One of my favorite responsibilities at IZEA was leading our original research program.

I designed the surveys, analyzed the thousand or so responses that came back, turned the findings into multi-page reports, and wrote the press releases that launched them. It was equal parts research, storytelling, and public relations.

The flagship was called Trust in Influencer Marketing. It ran for years and eventually expanded to Canada, the UK, Australia, and China. We also published reports on aspiring creators, AI, the 2024 election, Amazon, discount clubs like Costco, and more.

The reports earned coverage in Forbes, Business Insider, NBC, and dozens of other outlets. But the best validation came at conferences. People would stop by the booth and ask me who makes our content and when the next report was coming out. You can’t really ask for better feedback than that.