Summary: Today we hear from Aaron Nace, the founder of Phlearn, an online education startup focused on digital photography and image editing. Aaron was one of the first YouTube educators to help people get fluent with digital tools like Photoshop and Lightroom and founded his company to help amateurs grow their careers as full-time creatives. We talk about the market of online education why so much of it is focused on paid, more advanced instruction. Aaron explains why he believes in creating free content and the high reward of watching students go from aspiring to full-time professionals. We discuss why there are more important considerations than college qualifications when recruiting new employees and what he reckons is the secret to success in the online education space. He also answers questions about his toughest business decisions and what he envisions for the future of his company. Join us for another great episode! Key Points from This Episode: The reason for starting Phlearn and how the photography industry has changed How YouTube has evolved and the company’s migration from Vimeo to YouTube Free tutorials and transitioning from a free to a partially paid service Their philosophy behind creating free content and how it benefits everyone People becoming brands and how young people’s career path options have expanded The aspects that are more important than a college qualification What it takes to succeed as an online paid education platform The most difficult decision he has had to make and how he managed it The importance of first and foremost having a solid, good quality product Aiming to create a happy work environment where employees can build lifelong careers Tweetables: “We’re basically trying to help anyone out there who has a camera, which is just about everyone these days, make and take better images.” — @aknacer [0:02:31] “In my opinion, operating in a niche and doing that niche very well will most definitely set you apart.” — @aknacer [0:13:05]
