show mostly because I'm like not a control freak, but like, I don't love managing people.

Sure.

And I really need to outsource video editing and I eventually like, pretty soon we want to start trying to have kids. So I really actually do need to like build a team soon. But it's like a little bit of a struggle. But I kind of like it. Not the struggle, but I like doing everything because it feels like you're, the full process is coming complete, you know, like your recipe testing, then you're filming, then you're editing it, you see it coming to life, you see the final, final product, you share it. And then like it's like this whole life cycle of like feeling accomplished with what you did. And also like I don't ever want to do just all filming in the kitchen. Like it's really exhausting being on your feet for like 12 hours a day and filming. I'm like running around my island by myself. Like I'm here so I like, like, you know, one day on my feet all day, the next day editing on my computer. And I try to just like alternate and balance things out so that I don't get burnt out. Because you also like need to be creative, which like is something that's so hard to feel like inspired and motivated to do. So I try to just kind of like some days in the kitchen, some days off, but it's a lot of work. I think people underestimate how much work goes into it. But I'm sure you guys understand.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think I was just having a conversation earlier on a live Q A that we had with Food Blogger Pro members and was. That's exactly what I said. I think people underestimate just exactly how much time goes in. Start to finish, recipe development, shooting, writing, publishing. Have you learned things that have been able to make that process more efficient? Even in regards to publishing to multiple platforms? Like if you're doing video on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, is it the same? I look at YouTube shorts sometimes and it's like it's obvious that some people have just exported those from TikTok. Like it's just the branding, TikTok branding on them where it's just like creators being like, I'm exhausted, I'm Just going to like straight upload this to YouTube?

Yes, I definitely try. Like I film, I try to film like usually two cameras so I have like some different angles because some angles just like that's the worst thing ever. It's like trying to film horizontally and crop it vertically. Which like you have to do for YouTube or for like if you're going to have a video on your blog, like it has to be horizontal and like again, blog is always secretly the priority. So like it's so hard to get your framing right and then you have to crop. So I try to, I film everything like just once or I try to. And then I do just try to crop it down and I try to keep that in mind as I'm filming so that I can just like make it work. But like it's, it's a, it's a struggle.

Yeah. Are you publishing YouTube shorts as well?

I was for a while and like some of them did well. It's honestly one of those things where it's like you already have like X number of platforms.

Yeah.

And then that's like that last thing in the back of your mind.

Totally.

Oh, I should, oh, I should schedule those.

Yeah.

And then I forget and like I'm creating, creating the content for Tick Tock already and I'm creating it like not in the app. So I like have vertical videos saved. I could very easily like upload them. I just. Yeah, don't some. It's. I need to, I need. You need to like hire a team so that I can have other people. It's just things fall through crack and that's one of the things that has been lately. But there's good opportunity there. Like I really should be focusing more on that.

Yeah. But there's always going to be another thing you could or should be doing. And especially as a, as just you doing it. It's like that is so much I'm interested to hear you talk a little bit about. What is that? When. Do you know when to stop or don't you? Like we do sometimes we'll interview people and they're like, it really is like from when I get up until, you know, the last like hour, maybe I'll kind of slow down of the day. Do you feel like that's true for you or do you feel like you're able to build in rhythms to say like, hey, I'm gonna wrap up at 3:30. No, that's not what. What does that look like for you?

I think that I struggle with that a lot and I Think pretty much anyone that's like self employed. When you're working towards something that you directly benefit from and or like something you're growing towards, like a very tangible goal, you're just gonna, you want to work all. And I genuinely enjoy what I do. I like the variety, I like the creativity, I like the autonomy. So I wake up and I exercise. Always. First thing I try, like run or do something, like go to the gym. Then I start working and I work pretty much all day. I like try to make time for friends. So I'll go get coffee with a friend or like dinner or something. But if I don't have that planned, like I'm just working until like a half hour before I go to bed when I like will brush my teeth and read a book and then I go to bed. But like I'm not unhappy and I really do try to plan things to get me out of my apartment. And like just because you burn out is so real. But yeah, I do work a lot. My husband works a lot too. So it's kind of like it's this really bad cycle where like I'm like, oh, you're working late. Okay, like, so then I will make.

Yeah, so I will. What does your husband do for his work?

He, he works, he would say he works in insurance, but he does insurance for mergers and acquisitions. So it's like a lot of deal based work that is really tight timelines and just.

Yeah, yeah. And so he has to have long days because there's a deal that's going to close and they have to make sure that.

Exactly. And just like weekends like oh, we thought this was going to close next week but need to close early. So weekend and you're.

Then you say as long as you're working, I might as well schedule these extra pins.

Let me make or like, let me make those muffins I was going to make. I'll get ahead on that.

Totally.

Yeah.

Yeah, that's. That. That makes a lot of sense. So what would your advice be? Let's say you were to. Everything resets, everything goes away and you are where you are today and you are wanting to build a successful business, but you don't have any of the things that you've had before in terms of traction, any platforms or following. What would that look like? How, where would you start? Where would you focus your time and what are the things that you'd be doing each day?

That is such a, an interesting question. I haven't thought about that perspective in a while, but I think Honestly, if I was like starting from scratch, I would be focused on TikTok because I just think you can grow a lot there. And I think I would, other than that, be doing a lot of the same stuff I do now of just like consistently working hard, having a content schedule of things listed out that I want to do. And that makes sense strategically for like, for me blogging. Like, I would see what I could, what I could rank for. And even if it was like a much easier keyword, I would still be trying to focus on that. I really. And just think like working hard, I think you do just. You have to grind it out. It's a volume game and that's not easy. But I think that's why people that are successful in this space are the people that are willing to work the hardest. There's obviously a little bit of luck involved, I think at least. And I'm so grateful for like the way things have worked out. But I think that, I think there's like a saying of like, luck is when opportunity meets hard work or something like that.

