What started as a fleeting idea to help one mother and entrepreneur, cope with major life changes transformed into a phenomenon working to heal thousands of women each day.
Katie Krimitsos, Founder of The Women’s Meditation Network, sat down with us to talk about how she walked through the fear of dropping her successful business for the idea of a more simple life. Little did she know how her decision would come to impact millions of women around the world who were waiting for her help.
What inspired you to start the Women's Meditation Network?
It was April of 2018. At that time, I had a toddler, a coaching company, and a podcast called Biz Women Rock. It was a profitable company and lifestyle. Then, we found out we were pregnant with baby number two, my little Savannah, and it changed everything in an instant.
I realized that I needed to quiet myself and figure out what the heck was important to me. I loved the business and the women that I was working with, but it required me to be too present all the time. I knew I wanted a different lifestyle, even though it was scary letting go of this business I had built.
On a walk with my husband, I vented the emotion of the day. Then, he reminded me of this idea I had to start a meditation podcast.
So over the next couple of weeks, we brainstormed and dreamed about the possibility.
I quickly formed the idea of a mediation network specifically for women, which was incredibly exciting and terrifying because I’m not a meditation coach. I’m not certified in meditation; I’m a writer.
I love writing. I have been on and continue to be on a profound spiritual journey myself. So meditation has been a really great tool for me. So I’m a practitioner more than anything.
And so I wrote the first couple of meditations, recorded them, and put music to them. It was so strange, but it felt right, and that’s the moment that really inspired the whole network.
When did you notice that there was a need for more types of meditation?
I started with the original show, Mediation For Women. I recorded it during the first two years of my young one and my little baby’s lives. I think I was just gathering myself together. I watched my statistics closely over those two years and reviewed the most popular episodes to plan more content.
Then came the summer of 2020. We’re in the middle of COVID. I am delivering more and more content because there is a need for so many of my listeners.
They were constantly asking for more types of meditation that would help with anxiety. When I reviewed my episode statistics, the sleep episodes we all in the top ten. That was when I knew I needed to create a separate podcast specifically for sleep.
A month later, it was evident to me, through the numbers, that I needed to double down on that. So I created two shows per week and have continued still.
Towards the end of 2020, I did the exact same thing. I reviewed my statistics on the original podcast again. Six out of the top ten were morning mediation episodes. So I was like, okay, well, let’s do a morning one.
There are different types of shifting habits women have during various life seasons. So it made sense to offer meditations to help.
Finally, I created a sub-niche of sleep meditation because it has done so well. Nine months into that show going live, it has 6.3 million downloads. I get feedback every single day from women who have told me their lives have been changed. It gives me goosebumps. There are still a couple more spaces within the sleeping niche that I can go into and continued to grow.
Why do you think The Women's Meditation Network listenership grew quickly?
I think it’s a combination of four things. First, meditation and mindfulness as a whole have become more mainstream. So, it’s easier to find and access meditations.
The second is that I wanted to bring light to an extraordinary group of people. I feel very passionately about helping women in this world. I think that if you are a woman and you’re looking for meditation in your podcast app. If there’s a general one, or if there’s one that specifies that it’s for women, you’re going to be like, oh yes, that’s what I need.
Another reason is things have been pretty stressful over this past year. So people have gone in search of helpful tools for anxiety, stress and to help them cope.
On the practical level, I have proactively done a lot of advertising. I have a very different mindset now than with my previous podcast. I would rather spend my dollars than my time raising consciousness about my podcast because my time is pretty strapped. 80% of my time is spent being a mom. And I didn’t want to fall into the belief system that I had to grow slow and do everything myself.
How can I get the biggest bang for my buck? So I have done a lot and definitely still have a set budget for paid advertising for my podcast monthly. In this last month, between three shows, I had 1.8 million downloads just for that month. The growth rate has been impressive with paid advertising.
Finally, writing these meditations for the Women’s Meditation Network is incredibly fulfilling and feels like my gift when you are doing something you love. I’m using the tools that I have been given. And I feel like I can speak very directly to the women out there listening, along with my phenomenal producer who makes my words like art.
What made you decide to start sharing sponsors with your audience?
I knew I was going to do that right away. This is different because I wasn’t so open to that on my previous podcast. It made a lot more sense for me to sell my own products and services. But when I went into this model, I knew sponsorship would make financial sense, and the numbers had to be very different than what I was used to.
Now the other side of that coin is the mental block that I had to get by. I’m a meditation network; I don’t personally love getting a commercial right in front of my episode. So how’s that going to feel? And so I had to really make peace with and actually embrace it.
How was I going to approach this sponsorship? I can’t shy away from the fact that I’m a business; I’m a professional podcaster. I want to give free content, and that comes with it being sponsored.
Then it became about choosing products and services that I know would be great, that I truly believe in myself, and would benefit my audience. I have a survey asking my audience if they purchased from our sponsors and what they like. So I’m constantly trying to make sure the advertisers are a good fit.
I also use my meditation voice to deliver the ad reads, so it doesn’t feel abrasive. So, according to my sampling survey, 53% of my listeners are buying from my sponsors, which is incredibly encouraging. I am open to any sponsor that can add more ease, less anxiety, and better sleep for my listeners.
What can advertisers expect when they partner with you?
Always a personal experience and a genuine endorsement. There’s a good handful of advertisers that I have purchased for myself because I believe in them so much.
Advertisers can rely on me for real honest and heartfelt shares about how much their product means to me. I focus on the benefits of the product and deliver total professionalism.
Why did you choose to partner with a representation agency?
I had two big reasons. Firstly, I wanted to partner with a representation agency to perform most of the administration. Scheduling and managing the different sponsors is time-consuming, and I needed that taken care of.
Secondly, and most importantly, I wanted a partner who would see the mutual value. I wanted the agency to treat me, my company, and my message as a VIP. I see True Native Media as my sales team that I can trust. They represent me with intention, love, and a deep understanding and belief in what I’m doing.
I’m at the point with the amount of content that I create every month; it is imperative to delegate the administrative part. I also have a single point of focus for anything sponsor-related. Everything’s flowing through our partnership, and it feels very efficient.
What do you see as the future for Women's Meditation Network?
I see millions and millions of women listening and being positively impacted. The beautiful thing about meditation is that it’s evergreen and allows women to feel enlivened, calm, and relaxed. So I want more channels to bring these messages to women.
I don’t consider these just meditation’s breathwork. But, humbly speaking, I believe they are little pieces of art—intentional messages of love and self-acceptance and oneness that I really want women to know. So for me, it’s this kind of magical, stealthy way of infusing women with these messages of inner love.
I want millions of women hearing, listening, and experiencing that every single day. That’s the goal.
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To sponsor Women’s Meditation Network, contact True Native Media.