#280: TCA Accelerator Coaching Call with Courtney Smithee
Ever wondered why all baby toys are so bright and loud? all primary and neon colors? Aesthetic-focused moms are craving a change. In this episode of Making It in The Toy Industry, I’m bringing you a powerful coaching session that spotlights someone who's filling that market opportunity. Playcor is a brand on a mission to make toys that look as beautiful as the homes they live in.
Courtney Smithee, an interior designer turned toy inventor and student of Toy Creators Academy, is the founder of Playcor, a line of high-end, neutral-colored silicone toys that blend beautifully into modern homes. These aren’t just kids’ toys in a different colorway, but they’re multifunctional age-appropriate playthings that double as home decor. Imagine a designer-quality scalloped bowl that doubles as a rattle, and decorative silicone balls that are both chic and safe for play. That’s Playcor.
In this episode, you’ll hear how Courtney is managing product development, navigating international factory communications while pregnant, and finding clarity in the chaotic early stages of launching a toy brand. We dig into her most challenging SKU, how she’s simplifying her marketing strategy as a mom of three, and the major mindset shifts that helped her go from overwhelmed to intentional.
We’ll also celebrate some BIG wins like the moment guests walked into her home, saw her toy prototypes on display, and didn’t even realize they were toys.
So if you’ve got a creative idea and you’re wondering if it has a place in the toy world, let this episode be your sign. Tune in, get inspired, and imagine what you could create, maybe even inside Toy Creators Academy with me by your side.
Listen For These Important Moments
[00:01:03] – Courtney shares the exact moment she realized her beautiful home had been overtaken by clunky baby toys and how that led to the creation of Playcor.
[00:05:03] – Hear how Courtney went from zero toy industry experience to hopping a last-minute flight to Toy Fest, where one conversation led her to Toy Creators Academy.
[00:14:18] – Courtney opens up about the toughest part of building her brand, juggling time zones, production delays, and a growing product line, all while raising three kids.
[00:22:44] – We brainstormed alternatives like static Instagram grids, podcast ads, and email newsletters to build an audience without being constantly online.
[00:37:39] – Guests mistook Courtney’s prototypes for designer decor, a real-world validation that Playcor is solving a problem parents didn’t even realize they had.
-
This episode is brought to you by www.thetoycoach.com
Follow Playcor on Instagram.
Playcor.com is launching soon.
Ready to work with Azhelle? Join Toy Creators Academy.
-
[00:00:00] Azhelle Wade: You are listening to Making It In The Toy Industry, episode number 280.
[00:00:10] Voiceover: Welcome to Making It in The Toy Industry, a podcast for inventors, entrepreneurs, and makers like you. And now your host, Azhelle Wade.
[00:00:21] Azhelle Wade: Hey there, joy people. Azhelle Wade here and welcome back. To another episode of Making It in the Toy Industry. This is a weekly podcast brought to you by the toy coach.com. As a new mom, I have personally been faced with the horrific, uh, realization that most baby toys just don't match my decor.
[00:00:42] Azhelle Wade: So if you've ever looked at your own living room and your parent and you've thought, my man, there has to be a better way to balance. Fun for your kids with your style. Then this episode is gonna speak to you. So today I am sitting down with Courtney Smithee, a Toy Creators Academy alumni, and an accelerator student who is tackling the mess and magic of Playtime through Design.
[00:01:06] Azhelle Wade: This episode is part of our coaching series where I chat with TCA students about real challenges that they're working through right now. You're gonna hear us dig into their pain points, talk through strategies, celebrate their progress, and wrap things up with a focus on their products. For you to learn where to buy it, where to get involved.
[00:01:23] Azhelle Wade: So welcome to the podcast, Courtney Smithee, founder of Playcor.
[00:01:27] Courtney Smithee: Thank you. I am a weekly listener to this podcast, so it's so fun to be on this side of things.
[00:01:34] Azhelle Wade: I don't know where you have the time to listen to this podcast. B and TCA have three kids like where? What
[00:01:40] Courtney Smithee: I definitely multitask. I'm like always folding laundry or cooking or unloading the dishwasher.
[00:01:45] Courtney Smithee: I just play it in the background, but it's just, you know, my Wednesday routine. Got
[00:01:49] Azhelle Wade: you. Oh, I love that. That motivates me to actually get them out every Wednesday. Thank you for telling me that. I will ruin your Wednesday routine. As an interior designer, you were inspired. You saw a disconnect between beautiful spaces and kid friendly design.
[00:02:02] Azhelle Wade: So you built a brand Playcor where aesthetics and play. Don't just coexist, but they elevate each other. The toys and the structures that you've created aren't just functional, but they're also gorgeous and they blend into your life and they don't take over your space. I loved Playcor from the moment you told me the idea to the moment I saw the designs.
[00:02:22] Azhelle Wade: Um, I'm just so excited about it. I'm sure you are too.
[00:02:25] Courtney Smithee: Yes. Thank you.
[00:02:26] Azhelle Wade: Okay, so let's start with part one. Let's focus on our coaching session. Part one's gonna be our coaching session. Part two is gonna be celebrating your wins, and then part three of this conversation, we'll do the spotlight on play cord and you can talk more about that and tell us who that's for.
[00:02:26] Azhelle Wade: But to start, I wanna find out. Why you joined Toy Creators Academy? When you did first join, where were you at in your life that you thought, you know what I need to add to my busy schedule a toy business? Like what, what happened there?
[00:02:53] Courtney Smithee: Sure. Yeah. So I was, you know, a new stay at home mom. Um, my. Career as an interior designer was kind of put on hold and I was missing that creative outlet, and I kind of just felt my identity slowly slipping away.
[00:03:07] Courtney Smithee: And it became very tangible whenever I was replacing my beautiful curated home decor items for these loud, very brightly colored toys that were bulky. And my living room started to feel more like a daycare than it did my home. And I remember. Being like just scrolling on Instagram, one day I found this really cute accent bowl and I was about to impulse by it, and I stopped.
[00:03:34] Courtney Smithee: Not because I didn't love it, but because I was, I had the realization like, wait, I don't even have a coffee table anymore. Like whenever I was getting rid of everything that was, you know, dangerous or fragile or a hazard to my babies, you know, pulling up and grabbing things. The coffee table just went and I figured that that's, you know.