Or like luck wears overalls.

Yes.

Yeah.

But it's so true. So like, I think I would just keep trying to like grind it out. It. It's a lot harder when you have a full time job and you haven't been able to make the transition. And like, that's a whole other conversation of like, when that's the right time.

Yeah.

But I think just also focusing on something that you love helps a lot. Sorry.

No, totally. I like, it's a good, it's a good point for me to interject to say how much of. We just had this question come up regarding that. How much of it is, hey, I'm just doing stuff that I love versus you had talked a little bit before about, you know, doing keyword research. A lot of times keyword research isn't like. And this just happens to be the thing I love the most as well. It's like, oh, there's opportunity here. I don't really love this, but I might be able to rank for it. So I'm going to create this. Or there's this thing I really love, but nobody's going to really search for it. How do you balance those things As a creator?

That's. I love that question because I have been actively working this year on trying to do like two things a week that are strategic keyword research that I know, like benefit me in the long run. And then one fun thing that's just for social media. So like, for me, I'VE been making like sheet cakes of spongebob characters, something silly, but it's just something that like, I genuinely like and that it's easy. It's so much fast. When you don't have to do a blog post. So much faster to like edit for your platform. It like it's easier to crank out content. So it's not like it's that big of a time sink. And even though I feel like it doesn't get me towards all my goals, I think it makes me like happy and keeps the creativity flowing. So I try to give myself like a little bit of time a week to just play with something or just genuinely make something I want to make. And that has been so helpful, especially during the pandemic because I found myself just like working all the time because there's nothing else to do.

Yeah.

And so having that kind of outlet, allowing my work to still be a creative outlet for me in a fun way was really nice. And I highly recommend doing that if you're able to.

Yeah, it's interesting. One of the things that I've heard you say a couple times is just kind of this consideration around the different platforms. And one of the things that's interesting on the performance side of things is like search doesn't really exist on an Instagram or TikTok. Technically it does, but that might be. Yeah, but that might be a better outlet for something where you're like, hey, this isn't going to be like a keyword that's going to rank really well. I'm just going to be really excited to make this. You could maybe put it on your blog if you want to, but you know that it's not search oriented content. But then you do have stuff where you know that blueberry pancakes aren't going to perform super well on if it's just like a standard recipe on Instagram or at least considering the focus of your following, that might not be true, but it would potentially be a keyword that you could rank for. When you're doing that keyword research, are you using a tool for that and what have you learned about kind of that process that's been helpful in your journey?

I love keyword research. Actually. I find myself falling down rabbit holes of just like things like oh or this or oh that and then different flavors of that. And like I will just go on a tangent for like long periods of time. I think it's like the inner like accountant slash.

Sure, yeah. Data and like spreadsheets and love the number.

I do have a Spread. I have spreadsheets. I list things and then I, like, prioritize what I want. Anyways, I use a tool called Key Search, which I really love. It's super easy to use. There's tons of great tools out there, as I'm sure you know. And, like, I'm sure most people following this podcast know about. But I think it's like one of the cheaper options. And, like, I'm not going too crazy with it. I'm really just trying to, like, think up ideas. So I'm not like, targeting competitors, keywords and things like that. I'm really just kind of going with the flow. So for me, it works really well. And it's like, I think $18 a month or something. And so I really like it.

Yeah, it feels like the kind of tool where it can kind of. It's kind of like when you go to Target and I'm like, can you tell me where the, you know, peaches are? And they're like, aisle seven. Like, it's directionally where you want to go, but they're not like aisle seven, halfway down, right side. So you can kind of know, like, hey, this is kind of guiding me generally where I want to go in terms of content perspective, which I think is what a lot of people need. Like, where should I. Where's. What's the general idea with this? It doesn't have to be specific. There's no, like, hard and fast rule. But it allows you to kind of make educated decisions around content that you have coming up. Another thing that you mentioned was your content calendar. Are you being. Being a finance person, are you managing that in a spreadsheet or do you have a process that you use for that? What does that look like?

I. I'm not, like, cool enough to be using, like, asana or something like that. And also it's just me. I don't need to, like, share with other people.

Yeah, yeah.

So I literally just use Google Calendars, which is. I started, I did that in college when I'd have like, meetings and classes. And I just like, have my kind of flow of stuff on there. And like, I do. I have everything mapped out there. What I'm creating that week, when I'm going to edit things, what meetings I have, what I'm sharing on social. They're all color coded. It's like kind of aggressive looking when you glance at it. But I love it because I turn everything green when I finish it, which is very satisfying. And then I never get everything done in a day, so I constantly Just like, drag things to the next day. And it's kind of like time blocking, but it really helps me visually to see what's going on for a week and even like buying groceries for the week. It's like, what do I have coming up, what I need? So I just use Google Calendar, and it works really great for me at this point in my business.

Yep. And idea being, you maybe will have three things that you're focusing on for that day. The time blocking thing, I think is really important too, because I think sometimes if we use just a standard list tool, we can be like, great, I want to do these five things which are super important, but it's like, realistically, one of them probably takes three hours, another takes four hours, and then it's like you're doing email and other stuff in between. So there goes your day. But to put it on a calendar, it makes it look and feel a little bit different than just like a task that would live in asana or, you know, things, which is an app that. That I use. So it's one of the things that I appreciate about that idea. And then being able to move them and then turning them green to that feeling of, like, done checked off. It's like the color version of crossing it off, which. Which feels great.