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Making It in The Toy Industry

How do I bring my toy ideas to life? How can I pitch my toy concept to top toy companies like Hasbro, Mattel, or Goliath Games? What does it cost to make a prototype, and where can I get one made? Are there toy manufacturing options outside of China? These are just a few of the questions that will be answered on this weekly podcast, Making It In The Toy Industry. In addition to mini toy masterclasses, and step-by-step guides, each episode is designed to help you take immediate action toward developing, presenting, licensing, and producing your next big toy...

#111: 3 Ways Wordle Taught Us That Play Could Go Viral

24 mins; February 02, 2022

#110: Why You Can Only Sell A Toy Idea When It's R.i.T.E. with Dan Klitsner

59 mins; January 26, 2022

#109: Why You Should Attend The TCA Virtual Pitch Event

34 mins; January 19, 2022

#108: Money-Saving Benefits of Automating Your Toy Business with Kelly Goss

64 hours 18 mins; January 12, 2022

#107: Secrets For Pitching Your Game Ideas To Hasbro with Tanya Thompson

63 hours 48 mins; January 05, 2022

#106: The Power Of Telling Your Unique Toy Story with Cher Hale

36 mins; December 29, 2021

#105: Minda Harts on Retaining and Nurturing Diverse Talent in 2022

58 mins; December 22, 2021

#104: The Easiest Way To Protect Your Toy Idea That Most People Overlook with Dan Harris

53 mins; December 15, 2021

#103: What You Need to Do Today To Protect Your Toy Brand From Counterfeits

35 mins; December 08, 2021

#102: Innovating The Sales Process In 2021 with Chloe Kershaw of Hape Toys

58 mins; December 01, 2021

#101: Learn Toy History With Toys That Built America

18 mins; November 24, 2021

#100: Special 100th Episode Getting To Know The Toy Coach

63 hours 54 mins; November 17, 2021

#99: How This Toy and Game Pitch Event Advances Women In Toys

23 mins; November 10, 2021

#98: The Virtual Toy And Game Pitch Event You Should Be Preparing For

23 mins; November 03, 2021

#97: Write Click-Worthy Email Subject Lines For Your Next Toy Pitch

30 mins; October 27, 2021

#96: The California Law to Empower Gender Neutral Toys

28 mins; October 20, 2021

#95: Tips For Finding The Great Toy Or Game Concepts Within You with Christian Castro

46 mins; October 13, 2021

#94: The Superhero That Sparked A Social Movement with Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez creator of La Borinqueña

48 mins; October 08, 2021

#93: Making The Most Of Unexpected Publicity with Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez creator of La Borinqueña

53 mins; October 06, 2021

#92: Breaking Through Barriers in Children’s Book Publishing with Charles George Esperanza

49 mins; September 29, 2021

#91: The National Museum of Toys and Miniatures Meet The Experts with The Toy Coach Azhelle Wade

41 mins; September 22, 2021

#90: Leaving Your Boring Job to Start a Career in The Toy Industry with Erica and Liliana

32 mins; September 15, 2021

#89: 3 Simple Strategies to Becoming A Toy Person

43 mins; September 08, 2021

#88: Virtual Pitch Event Stories from Students of Toy Creators Academy

46 mins; September 01, 2021

#87: Is My Idea Considered A Toy or Children's Product?

35 mins; August 25, 2021

#86: Toy Safety 102: The EN-71 Toy Safety Standard with Bill Baxter

39 mins; August 18, 2021

#85: Lessons for Specialty Toy Brands from the 2021 ASTRA Marketplace Show

32 mins; August 11, 2021

#84: How To Use TikTok To Find Your Next Toy Job

28 mins; August 04, 2021

#83: Predicting Retail Market Trends After The Shipping Container Crisis

39 mins; July 28, 2021

#82: The Pillars Of Marketing Your Toy From Scratch with Harold Chizick

36 mins; July 21, 2021

#81: How To Leverage Your Creative Business For Major Publicity

27 mins; July 14, 2021

#80: Building A Multi-Million Dollar Business Through Email With Amy Porterfield

46 mins; July 07, 2021

#79: The 3 BIGGEST Mistakes To Avoid When Working With A Factory

21 mins; June 30, 2021

#78: How To Be A Toy Designer

24 mins; June 23, 2021

#77: Get In Front Of 12,000 Buyers With This Year-Round Toy Trade Show

24 mins; June 16, 2021

#76: The Art of Pitching and Pivoting In Toys and Entertainment

37 mins; June 09, 2021

#75: Lessons And Benefits Of Pitching Your Toy Ideas At The TCA Virtual Toy Pitch Event

28 mins; June 02, 2021

#74: How To Break Into Toys Through Self-Publishing

38 mins; May 26, 2021

#73: Executive Tips To License Your Toy Ideas With Zack Pentecost of Zuru Toys

28 mins; May 19, 2021

#72: Working With A Distributor To Get Your Toy or Game In Retail with Greg Watson

36 mins; May 12, 2021

#71: The Art of Toy Photography with Mitchel Wu

36 mins; May 05, 2021

#70: 7 Tips To Improve Your Next Virtual Toy Pitch

24 mins; April 28, 2021

#69: Why I Left My Corporate Toy Job To Become The Toy Coach

23 mins; April 21, 2021

#68: One Dad's Secret To A 3 Million Dollar Toy Kickstarter

42 mins; April 14, 2021

#67: Objectively Vetting Your Amazing Toy Ideas

27 mins; April 07, 2021

#66: The Ripple Effect Of Racial Bias In The Toy Industry Part 2 with Jacqueline Vong

38 mins; March 31, 2021

#65: Creating A Hit Kids’ TV Show with Farnaz Esnaashari Creator of Shimmer & Shine

