I learned these 5 lessons by building a media company in public last year

I learned a lot in 2025. I’ll learn even more in 2026.As we move into the New Year, the biggest lesson I’ve taken from the past groundbreaking year at Cali BBQ Media is that technology moves fast, but the soul of what we do—storytelling—is what actually lasts. Here are 5 major lessons we learned while building in public over the last twelve months.1. Be Willing to Try New ToolsIf you aren’t willing to outgrow your tools, you’re choosing to stay behind. And because we’re a new media company that also owns and operates a modern restaurant business, we have A LOT of technology.One of our biggest shifts in 2025 was the realization that “the way we’ve always done it” was becoming a bottleneck. In a world being rapidly reshaped by AI, we had to learn into our equation for digital content: Quantity + Speed + Consistency = Quality. Every year, we have to audit our tech stack and ask if it can be improved, because we would rather expand our technology as needed than get stuck on a platform that no longer serves our current needs.* Media Tech: We moved away from legacy platforms like Blubrry that couldn’t keep up with our production volume. We transitioned our community from Clubhouse to Streamyard (for live engagement) and Riverside (for high-end studio recordings).* Restaurant Tech: We prioritize partners like Toast, Davo Sales Tax by Avalara, and Restaurant365, who don’t just sell software and hardware—they invest in the future. By listening to operators, like Toast does with its Customer Advisory Boards, they ensure their tech evolves faster than the market shifts, keeping us ahead of the curve.* Personal Tech: We streamlined our individual workflows, leaning into communication tools like Slack and Notion, acknowledging that the features we started the year with often weren’t what we needed by the end. What’s crucial is staying in touch with each other so we can keep in the flow.2. Personal Branding is the New “Digital Receipt”We’ve learned that there is immense value in a brand having a show, but there is even more value in a founder like Debby Soo at OpenTable or Kelly Esten at Toast sharing their personal stories. I post every day on Instagram Stories, and that community of hundreds of people has become our most popular and engaged “show” because people want to see the real work happening behind the scenes.* As AI becomes more prevalent, the only way to stand out is through real, live content and the willingness to share your story directly with the one person who needs to see it.3. YouTube is a Quality Game, Not a Numbers GameIt’s easy to look at a B2B YouTube channel and think the numbers are “small,” but we leaned into it hard in 2025 and saw a 125% increase in views and a 68% increase in subscribers. We know it doesn’t matter if only 200 people watch a video if those 200 are the exact restaurant owners or tech partners we want to reach.* Following the advice of our first Restaurant Influencers guest, Sam the Cooking Guy, we’ve focused on the long-term compounding effect of content, knowing that while building an audience takes time, once it starts to click, it accelerates rapidly.4. Human-Led AI is the Only Way to ScaleWhile many media companies are using AI as an excuse to cut staff, we actually increased our staffing in 2025 because AI cannot run itself. We’ve found that when a human uses AI properly, we can produce accurate, detailed blog posts and video content at a scale that used to take days, without losing the human touch.* We believe that the brands that win will be those that use humans to lead their AI efforts, allowing them to stay picky about their partners—like Toast, Davo, and Restaurant365—while maintaining a high volume of quality content.5. Content Happens Where Life HappensA lot of people avoid bringing their family on business trips because it’s difficult, but I brought my “Walchef Wolfpack” to New York, Las Vegas, and Miami last year because it enriches both my life and my business. This same curiosity drove me to ask the internet for help finding restaurant owners during a vacation in Istanbul, which led to immediate, high-quality content and new global partners.* My grandfather taught me a simple recipe: stay curious, get involved, and ask for help—and in 2026, asking the internet for help is still the fastest way to connect with the right people in any city in the world.Thanks for sharing this newsletter with someone who might find it valuable.The 2026 Challenge: Ask AI Who You AreIf you haven’t asked an AI to explain who you are or what your brand does, you have a massive hole in your strategy. Your “digital receipts”—the bios you use for conferences, your partner links, and your media appearances—are what feed the AI results that your customers and competitors see.As tennis legend Arthur Ashe said: “Start where you are, with what you have, and do what you can”. If you don’t start posting and getting your hands dirty today, you’re going to look back in 2027 and realize you missed the biggest opportunity to define your own story.From coast to coast, this year was about showing up, telling real stories, and doing the work.NYC to Santa Monica. Chicago to Vegas. Istanbul included.Boardrooms, kitchens, expos, and back-of-house walkthroughs.From Google and Toast HQ’s to neighborhood restaurants. From global brands to independent operators.Different rooms. Same focus: hospitality, technology, and people.We documented wins, tested ideas, built case studies, and hosted real conversations.Most importantly, we kept pressing record—for operators seeking clarity, for brands that care about impact, and for teams doing the work every day.2026 is already in motion.More stories. More reps. More depth.Game on.-Shawn This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit restauranttechnology.substack.com