[00:03:54] Courtney Smithee: Pretty common for most people. And my thought immediately went to, what if we designed for play instead of a round play? Like, why do I have to take away all of these things? Why can't we just coexist together? And so I was completely new to the industry. I didn't know where to start, just a quick Google search.
[00:04:14] Courtney Smithee: And I ended up in Toy Fest, like I just booked a plane ticket to Vegas. What Toy Fest? Yeah. Wow. I had no plan. I had no plan, I had no expectations. I didn't even have business cards. People were literally like, what are you doing? Oh my
[00:04:30] Azhelle Wade: God,
[00:04:30] Courtney Smithee: that's so funny. But I, I got so inspired by it and I loved the people, and while I was there, someone mentioned you.
[00:04:36] Courtney Smithee: Oh. And the Toys Creator Academy. Wait,
[00:04:39] Azhelle Wade: what?
[00:04:39] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. Wow. I got word, mouth and
[00:04:42] Azhelle Wade: Toy Fest.
[00:04:44] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. What year was this? It was not last year, the year before, so 2023. Wow. I don't
[00:04:50] Azhelle Wade: even know that I'd been to Toy Fest at that point.
[00:04:52] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. I don't know. Interesting.
[00:04:54] Azhelle Wade: Okay, cool. I just
[00:04:55] Courtney Smithee: popped on a plane and went there. Wow. And once I heard your name, I was like, okay.
[00:05:01] Courtney Smithee: I went back to my hotel room, I took your free masterclass. Oh. And I was like, this is what I need. Like I had this like, like I had this idea, very clear vision, but I had no direction. And I was like, this is what's going to give me, you know, the tools, the community, and the roadmap to really see this.
[00:05:17] Courtney Smithee: Through. Yeah. Um, and it has.
[00:05:20] Azhelle Wade: Oh, I love that. That's amazing. I love that. I mean, that's for my, for my marketing. That feels really good. Yeah. Um, did you ever doubt at some point that you were a toy person or whether you had an idea that was good enough?
[00:05:32] Courtney Smithee: Definitely, yeah. Just not having any experience in the industry and feeling like the.
[00:05:39] Courtney Smithee: Toy industry is already so, you know, big and established, and here I was a 30-year-old, like trying to do a career change. You know, in the midst of having a family and running a household, it definitely made me question just kind of, am I allowed to do this? Like, am I, am I a toy person? Am I qualified for this?
[00:05:58] Courtney Smithee: Allowed to do? If you're allowed to
[00:06:00] Azhelle Wade: raise. Children, I think you're allowed to make toys for them. What shifted the mindset of, if you like, till you believe that you were a toy person and that your idea was good enough?
[00:06:10] Courtney Smithee: Definitely just talking more with other parents and especially moms who were feeling this way, and it made me realize there truly is.
[00:06:17] Courtney Smithee: A gap, you know? And there is a need where, you know, our two worlds want to coexist together. Yeah. And there's plenty of aesthetically, you know, beautiful toys out there, but they still look like toys.
[00:06:30] Azhelle Wade: Yeah. So
[00:06:31] Courtney Smithee: the point of Playcor is to make them look. Like home decor. Yeah. But we still put play as a priority.
[00:06:38] Azhelle Wade: I can, I remember when I connected you with Kelsey from We Are Fridays, which is a marketing agency. I'd been talking to her and she's a new mom and she'd been sharing with me pictures of her house and I was like, wow, this looks like play Decor's aesthetic. I was like, I have to connect you with one of my students.
[00:06:51] Azhelle Wade: I don't know if you could work together, but at very least you're gonna want her product when it comes out. Um, but yeah, it's like your aesthetic is just for. I don't know. It's like for the mom that likes a clean, simple home and like a high end looking home, but also cares about her kids and kids' development and like, ah, I just love it.
[00:07:11] Azhelle Wade: It's interesting 'cause like I'm a very colorful person and your stuff is very, is like very neutral, but like I have neutral accents in my house. You know what? I still would buy a few neutral pieces to support my color aesthetic. But are you currently following the path of inventor or entrepreneur?
[00:07:28] Courtney Smithee: Entrepreneur. I have a vision and a brand that I wanna see through. I wanna create a collection of toys and really just grow with it.
[00:07:37] Azhelle Wade: Now, give us that elevator pitch for your brand. If you had 30 seconds on the elevator with someone who could just change the game for your brand, what would you say to them?
[00:07:45] Courtney Smithee: So Playcor is a new toy brand and it creates multifunctional toys that double as high-end home decor.
[00:07:53] Azhelle Wade: I feel like I would say, you know how having a kid can change your life completely. Like say you were this person who's super organized or super who super focused on the design of your home, and then all of a sudden you have a kid and your home starts looking like a daycare.
[00:08:07] Azhelle Wade: Well, if you've ever felt that way, I gotta tell you about this. Brand Playcor, which, and then describe what Playcor is. I feel like I would set it up that way.
[00:08:15] Courtney Smithee: Okay. So make it more like a
[00:08:17] Azhelle Wade: conversation.
[00:08:18] Courtney Smithee: Yeah.
[00:08:19] Azhelle Wade: Like, yeah, like not every brand can do this, but your brand is such a relatable problem to most people.
[00:08:26] Azhelle Wade: Like a lot of people have kids, so you could almost start your conversation if you know someone has kids, or you could say, do you have kids? And then they would be like, yeah, maybe. Hopefully. Or, this won't work. But like you could say, well, you know, when I had kids, Ugh, it just. Turned my beautifully designed aesthetic home into a daycare, and that started to, that affected my identity.
[00:08:52] Azhelle Wade: It affected my happiness, my joy. And then I thought, why can't there be a world where design aesthetics and toys can coexist? Why can't we have catch bowls? And I know high end decor books that double us play things. And that's exactly what Playcor is. I think I would go somewhere like that.
[00:09:11] Courtney Smithee: Okay.
[00:09:12] Azhelle Wade: Yeah.
[00:09:12] Azhelle Wade: We wanna get people intrigued. I think with an elevator pitch, sometimes people think it has to be this tightly buttoned up perfect thing that says every single thing about your product. Yeah. But it's actually something where you wanna tell someone just enough that they're like. Oh, I wanna know more about that.
