How to Build an In-House Creative Media Team

TL;DR

Building an effective internal media team starts with hiring people who combine storytelling ability, professional care, personal chemistry, and belief in the company’s mission. BPN waited seven years before making its first creative hire, then expanded rapidly after Jordan Utter joined in 2019, freeing founder Nick Bare to focus beyond filming and editing while the team developed more professional creative capabilities.

Transcript

in this episode of the podcast I sit down with my creative director Jordan uter Jordan joined the bpn team in 2019 he was employee number five he joined seven years after I started bpn out of my small College Department in Western Pennsylvania and for those first seven years I was filming editing and creating almost all of my own content but in 201... Read More

Key Insights

• BPN’s first creative hire came seven years after the company started in 2012. Nick Bare handled nearly all filming and editing during that period, partly by choice and necessity, until the demands of scaling required him to delegate content production.
• The key to BPN’s creative hiring decision was finding the right combination of storytelling skill, professional care, personal chemistry, and energy. Nick had tested several candidates over almost two years, but good creative output alone did not establish the working relationship he needed.
• Jordan Utter’s opportunity began through proximity and initiative. He met Nick while filming a collaboration for another YouTuber, learned that BPN needed a media professional, and sent a direct message asking to enter the interview process rather than waiting for a formal opening.
• Jordan’s half Ironman assignment functioned as a practical evaluation under pressure. Filming beside an interstate in extreme heat created chaos and risk, yet Jordan found the experience exciting and wanted to do that kind of storytelling every day.
• BPN’s growth accelerated after Jordan joined in 2019 as employee number five and the first creative hire. Nick states that the company grew 400 percent, moving from approximately $5.6 million in revenue to more than $22 million while adding more team members.
• Jordan’s career decision required accepting personal uncertainty alongside professional opportunity. He and his wife moved from Cincinnati to the Austin area two weeks after getting married, leaving an expected path of conventional jobs and a settled life near their Ohio families.
• Family concern can reflect unfamiliarity rather than a reliable assessment of an opportunity. Jordan’s father-in-law struggled to understand the e-commerce business, while Jordan’s mother encouraged him to accept the opportunity, showing how different families express care through caution or affirmation.
• An internal media operation depends on people who can tell stories that fit the brand. Nick argues that many companies want to become media businesses but struggle because success requires the right people, the right stories, mutual trust, and alignment with the organization’s mission.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did BPN build its in-house creative media team?

BPN began by making a carefully chosen first creative hire rather than rapidly assembling a large department. Nick Bare produced nearly all company content from 2012 through 2019, then hired Jordan Utter after observing his storytelling ability, professional care, energy, and personal compatibility during real assignments. That hire allowed Nick to redirect attention toward other parts of the organization while the company added more people and developed its internal media capabilities.

Q: What qualities should a company seek in its first creative hire?

A first creative hire should offer more than technical competence or a strong individual project. Nick evaluated storytelling quality, care for the profession, chemistry, energy, trust, and suitability for the team. He had brought several creatives to Austin during an almost two-year search and sometimes received good work, but he did not feel the necessary connection. Jordan stood out because both his work and his working relationship with Nick felt right.

Q: Why did Nick Bare stop creating all of BPN’s content himself?

Nick had filmed, edited, and created nearly all of BPN’s content for the first seven years after starting the business in 2012. By 2019, he understood that maintaining full responsibility for content would restrict the company’s ability to scale and prevent him from concentrating on other organizational needs. Hiring Jordan transferred important creative work to a trusted specialist and marked a change in Nick’s responsibilities as the business expanded.

Q: How did Jordan Utter get the opportunity to work at BPN?

Jordan met Nick while visiting Austin to film another YouTuber who was collaborating with him. After learning that Nick had been searching for a media professional, Jordan sent a direct message expressing interest and asking about the interview process. Nick quickly invited him back to film a half Ironman. That assignment demonstrated Jordan’s enthusiasm, creative ability, and compatibility, eventually leading to an offer to move to Texas and join BPN.

Q: Why was filming the half Ironman important to Jordan’s hiring?

The half Ironman gave Nick and Jordan a realistic test of their potential working relationship. Jordan filmed from the back of a truck beside an interstate while large vehicles passed, the temperature reached 100 degrees, and Nick struggled in the heat. Despite the chaotic environment, Jordan found the assignment extremely enjoyable. Nick saw his storytelling ability, professional commitment, chemistry, and energy, which supported the decision to hire him.

Q: What risks did Jordan Utter take when joining BPN?

Jordan accepted the role while working as a freelancer and preparing to marry his wife, Michaela. The opportunity required them to leave Cincinnati and move to the Austin area only two weeks after their wedding. BPN was still a small e-commerce company with approximately $5 million in annual revenue, and Jordan’s father-in-law did not understand the business model. Jordan nevertheless chose the uncertain opportunity because it matched the creative work he had long wanted.

Q: How did BPN change after making its first creative hire?

Nick describes 2019 as the year BPN’s trajectory changed and became more professional. After Jordan joined as employee number five, the company grew 400 percent, with revenue moving from about $5.6 million to more than $22 million, and it began hiring additional employees. The transcript connects Jordan’s arrival with a pivotal period, while also emphasizing that the hire freed Nick to focus on responsibilities beyond filming and editing content.

Q: Why do some brands struggle to create internal media teams?

Nick argues that brands cannot build successful internal media operations merely by deciding to behave like media companies. They need the right people telling the right stories. His own hiring experience showed that acceptable creative work was not enough when personal chemistry and team fit were missing. BPN waited until Nick found someone whose storytelling, care, energy, and mission alignment created the trust required for a lasting creative partnership.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Nick Bare created nearly all of BPN’s content himself for seven years after starting the company in 2012. By 2019, he recognized that continuing to film and edit everything would limit his ability to scale the business and focus on other organizational responsibilities, making the first creative hire a pivotal decision.

• Jordan Utter discovered the opportunity unexpectedly while filming another YouTuber’s collaboration with Nick. After sending Nick a direct message, he returned to film a half Ironman under chaotic and difficult conditions. The experience revealed his enthusiasm for the work and gave Nick evidence of his storytelling, professionalism, energy, and compatibility.

• Jordan moved from Ohio to Texas with his wife two weeks after they married, despite uncertainty and contrasting family reactions. He joined a small operation where employees worked at IKEA kitchen tables. The conversation presents adaptability, trust, shared mission, and passion for meaningful stories as central ingredients in building BPN’s internal media team.