32 mins; March 24, 2021

#64: Selling Your Toy Or Game On Amazon Live

27 mins; March 17, 2021

#63: How To Make A Toy, The 5 Steps of Product Development

29 mins; March 10, 2021

#62: What Buyers Need To See In Your Toy Product Pitch With Marie Nastasi

38 mins; March 03, 2021

#61: Getting To Know Black Women In Toys and Entertainment with Taura Stinson

30 mins; February 26, 2021

#60: Getting To Know Black Women In Toys and Entertainment with Donna Moore

20 mins; February 25, 2021

#59: Getting To Know Black Women In Toys and Entertainment with Chantel Calloway

20 mins; February 24, 2021

#58: Getting To Know Black Women In Toys and Entertainment with Tanya Wright

17 mins; February 23, 2021

#57: Building Your Brand Identity with Albert Lawrence

47 mins; February 17, 2021

#56: How To Be A Game Inventor With Eric Slauson Creator of Tattoo Stories

58 mins; February 09, 2021

#55: Funding Your Toy Business with Terri-Nichelle Bradley of Brown Toy Box

52 mins; February 02, 2021

#54: 5 Biggest Myths About Working In The Toy Industry

22 mins; January 27, 2021

#53: The Importance Of Defining A Vision Statement For Your Toy Business

18 mins; January 20, 2021

#52: The Business of Baby Toys with Brad Reese

44 mins; January 12, 2021

#51: Set Up Your Toy Business For Tax Success with Margie Montes

36 mins; January 05, 2021

#50: Becoming A Children's Book Illustrator and Author with Yesenia Moises

35 mins; December 29, 2020

#49: 7 Lessons For Toy Inventors From Netflix’s Jingle Jangle

19 mins; December 22, 2020

#48: Why The Toy Industry Needs More Toys Designed For Free Play

18 mins; December 15, 2020

#47: Legally Protecting Your Toy Ideas with Stephanie Pottick, Esq

29 mins; December 08, 2020

#46: My 5 Favorite Online Marketing Tactics To Grow Your Toy Business

23 mins; December 02, 2020

#45: How Will COVID-19 Affect The Toy Industry’s Holiday Season?

23 mins; November 25, 2020

#44: When Kids Invent Their Own Toys with OctoGifts

32 mins; November 18, 2020

#43: Toy Safety 101 with Bill Baxter

58 mins; November 10, 2020

#42: The Virtual Event That Toy Inventors Need Right Now

25 mins; November 03, 2020

#41: What Keeps Kids’ Attention? with Silly Sparkles The Clown

41 mins; October 27, 2020

#40: How Diverse Is Your Toy Company?

21 mins; October 21, 2020

#39: Navigating The Festival of Licensing with Amanda Cioletti

34 mins; October 13, 2020

#38: Bubbles For A Circular Economy with Paola Dyboski-Bryant

54 mins; October 06, 2020

#37: How To Support Your Entrepreneurial Significant Other with Christian Castro

25 mins; September 29, 2020

#36: Building A Circular Business In The Time Of Corona

38 mins; September 22, 2020

#35: How Can The Toy Industry Be More Sustainable With Leticia Suarez

46 mins; September 16, 2020

#34: Attracting Your Ideal Toy Mentor

28 mins; September 08, 2020

#33: Designing For Free Play with Cas Holman

56 mins; September 01, 2020

#32: The Value Of Partnering With A Passionate Licensing Agent

52 mins; August 25, 2020

#31: What It Takes To Be A Successful & Happy Toy Entrepreneur

42 mins; August 19, 2020

#30: What Does It Take To Be a Successful and Happy Toy Inventor?

44 mins; August 11, 2020

#29: Are You a Toy Inventor or a Toy Entrepreneur?

25 mins; August 05, 2020

#28: Playing The Kickstarter Long Game with Joe Slack

37 mins; July 29, 2020

#27: How Much Are Customers Willing to Pay For Your Toy?

31 mins; July 21, 2020

#26: The Growing Importance Of Social Proof For Your Toy Ideas

28 mins; July 14, 2020

#25: How A Fellow Inventor Turned A Holiday Gift Idea Into A Licensed Invention with Karen Bonnici

40 mins; July 07, 2020

#24: Breaking Into The Specialty Toy Market with Kimberly Mosley CAE, the President of ASTRA

43 mins; July 01, 2020

#23: Licensing Week Virtual, Tips For Toy Inventors

51 mins; June 24, 2020

#22: 8 Kickstarter Secrets To 8X Your Funding Goal with Evi Triantafyllides

56 mins; June 16, 2020

#21: How To Make An Impact With a Big Idea and a Small Budget

23 mins; June 09, 2020

#20: The Ripple Effect of Racial Bias in The Toy Industry

18 mins; June 02, 2020

#19: Changing The Game with Pictionary Creator Rob Angel

35 mins; May 27, 2020

#18: 3 Virtual Networking Opportunities For Toy People

20 mins; May 19, 2020

#17: The First EVER Virtual Mentorship Program for Our Industry with Janice Ross and Mary Kay Russell

44 mins; May 12, 2020

#16: The Benefits of Joining Women In Toys, Licensing & Entertainment

25 mins; May 05, 2020

#15: Kickstarter Success In The Time of Coronavirus with Marjorie Spitalnik

49 mins; April 29, 2020

#14: The Hard Truths About Kickstarter with Julie Underwood Richardson

37 mins; April 22, 2020

#13: Staying At Home Part 2 Brainstorming and Playtesting Virtually

25 mins; April 15, 2020

#12: Staying At Home Part 1 Problem Solving And Inventing

23 mins; April 08, 2020

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Making It in The Toy Industry

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