[00:09:27] Courtney Smithee: Okay. Yeah. Yeah, that makes more sense because yeah, I was definitely trying to make it like a, like a mouthful sentence, so, yeah, I know.
[00:09:34] Azhelle Wade: It's like a, it's a mini conversation that makes someone say, send me your cell sheet, or send me your email or something, you know?
[00:09:40] Courtney Smithee: Okay.
[00:09:41] Azhelle Wade: Try again. What, what, what would be your elevator pitch?
[00:09:44] Azhelle Wade: I'm loving this. Has begun.
[00:09:49] Courtney Smithee: Right. Coaching on words now. Yeah.
[00:09:51] Azhelle Wade: No, it's great. It's all part of the game.
[00:09:55] Courtney Smithee: Um, okay.
[00:09:57] Azhelle Wade: I'm gonna be, who should I be? I could pretend to be someone in the elevator. Ooh. I'm the buyer for Barnes and Noble. I feel like that's a fit or, oh, no, west Elm. Oh, west Elm. Mm-hmm. Or Pottery Barn.
[00:10:14] Azhelle Wade: Pottery Barn. They have a kid section. Yeah. Yes, I am the buyer at Pottery Barn. And then we just stepped into the elevator together. I'm like, and then you say hello. And I'm like, oh, hi. Nice to meet you. Hi. Now what?
[00:10:25] Courtney Smithee: So Play Corps was kind of born in this early motherhood phase of life where I started having to baby proof my home.
[00:10:34] Courtney Smithee: Mm-hmm. And slowly I was getting rid of all of these beautiful but fragile home decor pieces. And my heart just sank a little bit because this was part of me. Design is a very big part of me that I want to share with my children, and I want them to explore, and I want them to appreciate. But I felt limited in the things that I could display on my coffee table or a low shelf because it was dangerous.
[00:10:59] Courtney Smithee: So I wanted to create a toy line that honored both of those worlds and coexisted together where my children can enjoy what they're playing with. It's developmentally appropriate, but it. Still looks good on my shelf and it's made for play and display.
[00:11:15] Azhelle Wade: Love it. That was very good. And just say that over you.
[00:11:18] Azhelle Wade: You'll hear the recording. Say it over and over. Play it over and over for yourself so that when you have an opportunity to say that all the words will be readily available. And even if you don't remember it word for word, you'll remember the general context of what you wanna say. Okay. But yeah, that's great.
[00:11:32] Azhelle Wade: And don't be afraid too, like if you hop in an elevator, you're not gonna start with just like play chorus. Like you're gonna be like, hi, my name's Courtney. Um, I'm a manufacturer. What do you do? And then say, yeah, and then you can do it. Um, so what's the hardest part of launching Play Corps?
[00:11:48] Courtney Smithee: Definitely just how long of a process it is.
[00:11:51] Courtney Smithee: Yeah, I mean, I grew a whole baby and I'm still, you know, not launched yet.
[00:11:57] Azhelle Wade: That's dope. She literally got pregnant after starting Play Court has had a child and is still creating play court.
[00:12:06] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. You know, we're barely at mass production now, so, oh my gosh. It's just a long process and my personality, you know, just craves kind of these more tangible milestones.
[00:12:17] Courtney Smithee: Right. And there's so much behind the scene work that goes on, and just like little things that move the needle. Mm. That you don't always see. They're very, you know, quiet. Right. They're almost invisible. You're relying on people. What's example of people's an, honestly, a lot of it too is the time zone. The time zone difference, like.
[00:12:34] Courtney Smithee: I send one email or I respond to one email and then it takes, you know, 16 hours for them to respond to an email, which it kind of has been working out these past two weeks. Right. You know, being up with a newborn is, I'm kind of on their time too, so I'm responding to these emails. It's so true.
[00:12:49] Azhelle Wade: Yes.
[00:12:50] Courtney Smithee: But yeah, but it just kind of takes a while to get things answered by just the time zone alone.
[00:12:55] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. And then for me, I mean, I'm working with multiple. Products. And so it kind of seems like they're all moving at different,
[00:13:03] Azhelle Wade: they
[00:13:03] Courtney Smithee: are phases. They all have their own problems in different ways, and so it's kind of, you know, just trying to, you know, put out fires here and here and here for each and everything.
[00:13:13] Azhelle Wade: You are truly a product developer. Like when what you are doing in the, and the, the Excel sheets that I look at for your products looks exactly like the sheets I used to run off of at the last company I worked for with, I mean, I was doing like 50 products at a time. Sometimes more, but there would be columns for like, what stage is this at?
[00:13:31] Azhelle Wade: Have we got the production sample? When's the delivery date? Like there are just columns upon columns upon columns to track all these different items. And then there will be a separate spec sheet for each item. So you're just a professional toy developer at this point.
[00:13:43] Courtney Smithee: It's, it's overwhelming and yeah, it's a lot to kind of take on at first, but if it wanted to be a true.
[00:13:49] Courtney Smithee: Home decor collection. Yes. It kind of had to, it had to have multiple products. Yeah. It could be like, here's a catch bowl.
[00:13:55] Azhelle Wade: You know, there aren't many brands where I would say launch multiple products at once, but your brand does make sense where you need to come out with a collection to really establish the aesthetic and use case of the brand.
[00:14:06] Azhelle Wade: Where one product alone wouldn't have done that as well. If you could snap your fingers and just fix one thing in your brand instantly, what would it be? Or in your business.
[00:14:16] Courtney Smithee: I think creating systems, you know, creating more systems that can kind of allow me to step away, even just momentarily, even, you know, for bedtime or for dinner, and things just run more smoothly.
[00:14:29] Courtney Smithee: Yeah, I'm kind of in this phase. I feel like, I call it like the no fun phase where it, it's very business heavy. Like I did the design part, I did the prototyping, I did all the things that I enjoy and that I. Think are fun, you know, the branding and whatnot, and now I'm having to deal with like logistics.
[00:14:49] Azhelle Wade: You're like, I don't wanna do any of this.
[00:14:51] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. So it, it honestly, it's really hard to kind of get my mind in that mindset to make these decisions and then I kind of procrastinate things, or I feel like I am focusing on one area at a time. The other area is lacking. So just kind of having more systems in place.
[00:15:09] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. I think would be helpful.
