Reverse Engineered

Twenty years ago, technology and marketing were considered completely separate worlds on opposite ends of the spectrum. Today, we live in a digital world where marketing and technology departments are inextricably linked. The marketing department integrates technology with other departments.Over the last ten years, we have seen a rapid increase in marketing technology suppliers. But even with all its potential, MarTech presents many challenges for businesses. For example, there are many ways to improve your marketing using technology, but many companies don't know which technology they really need. Experienced marketers often find it challenging to understand and embrace MarTech's capabilities and see it as an opportunity.Scott Brinker, the VP of platform ecosystems at HubSpot and editor at chiefmartec.com. He explains that marketing is still about winning customers, building brands, and driving sales. But with technology and all the innovation that's happening, there have been some changes in the marketing department, the team structure, and the responsibilities of the people who work there.In this episode of Reverse Engineered, Scott Brinker and our host Jon Penland get into MarTech and why it's important to put technology into marketing. They discuss MarTech's future and the difference between MarTech and ERP. Check out more show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/marketing-and-technology-bring-innovative-solutions/

There are many critical factors that contribute to the success of a company, and having a great leadership team is definitely high on this list.But if you don't take the time to carefully set out your organizational leadership principles, your business won't have a guiding star. In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, our host Jon Penland welcomes Aran Khanna, the founder and CEO of Archera. They chat about the importance of having leadership principles, encouraging your people to take ownership, and why a customer-first mentality will put your company on the right track.Check out show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/leadership-principles-for-your-organization/

The internet has become an unpredictable place, and companies need to do everything in their power to secure their data, information, and processes.If you want to protect your organization from bad actors trying to take advantage of your data, you need to consider implementing a Zero Trust security model. In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, our host Jon Penland welcomes John Engates, the Field CTO at Cloudflare. They talk about why security threats are not what they used to be, the importance of Zero Trust solutions, and why the internet will need to be performant everywhere in the future.Check out more episodes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/

Mistakes are an inevitable part of business, and that's the most common reason entrepreneurs are so scared to give up control and give their employees more freedom. But giving autonomy to your team members will make them more motivated to produce better results and share their best ideas. This, in turn, will help your company grow.In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, host Jon Penland welcomes Adii Pienaar, the founder of Cogsy. They chat about the importance of flexibility at work, why your company's values are non-negotiable, and how to foster peer-to-peer accountability.Check out show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/empowering-employees-and-company-success/

If you want to make a change in your career and start something on your own, go for it. But of course, that's easier said than done as you must take many things into account and know how to prioritize. The good news is that all successful entrepreneurs were once where you are today. They had to embrace failure and learn from their mistakes. But, they all had something in common: faith in their skills and devotion. In this episode of Reverse Engineered, our host Jon Penland, welcomes Lloyed Lobo, the co-founder of Boast.ai and Traction. They discuss the stories behind these two companies and what made Lloyed interested in becoming an entrepreneur. They also talk about the importance of community and building connections and what it takes for a startup to succeed. Check out show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/societal-impact-makes-business-worthwhile/

Most companies, especially big ones, have a lot of data. As a business leader, you need to be able to pull it all together and make it accessible to everyone in your organization to maximize its usefulness.Grafana Labs is an open-source analytics platform and interactive visualization web application. Grafana takes a unique approach to providing a "single-pane-of-glass" by unifying your existing data, wherever it lives. As a result, it helps to facilitate a culture where data can easily be used and accessed by the people that need it.In this episode of Reverse Engineered, Douglas Hanna, the COO of Grafana Labs, explains why it's important to use the OKR framework. Douglas and our host Jon Penland also discuss how to deal with adversity, find the right balance, and do a productive job.Check out more shows at https://kinsta.com/podcast/scale-operations-in-fast-growing-companies/ 

A recurring revenue model is one of the most popular business models today. Whether you run an online or a subscription-based business, you rely on this payment model to ensure recurring revenue and stable income. But a simple payment failure can disrupt your entire business flow and even make you lose customers.In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, our host Jon Penland welcomes Casey Graham, the Founder and CEO of Gravy. They talk about the reason for failed transactions, why we shouldn't put too much trust into technology, and the importance of knowing your owner's intent.

