In this episode of the PropMedia podcast, hosts Matty and Moses, co-founders of Pixlmob and PropMedia, interview Alex Coombs, who owns a large real estate photography and videography business in Hamilton, Canada. Alex's business, Northern Spruce Media, started in the real estate space but has expanded into social content and is experimenting with AI.

Alex shares the origin story of her business, which started "by fluke" while she was selling hats. She is now the face of Northern Spruce Media, focusing on sales and growth, and has a team of 15 full-time employees and several part-timers. Alex discusses her decision to step away from shooting and focus on sales, and how she gained business knowledge by immersing herself in the world of real estate agents.

She explains that the hardest phase of growth was going from one to five employees, as it required "letting go of control" and trusting others with the service. Northern Spruce Media serves Hamilton, which has over half a million people, and is expanding into Niagara Falls. Alex's ultimate goal is to build a sustainable business large enough to sell.

Alex also shares her biggest hiring mistake: hiring for talent over attitude. The hardest role to fill, she notes, is a dedicated administrator or office manager who handles client care and bookings. She discusses how she and her team use AI, such as the tool Higgsfield, to try new creative ideas. She shares how they charge for AI services—categorizing them as small, moderate, or hard—based on factors like time, cost, and complexity.

**Chapter Markers:**

0:00 - Introduction
0:42 - How Alex Coombs got into Real Estate Media
1:32 - Alex's current business: Northern Spruce Media
3:36 - Stepping away from shooting to focus on growth
6:02 - Drawing inspiration from real estate coaching
7:08 - The journey from hats to a large media company
8:51 - The hardest stages of business growth
9:35 - Northern Spruce Media's geographic reach and future goals
11:58 - The ultimate goal: building a business to sell
12:03 - Commercial break
13:06 - Biggest mistake in hiring
15:02 - The hardest role to hire
18:56 - Scratching the creative itch
20:55 - Selling the creative vision to agents
23:45 - Investing in the company
24:34 - System for testing new technologies
27:17 - Fun with AI video editing
28:47 - Social media engagement with AI content
31:09 - The trend cycle of creative content
32:48 - The value of "behind-the-scenes" content
34:46 - Tips for experimenting with AI
36:42 - Pricing AI video services
38:50 - Shooting differently for AI
41:04 - Educating clients on AI costs
44:23 - Concerns about realtors underestimating the work involved in AI
46:34 - Opportunities for the future
48:08 - Where to follow Alex and Northern Spruce Media