[00:15:11] Azhelle Wade: I do wanna go back a little bit to your comment about the time zone change and how long things take to execute. Because in TCA, I know we talked about the different apps for communication, WhatsApp and WeChat being one you can use. And whenever I feel like email communications are getting slower than I would like and the momentum is dying and I just feel antsy, I will shift them immediately to WhatsApp or WeChat.
[00:15:33] Azhelle Wade: I'll say, Hey, I'm on WhatsApp. Can you send me a message? Here's my number. Or I'm on WeChat. Can you, here's my. Uh, username and I'll share my link. And you get responses a lot faster even when they're not online. 'cause I think, I don't know if they're like staying online when they get home on their phone versus not being an email when they're at home.
[00:15:53] Azhelle Wade: Um, but I definitely, like, there's one factory I'm working with right now and I'm like, oh my God, can you stop messaging me? I don't really, I don't really wanna work this much. I was just trying to get one answer and now all of a sudden I'm getting like all these texts. Um, but it's, no, but it's good because now I have quicker access.
[00:16:09] Azhelle Wade: Like I find myself messaging him at 11:00 AM my time, which we know is like 11:00 PM their time, and I'm still getting responses, so I, I don't know if it's a matter of they have WhatsApp on their phone, but not their email, you know? True.
[00:16:22] Courtney Smithee: Yeah, kind of more like texting.
[00:16:24] Azhelle Wade: Yeah. So if you wanted to move things along, that's also an option.
[00:16:27] Azhelle Wade: But 16 hours isn't, I mean, it's not the best response time. It's not terrible. Um, but if you did wanna move things along, that's a good option. The only hard part is connecting. Like when you do the emails, you have that trail where with WhatsApp it becomes like, Hey, you said this on WhatsApp. Let me screenshot, send it in an email.
[00:16:44] Azhelle Wade: It's a little bit messy but
[00:16:46] Courtney Smithee: true.
[00:16:47] Azhelle Wade: So what do you think your next move should be?
[00:16:54] Azhelle Wade: Sorry. You're like, I dunno,
[00:16:57] Courtney Smithee: the brain finding, I'm like, what? You're just waiting for
[00:16:59] Azhelle Wade: your pricing and your sampling, right?
[00:17:02] Courtney Smithee: No pricing. I have pretty solid, I think the next phase in the pipeline is testing.
[00:17:08] Azhelle Wade: Oh, you're that far along. Is there anything holding you back from executing that?
[00:17:12] Courtney Smithee: Mostly just kind of trying to get everything together on the same page.
[00:17:16] Courtney Smithee: Got it. Most of my products are silicone, so I'm kind of waiting on the molds. For those as well to be finished. And then once those are finished, we get the first batch and then those are sent to testing.
[00:17:30] Azhelle Wade: I did recently have a chat with a representative from From kea. They offer a lot of different services, but one of the ones that I usually post about in TCA is utilizing them as a.
[00:17:39] Azhelle Wade: Q and a resource to make sure your product quality is on point, but they can also arrange testing for you. They have labs in Buffalo, but also China, and obviously China's more affordable. But I wonder if it might be beneficial to get pricing from your factory on what it would cost for them to run your testing and what lab they would use to make sure it's even an accredited lab.
[00:17:58] Azhelle Wade: And then also reaching out to QIMA. I have an affiliate link, so I'll send that to you. Um, but also reaching out to QIMA and saying, Hey, can you do my testing and what lab and how much? If it's cheaper to go through them, that might be more beneficial. Be also because they're a third party, so you can control it a little bit more and you would just have to have your factory send your samples to their lab.
[00:18:20] Courtney Smithee: Okay.
[00:18:20] Azhelle Wade: So that would be another option. Have you had a moment lately where you felt stuck or unsure what to do?
[00:18:25] Courtney Smithee: Yes. Mostly, again, just kind of going back to this, I'm in this, you know, phase where there's a lot of moving pieces. It's not the creative side that mm-hmm. That is very intriguing and I had just kind of a, a simple to-do list and I kind of just felt.
[00:18:41] Courtney Smithee: Stuck not really knowing where to give my attention and priority to. Hmm. Um, again, not because I didn't have anything to do, but more so I had so much to do that I was just kind of like, where should I go from here? Especially when they're all in different phases. It was tough challenge to kind of figure out where to best use my time.
[00:19:02] Azhelle Wade: Is that the challenge you wanna work through today or is there something else that you wanna focus on?
[00:19:07] Courtney Smithee: Um, this I could probably use a little help with because I'm, I, I was thinking about the coaching session. Yeah. And I was just like, I honestly like don't know where to start.
[00:19:17] Azhelle Wade: So what do you have on your to-do list right now?
[00:19:19] Azhelle Wade: Just like, throw everything at me in any order.
[00:19:21] Courtney Smithee: Oh. Actually, what would probably be a good one would be focusing on the direct to consumer launching.
[00:19:28] Azhelle Wade: Okay. Like that as the, as the coaching focus. So, but you know what I'm gonna say? I'm gonna say social media and email list. So like where are we at with that?
[00:19:37] Azhelle Wade: Yeah. Where, you know, we had a whole masterclass extra session on this.
[00:19:42] Courtney Smithee: I guess I'm holding back so much on. The social media, and I know the power of social media, I know the power of the email list, but I also don't want like a business that's solely built on just a social media fair point trend or mm-hmm.
[00:19:57] Courtney Smithee: Or anything. And emails for me personally. Don't seem to work. And so I kind of have a hard time justifying like, yes, this is going to reach my audience. And again, I don't have a better solution. Like I, I know that they do work, but it's just kind of hard for me to start that because I'm someone who likes to see the end picture.
[00:20:18] Courtney Smithee: Or have the end goal, and I don't have you know my launch date just yet.
[00:20:22] Azhelle Wade: Well, the key is gonna be when you start thinking about your ideal target market and where they hang out and what they do. So for me, for my ideal target market, usually the you, like you are my ideal target market. So you would Google something and say, how do I make a toy?
[00:20:38] Azhelle Wade: Or whatever, and then you end up going to Toy Fest. Right? Right. Um, so from my marketing mind, it's important that I'm known in the toy industry, so somebody will tell you about me, but also it's important that I would show up on Google. So when you actually, when you were telling the story and you said you searched.