''Follow your dreams and do what you love'' is easier said than done. However, many have chosen to take this path. There will be bumps on the road — some more challenging than others — but you can reach the desired destination if you have a clear goal. And while you can rely on your knowledge and experience, don't overlook the importance of luck. However, you must recognize it first to be able to make the most out of it.In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, our host Jon Penland chats with Tehsin Bhayani, the Founder and CEO of Serind Labs and AirMason. Besides sharing what it takes to be a successful business owner, Tehsin shares some of his mistakes and lessons learned. He also shares the stories of his two companies, how and why he promoted remote work even before COVID, and how reading ''Who'' can help you hire successfully.Check out the show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/service-company-to-product-company/

After four years of working as a business lawyer, Emeric Ernoult knew he was made for entrepreneurship. He and his co-founder's first company Affinitiz was launched in 2000 and the first ten years were faced with failures, setbacks, and very little money. Then in 2012, they launched Agorapulse, a social media management platform. Though still faced with challenges in the first few years, Emeric's hunger to win and data-based decisions ultimately led the company to success. Agorapulse now employs more than 140 people worldwide and receives about $20 million of ARR. In this episode of Reverse Engineered, we hear from Emeric Ernoult, the Founder and CEO of Agorapulse. Emeric is a true source of inspiration and will show you, through his example, not only how to succeed but also how to deal with failures and to look at your problems and say “I'm going to fix you.”Check out the show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/being-unique-will-grow-your-company/

Consumers are no longer attracted to flashy ads. Instead, they want to see the people behind the brand or hear about real-life experiences of collaborating with a brand or using their products. That's why influencer marketing is so popular these days (and has been for the past decade). But, as customers' habits change, they perceive brand ambassadors or macro-influencers as less trustworthy, and they are more likely to trust small or micro-influencers — people from their surroundings — when purchasing. In this episode of Reverse Engineered, our host Jon Penland welcomes Kristen Wiley, CEO and Founder of Statusphere. Kristen and Jon discuss influencer marketing, how it has changed over the years, the challenges of running a company like Statusphere, and the success of the member-first approach.Check out show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/influencer-marketing/

Aleyda started her career as a frontend developer. After being continuously asked by clients how to get more traffic to their site, she stumbled into the world of SEO and the rest is history. These days, you'll find Aleyda running her highly specialized SEO agency Orainti, giving out free tips in one of many SEO resources she maintains, presenting in Spanish and English at industry events, and more. In this episode of Kinsta's Reverse Engineered podcast, host Jon Penland asks Aleyda about her journey into SEO, the skills needed to run a successful agency, and common SEO misconceptions businesses owners should avoid.Check out the show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/frontend-developer-seo-specialist/

Remote work may have been a niche in the past, but it's certainly the standard now. And more and more companies are going fully remote. However, you can't expect to create a fully operational remote culture overnight. Remote is a mindset, and until you try it out, you won't know if it's the right choice for you.In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, our host Jon Penland welcomes Ilma Tiki, the Co-Founder and CEO of The Remote Company. They get into the importance of living and breathing your company's core values, how to communicate with purpose, and solving some of the challenges with running a remote business. Check out show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/successful-remote-mindset/

It's easy to see a successful blog and want to replicate it. But behind that blog is often years of hard work. The truth is, you can't expect to start making money off your blog overnight. It takes a lot of time and effort to turn your blog into a lucrative side business. In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, Jon Penland welcomes Ryan Robinson, a successful blogger, podcaster, and as he calls himself, a recovering side project addict. We get into ways to monetize your blog, how to pick your primary traffic channel, and why you can't be a perfectionist if you want to be a thriving content marketer.Check out show notes at: https://kinsta.com/podcast/blogger-grew-6-figure-business/

