In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Brett Stapper interviews Kaitlin Macholz, Head of Marketing at Beacons. Beacons provides a comprehensive business platform for content creators, enabling them to monetize their content across various social platforms through multiple revenue streams. With over 7 million users, Beacons has recently expanded their ecosystem with “Beacons for Brands,” connecting advertisers with relevant creators for partnerships. Throughout the conversation, Kaitlin shares insights on creator marketing, product-led growth, and the evolving creator economy landscape, emphasizing the importance of empathy and understanding the unique challenges content creators face in building sustainable businesses.

Topics Discussed:

• The unique product-led growth loop that powers Beacons’ customer acquisition

• Beacons’ expansion from link-in-bio tool to comprehensive creator monetization platform

• The launch of “Beacons for Brands” to connect advertisers with relevant creators

• The uncertain landscape for content creators and challenges they face

• Balancing quantitative measurement with qualitative value in influencer marketing

• Marketing to three distinct but interconnected audiences within the creator ecosystem

Lessons For Consumer Marketers:

Harness Product-Led Growth Through User Visibility

Beacons’ primary growth channel comes from creators seeing the product in other creators’ bios. This visibility-based growth loop minimizes marketing spend while creating a powerful self-reinforcing acquisition engine—a strategy any consumer product with visible usage can leverage.

Meet Users Where They Are in Their Journey

Kaitlin emphasizes the importance of recognizing that creators are at different stages of growth and monetization. Rather than offering one-size-fits-all marketing, Beacons tailors communication and product recommendations based on where creators are in their journey, creating more relevant experiences.

Reframe How You Measure Influencer Marketing Success

Avoid viewing creator partnerships as either pure brand awareness or pure performance marketing. Kaitlin advocates for a balanced approach that considers both the trust-building aspects of creator partnerships and quantifiable metrics like engagement and conversions.

Invest in Quality Over Content Volume

Drawing from her experience at Animalz, Kaitlin emphasizes focusing on quality content that genuinely adds value rather than publishing to hit word counts or schedules. This approach builds credibility and ultimately drives better results than high-volume, lower-quality content strategies.

Structure Marketing Systems for Distinct Audience Segments

With three different product lines serving creators, brands, and talent managers, Beacons faces the challenge of marketing to interconnected but distinct audiences. Their approach involves developing integrated marketing systems that maintain consistent brand messaging while addressing the unique needs of each segment.

Leverage Medium-Length Content for B2B Marketing

Kaitlin identifies LinkedIn posts and newsletters as increasingly effective formats for reaching business audiences. These formats offer enough space for substantive thought leadership without requiring the production resources of long-form content or the constant churn of short-form social content.