[00:20:52] Azhelle Wade: Google, and I thought you were gonna say you found me. So when you said you found Toy Fest, I was like, oh, dammit. I need to do something better because she found someone else. So that's my lesson. So for you, who is your ideal target market? Is it interior designers primarily that were having kids because that connects directly to you, or is it like the millennial mom who.
[00:21:12] Azhelle Wade: Jokingly loves gray. Um, who is about to have kids and then going to where do those people hang out? I do feel like TikTok could be a good place. Um, I feel like there is a mom talk audience there that you could connect with. But is there somewhere else, like are there, I don't know if people still read magazines, but are there magazines that are reading or are there like digital newsletters?
[00:21:33] Azhelle Wade: They're already reading one that I read. Um, it's like a YouTube, it's like an email list called like Morning Brew is when I read and. There's another one called like the Creator something. Obviously it doesn't have a great name, but it's called like the Creator something, and it's about people that are making YouTube channels and those newsletters sell ads in the newsletter.
[00:21:52] Azhelle Wade: And I've had luck before buying ads in newsletters. Granted, I bought like a $500 ad in a newsletter that was like probably about 50 to a hundred thousand people. Big. And Morning Brew is much bigger than that. This creator's newsletter, much bigger than that. Mm-hmm. But one of your marketing plans could be.
[00:22:10] Azhelle Wade: I'm not gonna start with social media yet, but what I am gonna do is identify newsletters or physical magazines or websites that accept ads and create a marketing budget for ads to get people to learn about my brand. And if you were gonna do that route, I would say make your Instagram a nine gr, like a static nine grid that introduces yourself, your brand shows people like.
[00:22:34] Azhelle Wade: Where they can sign up for it. And that's something you don't change. And then just focus on paid promotions that will get people to your signup page, but collect their email and their text number. 'cause sometimes when I send an email, I will send an email and then I'll text people. Like, Hey, I just sent you an email with a 20% off coupon, and that will get people to go and check that email.
[00:22:55] Azhelle Wade: 'cause yeah, otherwise they might not, and that's really the only way we have to connect with consumers right now is email or text or going to physical events that they attend, or being in the digital spaces that they already are, which is like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or like ads on popular websites or magazines or newsletters.
[00:23:13] Azhelle Wade: So. I would think that would be the next, if you really didn't wanna do TikTok or Instagram or Facebook, I would create some sort of permanent visual on those platforms that if somebody looks you up, they'll see your real brand. They'll see a link to your signup page for your, a discount code for the first pre-order.
[00:23:32] Azhelle Wade: Um, but then focusing on ads in even podcasts, like there could be an interior design podcast and there is a, a page I use. Uh, what is it called? Castos. They're like podcast advertising pages and like say you wanted to advertise to all home decor podcasts, you could have an advertisement that says, do you hate how all kids' product ruin the design of your living room?
[00:23:58] Azhelle Wade: Well, Playcor is the only kids' toy brand that won't, and like you could do a quick 32nd audio ad to promote your brand on podcasts as well. So maybe that's the direction you take.
[00:24:09] Courtney Smithee: I think that's a great idea. Yeah. Yeah, that's definitely something I would look into.
[00:24:14] Azhelle Wade: There are different platforms like podcast, I can't remember the name.
[00:24:19] Azhelle Wade: I feel like I use one called like Cast Box, or. There are different, uh, what are like networks that you can pay for podcast ads in, but you can also contact podcasts in, uh, directly and say, is there a way for me to promote on your show? Um, I do promotions and most people don't know that, but it's like if people email me and say, oh, can I promote on your show?
[00:24:42] Azhelle Wade: I'm like, yeah, here's the rates and here's how that happens. So consider that. Yeah. Yeah, that would be great. Are you thinking about doing a crowdfunding campaign?
[00:24:52] Courtney Smithee: No.
[00:24:54] Azhelle Wade: Well, what about pre-orders on your site though?
[00:24:56] Courtney Smithee: Definitely pre-orders. Okay. Yes, pre-orders. And that's kind of what I was hoping to get squared away before I kind of started promoting things on social media is I wanted to kind of have this defined date or timeframe for pre-orders, but we're definitely going to be doing pre-order sales and, you know, early bird access.
[00:25:17] Azhelle Wade: What's your production timeline looking like right now?
[00:25:19] Courtney Smithee: A month.
[00:25:20] Azhelle Wade: A month from now?
[00:25:22] Courtney Smithee: So
[00:25:23] Azhelle Wade: they'll ship from China and, and India, right?
[00:25:26] Courtney Smithee: Yeah.
[00:25:26] Azhelle Wade: Both in August?
[00:25:28] Courtney Smithee: Yes.
[00:25:29] Azhelle Wade: Allegedly. Allegedly.
[00:25:32] Courtney Smithee: That's when I get nervous.
[00:25:35] Azhelle Wade: Oh, man. That's, that's risky because if you start taking pre, so I mean, technically you could wait till September to take pre-orders.
[00:25:42] Courtney Smithee: And if that's my plan. Yeah. It's like once they're in the ocean is when I would like to start taking pre-orders. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. And that's kind of my holdback with crowdfunding too, is that I don't want to promise something and then I know it's part of the process. Mm-hmm. But. I don't necessarily wanna promise something, and then six months later, a year later, it arrives at people's doorsteps.
[00:26:03] Courtney Smithee: Like that's just not the
[00:26:04] Azhelle Wade: Yeah.
[00:26:05] Courtney Smithee: The way I want my brand to really start off.
[00:26:07] Azhelle Wade: Yeah,
[00:26:07] Courtney Smithee: yeah, yeah.
[00:26:07] Azhelle Wade: Well, what I would insist having done many launches, mostly digital products, uh, recently, but many launches before is. You can and should write all of the copy right now. Like even if you're like, we're not doing pre-orders anytime soon, we know you're gonna need email promo copy and text promo copy, and we know you're gonna need a landing page copy.
[00:26:29] Azhelle Wade: Each product gonna need a product description. You're gonna need, like I would make a checklist of all the copy you're gonna need and then just hyperfocus on writing that copy. Because once you get to the point of September and everything's in the water, you're gonna be like, holy crap, I have to write.
[00:26:44] Azhelle Wade: So much co and it has to be really good. It has to motivate people to buy, it has to motivate people to see themselves in this product. Like don't wait till the last minute and I know I sent you my Black Friday promo copy, right? Yeah. So use use that as like your template and say, okay, I know I need this email to open it.