As an entrepreneur, the best feeling is when your business starts to take off. When you have more business than you can handle, that means your hard work is paying off, even if it does cause some sleepless nights.You'll need to hire employees to help share the load to scale your business, but it can be hard to let other people take over some responsibilities. Not expanding your employees to keep control over quality is a sure-fire way to stop business growth in its tracks.In this episode of Reverse Engineered, Maddy Osman, Founder and SEO Content Strategist at The Blogsmith, talks with Jon Penland about her experience transitioning from freelance content marketer to business owner. Listen to the episode to hear how Maddy hired her first employees, learned to delegate, and stayed focused on quality to help her business scale successfully.Check out show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/from-freelancer-to-agency-owner/

Everyone uses data, but that doesn't mean it has to stay in a static or numeric form permanently. Giorgia Lupi has been transforming data into meaningful visual versions for years. She recalls being highly analytical and creative even back when she was a child organizing items in her grandmother's tailor shop. Since then, she's co-founded Accurat, a data visualization design studio, presented a Ted talk, become a Partner at Pentagram, and more.In this episode of Reverse Engineered, Jon Penland welcomes Giorgia Lupi of Pentagram to discuss information design, her humble beginnings with a weekly newspaper column creating visual data, and how that led into her career today helping brands showcase data. As an information designer, Giorgia has a passion for finding and looking at data through the lens of how it can be better interpreted and explained to others. Giorgia uses that ability to take datasets, big or small, and transform them into stories that stakeholders care about. While data visualization has picked up a lot of steam in recent years, Giorgia's on a mission to humanize the collection and interpretation of data to be more helpful overall.Check more episodes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/

In today's episode of Reverse Engineered, Jon Penland welcomes Brad Miller, Vice President of Client Strategy at 10up. Brad focuses mostly on new client growth and strategy but has years of experience working in web design, UX design, and web development with WordPress. Brad's journey into 10up is unique. He first approached the agency as co-founder of Lift UX to see how the two agencies could work together on some upcoming projects. What he unexpectedly left with was an acquisition offer. Fast forward almost four years and Brad is now Vice President of New Client Strategy at 10up, a company that has almost doubled in size since he first joined.Core to his success and the company's growth are two things: working cross-functionally and diving into different steps in the process based on client needs as well as fostering an incredible work culture.Tune into this episode of Reverse Engineered to learn more about Brad's journey through the web agency space.Check out more episodes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/culture-key-to-business-growth/

In today's episode of Reverse Engineered, Jon Penland welcomes John Doherty, Founder and CEO of Credo and EditorNinja. Credo, a company dedicated to helping companies hire the right digital marketing agencies, is John's primary focus. Credo is completely bootstrapped - in fact, John spent 6 months doing consulting work in order to build up nine months of runway in the bank. To keep costs low and profits high, Credo uses a lot of automation. With this approach, John was able to cut out almost 25% of his tasks and focus his energy on more important areas. Automation also helps keep his team small and focused and removes unqualified leads from his marketing workflows.And John's overarching personal reason for all this? He's working towards being able to have free time freedom, calendar freedom, and money freedom. Tune in to the latest episode of our Reverse Engineered podcast to learn more about dealing with difficult clients, managing several projects at once, and some of John's favorite business resources.***Check out more episodes at: https://kinsta.com/podcast/qualified-leads/

Google Drive and Google Fonts are some of Google's most popular products. Behind these incredible inventions are some hard-working, innovative people. One of them is our guest, David Wurtz.David is a Founder in Residence at Google, a role that is part of Google's Area 120, an internal incubator program for experimental projects. Google Drive and Google Fonts are some of the many projects in David's rich portfolio of inventions. In today's episode, our host Jon Penland and David discuss the challenges behind building tech products and the role stress plays in the invention process. In addition, David talks about his position at Google, the zero-to-one journey, and Area 120. Tune in to hear more about the process of developing technological products.***Check out the show notes and the video version of this episode at https://kinsta.com/podcast/innovation-at-google/

