Julie McQueen’s journey to the head of CarbonTV started behind the camera. Initially, she documented others' outdoor adventures as a camerawoman and producer before transitioning to a show host. All of those roles were natural fits for someone with a strong love for the outdoors and who is a passionate conservation advocate. As her expertise in digital media quickly grew, Julie became the president and CEO of the outdoor-focused CarbonTV streaming platform.
Taking the helm of the popular outdoor enthusiast streaming service right before the pandemic and guiding it through a constantly changing media environment brought many challenges. However, through all of them, Julie continues to expand CarbonTV and grow its audience. In this episode of the “Only the Strong Survive” podcast, she shares with host Dan Kahn the valuable insight she has learned in her leadership position. Click on the icon above to listen to the entire fascinating episode, and here are our top five takeaways:
Being first in a space comes with many advantages.
You always have to keep adapting to consumer preferences.
Finding the right niche and owning it is key to success.
Always surround yourself with the right people.
Don’t be afraid to trust your gut.
Be a First Mover
While outdoor-focused television channels exist, CarbonTV is the first digital streaming platform covering hunting, fishing and other forms of outdoor recreation. Being first definitely comes with the advantages of being able to “own the space.” However, it doesn’t 100% guarantee success, as you still have to manage growth properly.
“Being so early in the game definitely gave us a lot of benefits. We have remained the largest over the years, but it takes a lot of dedication and a really smart team to keep that growth and keep it sustainable,” said Julie. “We are not growing at a pace that we can’t keep up with, but we are constantly evolving and growing in smart ways.”
Always Keep Adapting
How people consume media has completely changed as the dominance of network television has faded and streaming services have dramatically risen in popularity. However, even within the streaming space, consumer preferences keep shifting. Monitoring and adapting to those changes have been vital to CarbonTV’s success.
“It has really shifted over the years. Back in the day, it was all on devices like handhelds, and we were seeing shorter retention times on those. If someone is watching on an iPhone, for example, I can assume they will watch for 12 to 20 minutes,” said Julie. “As we have moved into different distribution platforms, Roku, for example, is a huge one for us. More people watch us on Roku than anywhere else. Our retention on Roku hovers around 1.5 hours per session, which is huge.”
Find Your Niche
Operating within a specific niche might seem like a limiting factor for advertising, but it has been a boon for CarbonTV. Brands that want to advertise to outdoor enthusiasts can speak directly to them on CarbonTV instead of taking their chances with more generalized audiences elsewhere. While those niche audiences might be smaller, they are also more loyal.
“They (ads on CarbonTV) are highly trackable and perform well because we have such an endemic audience. We have a loyal audience. This is going to sound a bit crazy, but they don’t have a lot of options,” said Julie. “We have them captive in some ways, which is great for the brands because they know when they run ads on Carbon, they have people seeing and engaging with those ads who are their core customers.”
Surround Yourself with the Right People
As a female CEO, Julie is definitely among a minority in the largely male-dominated outdoor industry. However, for her, it hasn’t been a negative experience that has somehow limited her growth or career options. According to Julie, it is more about the people you surround yourself with and following the path blazed by others.
“It is not like the old days, when people told you to be quiet because you were a girl and didn’t know what you were doing. I think those days are long gone,” said Julie. “There have been so many amazing and brilliant women before me who have really paved the path and opened up all those doors. As long as you navigate it the right way and keep the right people around you, I think that being a minority can be a really big blessing.”
Trust Your Gut and Act Fast
One hard lesson Julie has learned over the years is to trust your gut instincts, as they are usually right. Just as important is acting quickly on those instincts to make rapid decisions. Ignoring your instincts or taking too long to make hard decisions can lead to the demise of your brand.
“Seeing something in the company that, in my gut, I knew needed to change and not acting on it fast enough was a mistake,” said Julie. “I think as a leader, you have to make hard decisions. That is a big part of the reason why companies fail in those first five years. It is a lot of hard decisions, a series of them every day, repeatedly. If you are not good at having hard conversations, moving quickly on them and getting them out of the way, everything else starts to falter.”
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