[00:27:01] Azhelle Wade: I need this email to close it and just rewrite email by email, that document to start and then you. Definitely need the sales page copy. And actually something I've done before is if you write out all of those emails, you can bring them into chat GBT and say, write a sales page based on these emails to sell this item and get like a quick thing done.
[00:27:22] Azhelle Wade: And you have your images already, right?
[00:27:24] Courtney Smithee: Not all of them. Some of the, the prototypes still need, needed. A little bit of tweaking. Um, but I should have the images, the end of the month, the prototypes, and the images at the end of the month
[00:27:34] Azhelle Wade: if you need help. With your copywriting, which I don't think you will, but if you do, I would recommend Nicole.
[00:27:41] Azhelle Wade: Ick. She helped me quite a bit. Mm-hmm. With my copywriting and it was just really good to get an outside perspective, you know, like
[00:27:48] Courtney Smithee: True.
[00:27:49] Azhelle Wade: And so what, what I had to go to work with her though, and she was like, oh my God, you're my best client. Like you gave me so much insight is I had a lot of surveys about my ideal target market explaining like what they want.
[00:28:00] Azhelle Wade: So I did, when I first started, all I did was survey people. I was making like no money. I was just like, answer this survey about what you would like to learn. And people explained so much. So I sent that to her and had her rewrite a lot of my copy to help me see things in a different perspective. And, and I think you might need that.
[00:28:19] Azhelle Wade: And if you don't do it, if you don't hire her, at least send this in our accelerator group for us to all look at because, okay. Yeah. The hard thing for me was. I didn't like to say things like, I can help you launch your toy brand, or, I didn't like to say things like, your idea is amazing. 'cause I just really didn't want to like lie to people.
[00:28:40] Azhelle Wade: Like I felt like I wanted everything to be a hundred percent true and things are true, but it just, I just felt so like, I was like, well, what if they have a stick figure? You know, like, I don't, like, that's not a good idea. But when Nicole rewrote my copy with confidence, without that hesitation that I was putting into all of it, I was like, oh, wow, this is way better.
[00:29:02] Azhelle Wade: And it feels more like when I'm talking to someone like you, that is how I would talk. Right? And I felt like I have to assume that the people that are reading this are the people like you. They're the people like Samantha, like Chrissy, that I can help, that have really great ideas that I'm excited to work with.
[00:29:18] Azhelle Wade: And if I don't approach it that way. Then I'm not gonna get anyone. So I feel like you would also have that problem where you're like, it's a good design, but like, no, it's an amazing design. It's like clean. It's the clean, it's the only toy line. It's not just a toy line that combines aesthetics and play.
[00:29:35] Azhelle Wade: It's the only toy line that is designed to look like high-end interior was not, you know.
[00:29:41] Courtney Smithee: Right. Yeah. And I, I also feel like I kind of get stuck on that little hamster wheel of Yeah. Overthinking what I'm saying and trying to make it more perfect or relatable too. So yeah, I agree. Having an outside perspective I think would be very helpful.
[00:29:55] Courtney Smithee: Yeah.
[00:29:56] Azhelle Wade: And even putting into chat to BT and being like, make this more confident, just to see what it would look like and be like, oh, that is better. If it's more confident, if it's more, yeah. Unafraid to promise high quality. I was so afraid to promise high quality in the beginning. Even after people said like, this was the best investment.
[00:30:13] Azhelle Wade: I was like, yeah, because it was cheap. That's so, I should never, I was like, I would never, yeah. As soon as I would raise the price, I'd be like, that review means nothing now because like the price is higher. I'm, yeah, no. So don't do that. I lost a lot of money being insecure, so don't do that. Okay. If somebody's listening is going through the same thing that you're going through with your idea, what would you want them to say, um, from your perspective right now?
[00:30:38] Azhelle Wade: Um. Um, or what would you want to say to them from your perspective? Right now
[00:30:44] Courtney Smithee: it's kind of something I'm still learning, uh, but it's definitely about taking the first small steps versus taking the perfect steps.
[00:30:52] Azhelle Wade: Mm. And that's
[00:30:53] Courtney Smithee: something that I struggled with, surprisingly, I'm a lot better at now. Yeah. Um, because I do have the tools and the confidence now.
[00:30:59] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. But it's definitely just something that I think people will need to hear is you need to just start taking those small steps, and it's okay to not have all your ducks in a row. Mm-hmm. But just keep moving forward because it's those little moments and those little steps that add up and the end.
[00:31:17] Azhelle Wade: Yeah. I would even add and say, make a checklist and put everything on it. And then check it off. That feels really good. Mm-hmm. I like, oh, I love a checklist. Right. Well, when I do checklist, I don't write the things that I've either just done or I think are too small. And my husband is the one who's always like, no, you have to add that.
[00:31:36] Azhelle Wade: We went like, go to the gym to our checklist. 'cause we have checklists for like our to-dos. And then I'm like, we already did that. He's like, yeah, but we need to check it off. And I'm like, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. You're right. You're right. That feel, it does feel good. When you look at your checklist and you've actually checked things off.
[00:31:49] Azhelle Wade: It makes you feel like I am making progress. So,
[00:31:51] Courtney Smithee: right. I did that too. Like I, with laundry, it was like, right, it used to be fold and wash laundry, and I'm like, no, those are two different hat, two separate things I get to check off.
[00:32:00] Azhelle Wade: I washed it and I fold for me now, I send it out and away because I cannot, I don't even try to do laundry anymore.
[00:32:07] Azhelle Wade: I'm like, this is too much. I will pay for someone else to do this laundry. I will do the baby's laundry. That's all the laundry I'm doing right now. That's Say it. I can't. Okay. What's one win that you've had recently that made you stop and say, wow, I can't believe I actually did that?
[00:32:24] Courtney Smithee: I think styling my prototypes in my home and having people just come over and, you know, unprompted ask about them and ask where I got them, not realizing that they were my prototypes.
[00:32:37] Courtney Smithee: What'd they ask? Like I made that. They just ask where it's from. They're saying like, oh, that's beautiful, or, oh, that's neat, and then they're like, is that new? Where is it from? And I got to tell them that. Yeah. You know, it's actually a toy. And are they on your email list? Yeah. Right. No, I'm serious.
[00:32:54] Azhelle Wade: And this QR code to learn more.
[00:32:56] Azhelle Wade: Yeah, I
[00:32:56] Courtney Smithee: should, I should put a QR code next to.
[00:32:59] Azhelle Wade: Not kidding.
[00:33:00] Courtney Smithee: And then, yeah, and seeing my, you know, my kids just interact with the toys and play with them and my, when my nieces and nephew come over, they also just gravitate towards them and start playing with them, you know, without prompting. And it's really cool to see the children that inspired it to be, to be playing with it.
[00:33:19] Azhelle Wade: Oh, I love that. And I was gonna ask like, what inspired this idea? And if you, we already know it's the children, but was there a moment that inspired it?
[00:33:27] Courtney Smithee: I think going back to that, that. Bowl, you know, the, oh, the bowl that I was about to buy and then the, the having no coffee table and Right.
[00:33:38] Azhelle Wade: You did say that.
[00:33:39] Azhelle Wade: No way to put it. The children that took away your coffee table inspired this. Got it. Okay. What is something that you did in this program that you never thought you would do before joining?
[00:33:50] Courtney Smithee: First thought is the The virtual pitch event.
[00:33:54] Azhelle Wade: Oh yeah. Nobody ever want, yeah, nobody. There are certain people that are like, I'm not gonna do that.
[00:34:00] Azhelle Wade: And then I text them privately and I'm like, I see you haven't signed up yet. What? Why not? And
[00:34:04] Courtney Smithee: it's scary. It's a scary. Thought to do. Yeah. And I definitely felt more confident the day of, um, even though there ended up being way more people than you were expecting.
[00:34:16] Azhelle Wade: Yeah, yeah. Normally you pitch like one person and then like four people showed up.
[00:34:20] Azhelle Wade: So I came into the, into the waiting room and I was like, Courtney, just don't freak out. But there was like four people in the other room I didn't know.
[00:34:28] Courtney Smithee: I definitely freaked out. I, I was feeling so confident. I was like, you know what? I feel so prepared. 'cause we had a lot of, you know, one-on-one sessions.
[00:34:36] Courtney Smithee: Yeah. We had a lot of, you gave me a lot of great feedback and, and I was like, yeah, I got this. And then you're like, Hey, there's four people by the way, I'll be back to get you in five minutes. '
[00:34:47] Azhelle Wade: cause I was like, I can't let her come in and see these four people that would be like.
[00:34:52] Courtney Smithee: No. Yeah, I agree.
[00:34:53] Azhelle Wade: I was scared when they kept piling in the room.
[00:34:55] Azhelle Wade: I was like, wait, what's going on? What's happening right now? This is a lot.
[00:35:00] Courtney Smithee: No, they they were very kind. Yeah. They were. Uh, it's just, it's a scary process, you know? Yeah, yeah. It definitely helped me kind of articulate and think about my, and speak about my products, you know, with more confidence. So just that practice alone was.
[00:35:13] Courtney Smithee: So beneficial
[00:35:14] Azhelle Wade: for those that might not know. Listening. The TCA virtual pitch event is a pitch event I put on at the, pretty much at the end of every Toy Creator's Academy class once a year. We do this now and. It's an event where like you'll pitch to companies virtually, but I'm in the room virtually taking notes, you know, kind of hyping you up.
[00:35:31] Azhelle Wade: Um, and I always encourage people that I think are ready to pitch, even if they don't apply, I will find the time to DM them privately and be like, why haven't I seen an application come in from you? Because, I mean, like, you, you invest in. The coaching and the program and then the product. And I just know that if you don't pitch in this moment, you're gonna put it off as long as possible.
[00:35:54] Azhelle Wade: And like if this, this is like your first like bandaid, ripoff experience and it's gonna be the most comfortable one you're ever gonna have. 'cause I'm there. You know me and then like it's virtual. You have like nothing to lose. There's no like, I don't even give you the option to be rejected. Like they might say like, we're interested, we're not, or maybe, and then I immediately remove you from the room.
[00:36:15] Azhelle Wade: I'm like, okay, I'll tell you what happens next. Bye. Like you don't, it's the easiest scenario you will ever have. So. I insist that you do it.
[00:36:24] Courtney Smithee: I would agree. Honestly, I, I'm so happy that I ended up doing it and I almost talked myself out of it so many times. My gosh,
[00:36:33] Azhelle Wade: these people, these are the people that stress me out.
[00:36:35] Azhelle Wade: 'cause I have these meetings booked and I'm like, if you guys don't show up, I am gonna look so dumb. I've gone to meetings before where people didn't show up and I'm like, so this person couldn't arrive. But I have a product to show you. And I just pitched something else, but Okay. This is great. Have you had any aha moments that changed how you think about your audience for your brand?
[00:36:55] Courtney Smithee: Let me
[00:36:55] Azhelle Wade: think. If it doesn't come to you, perhaps there were none. There may not have been any.
[00:37:01] Courtney Smithee: I think because I'm so closely related to my target audience. Yeah. I kind of was just going off of what I would want and my intuition. Yeah. And what I feel like I would, you know, buy my sister or my friend mm-hmm.
[00:37:16] Courtney Smithee: Who is in this situation.
[00:37:17] Azhelle Wade: Right. I also think like Google Ads will be a good thing for you to invest in, right? Like go to your, your sister Kelsey, yourself and say, if you were looking for products that wouldn't ruin your decor, what would you type into Google? And then those are the keywords that you should use in your Google ads.
[00:37:34] Azhelle Wade: That would be a really good way to build your list as well. That's a great idea. Yeah. And actually as we go to this, there must be a way for you to promote in like Baby List or in Amazon's registries. Like there must be a way to like get an ad or something in those circles, right? Yeah,
[00:37:51] Courtney Smithee: that's a great idea.
[00:37:52] Courtney Smithee: Yeah.
[00:37:52] Azhelle Wade: Okay. Product Spotlight, moment to Shine. Tell us more about your toy brand. Who is it for? If they're listening to this podcast, how would you describe them so that they know that this is for them?
[00:38:02] Courtney Smithee: It's for just the everyday caregivers, people who want to display the items that reflect their style, but still care about the safety of their children.
[00:38:12] Azhelle Wade: Mm, love that. And what do you want kids and families to feel when they're playing with your toy brand?
[00:38:17] Courtney Smithee: I want kids to feel engaged. I want them to, you know, enjoy what they're playing with Each product is. Kind of child led and open-ended. So it's kind of, it's really fun to see how they play with these items.
[00:38:30] Courtney Smithee: And it's not always the way that I intended for it to be played with. Mm. Um, like we have a chain link and my daughter plays like choo choo train with it. Like she'll put her little dolls in between each lane. Oh, that's funny. And just start pulling them around. Right. That's hilarious. So when I was designing it, I never thought of that aspect.
[00:38:47] Azhelle Wade: Yeah.
[00:38:47] Courtney Smithee: Um, but I definitely want kids to kind of make it their own. And explore design and appreciate design. And parents don't have to either put things away or yell at their children not to touch those pieces. You know, it encourages them to touch and feel and play.
[00:39:05] Azhelle Wade: Love that. And where can people go to buy Playcor?
[00:39:09] Azhelle Wade: Or connect with you.
[00:39:10] Courtney Smithee: So on Instagram, we're at Playcor Home, and then our website is www.Playcor.com, where you can sign up and get ready for the prelaunch.
[00:39:22] Azhelle Wade: Awesome. If someone out there is listening and they're sitting on an idea like you once were, what would you say to them about what they should do next?
[00:39:30] Azhelle Wade: Should they go to Toy Fest? Should they join Toy Creators Academy? What should they do next?
[00:39:34] Courtney Smithee: Especially if you do not have industry experience. I mean, toys Creator Academy is an amazing resource. It gives you the roadmap, it gives you the community. Like I just, I love getting on Facebook when, whenever someone posts on our community page, like to see what they're up to.
[00:39:51] Courtney Smithee: I mean, even just, it, it's a, it's a kind of lonely process, right? Yes. I mean, being an entrepreneur is in general, um, and so doing this. When you're working by yourself and not having that, those coworkers around you, like a normal job, I guess. Yeah. Um, can be very lonely. And so it's nice to have this community to see what other people are working on, to see if it sparks inter inspiration to get feedback and to just kind of hear their ups and downs as well.
[00:40:20] Courtney Smithee: It's, it's all part of it and all. Great for, for your development as well.
[00:40:26] Azhelle Wade: Agreed. Agreed. It's and, and I love that everybody has something to offer. It's not just me giving all of the advice. It's everybody saying, this just happened when I went to this trade show, or this just happened with this manufacturer from the TCA list.
[00:40:39] Azhelle Wade: Or, I found a new manufacturer like you did in India working with another accelerator student, so,
[00:40:44] Courtney Smithee: right.
[00:40:45] Azhelle Wade: Yeah. I love that.
[00:40:46] Courtney Smithee: Yeah.
[00:40:47] Azhelle Wade: Now I'd love to hear as my closing question. What Toyer game blew your mind as a kid?
[00:40:52] Courtney Smithee: I love this question. I, I have so many fond memories, just like playing as a child. And the one that sticks out in particular is, it's a, it was play school, I'm pretty sure it's play school.
[00:41:03] Courtney Smithee: Um, a play school dollhouse that was like Victorian style. It had a pink lid or pink roof that you could remove and blue siding. And I just, wow. Loved rearranging the furniture. I loved decorating, I loved making, you know, building the families and the community, um, that came with the dollhouse. And it's kind of funny to reflect back on that and to see how it really did, you know, shape my life and my careers even up until this point moving forward.
[00:41:32] Courtney Smithee: And it just shows how powerful play is.
[00:41:35] Azhelle Wade: That's crazy. Yeah. 'cause you grew up to be an interior designer. That's crazy. Yeah. Wow. That's really cool. I wonder what came first, like, were you always gonna be an interior designer and then that product just kind of solidified it? That's so cool.
[00:41:48] Courtney Smithee: Right? Yeah. So yeah, I, I loved the doll houses.
[00:41:52] Azhelle Wade: Oh man. Courtney, this has been a great conversation. From your passion to, with interior design, to leading to you creating a kid-centered product that still makes parents happy, you are showing the world that you don't have to compromise your home and your style. For play. So today we got a chance to walk through some of your current challenges.
[00:42:10] Azhelle Wade: I hope you found it helpful, and I hope that you have a new direction and plan moving forward. The transcript will be available so you can get like a recap of all of this.
[00:42:19] Courtney Smithee: Great.
[00:42:20] Azhelle Wade: Awesome. Uh, and I love talking about the wins that you've had with play course so far. We barely highlighted the fact that you made the initiative to shift a portion of your production.
[00:42:31] Azhelle Wade: To India in light of tariffs. But you did that on your own and you knew it was gonna extend your pr, your development time, um, but you found the importance of doing that for some of your items and their cost. And I, I just really respect that, that you didn't give up, you were able to restart, and with the support of the community, you made that happen.
[00:42:48] Azhelle Wade: So that's fantastic.
[00:42:50] Courtney Smithee: Thank you.
[00:42:51] Azhelle Wade: If you, my listener, are focusing on building a brand that has to balance function and aesthetics, or you're just trying to create something from your experience as a parent or your experience in your own career like Courtney did. I hope that this episode gave you the permission to trust your instincts and trust your taste.
[00:43:07] Azhelle Wade: And of course, if you are enjoying this podcast and you haven't left a review, I would love it if you did. Your reviews mean a lot to me. Every time anyone comes up, I get an email, I message my husband, my mom, I'm telling everybody about it. So please leave a review wherever you're listening to this podcast.
[00:43:22] Azhelle Wade: If you happen to be listening on our website, you can actually leave a comment below. I sometimes respond to those comments as well. Thank you again for spending your time with us today. I know your schedule is full and that there are a ton of podcasts out there to choose from. So it means the world to me that you tune into this one until next week.
[00:43:39] Azhelle Wade: I'll see you later toy people. Bye.
[00:43:43] Voiceover: Thanks for listening to the Making It In The Toy Industry Podcast with Azhelle Wade. Head over to thetoycoach.com for more information, tips, and advice.
-
🎓 Unlock dozens of trusted factory contacts, develop your idea, and grow your toy company contact list TODAY by joining Toy Creators Academy®, learn more here.