Karmen Kendrick is the Web Design and Support Specialist at Karmen Kendrick Creative. She is devoted to helping small businesses optimize their WordPress websites and getting them ready for digital growth.Karmen specializes in membership websites, which is her big differentiator from her competitors in the web design area. She reveals what inspired her to take her path and the problem she wanted to solve in the first place.As an entrepreneur and a highly devoted business person, Karmen values the time she dedicates to her potential clients. That's one of the reasons she offers premium pricing. Her pricing reflects the value she provides and how much she invests in her branding.Check out the show notes at https://kinsta.com/podcast/invest-in-your-business

Loyalty programs retain customers, which we can all agree is the primary goal of every business owner. They also indicate that you're a trustworthy service provider.In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, Zsuzsa Kecsmar joins our host Jon Penland to dive deeper into the importance of loyalty programs to B2C companies. Zsuzsa is the Co-founder and Head of Marketing and Partnerships at Antavo, a loyalty management platform. Zsuzsa and Jon also discuss some key ideas that were useful to growing Antavo, including their focus on research and development, content marketing, and remaining patient with results.Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at: https://kinsta.com/podcast/loyalty-programs-retain-customers/

Cory Miller, the CEO at Post Status,  is an entrepreneur on a mission to make people's lives awesome, especially the lives of his team.In this episode, Cory highlights the importance of a company-wide shared vision. According to him, the best results come when every member of your team believes in a company's path and has the freedom to grow as an individual while contributing to the organization's growth.Cory and Jon also talk about how people see entrepreneurs. As Cory explains, the public is often under the miscomprehension that entrepreneurs live perfect lives, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. In fact, Cory is living proof that being a leader also means you are a human with real problems.Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at https://kinsta.com/podcast/make-peoples-lives-awesome***Kinsta's Reverse Engineered podcast is proud to be a podcast partner of WordFest 2021, a 24-hour global celebration of WordPress designed to bring our community together all across the world.Be a part of the action on July 23rd by registering at https://www.wordfest.live/register/ (registration is completely free). Enjoy the celebration of all that is WordPress and let us know on social media if you're attending!

In this episode of Reverse Engineered, Jon Penland introduces Donata Stroink-Skillrud, President at Termageddon and the vice-chair of The Privacy Committee of the American Bar Association.Donata explains why companies need privacy policies and emphasizes the risks if businesses don't comply with the law. She also talks about Termagedoon's services, including the advisory.As a business owner, Donata faces many challenges, so she reveals ways of dealing with them. tune in to hear Donata's story!Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at https://kinsta.com/podcast/privacy-conscious-hosting-provider

In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, Austin Ginder joins the host Jon Penland to discuss his experience running a one-person business in WordPress hosting. Austin is the owner of Anchor Hosting, a company providing hassle-free web hosting services to clients worldwide.Austin explains why he doesn't do sales to get clients. According to him, everything you do as a business owner should attract customers, not the other way around. Austin's perspective on marketing and sales might be different, but it's definitely effective. After all, he's managing more than 1300 WordPress websites on his own.If you want to hear about the future of web development, website hosting, and the advantages of open ecosystems, tune in to the latest episode of our podcast. Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at https://kinsta.com/podcast/solo-developer-thousands-websites

What's a good life? No one knows, but we all have a vision of it. For Shane Pearlman, the CEO of Modern Tribe, a good life is when you are in a balance. He says balance is the combination of the four F's: family, fitness, finance, and faith. Peter, Shane's business partner and the co-founder of Modern Tribe, adds a fifth F: fun. In this episode of the Reverse Engineered, Jon Penland and Shane Pearlman discuss business success. According to Shane, success is the combination of strategy and luck. What can appear to some people as an overnight success is really 15 years of practice.Shane also talks about the many aspects that go into growing a remote agency, from flexibility, hiring and paid trials, and finding new projects.Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at https://kinsta.com/podcast/build-business-support-lifestyle

Joe Howard joins the Reverse Engineered podcast to discuss his experience starting and running WP Buffs, a company providing 24/7 WordPress website management and support services that power growth.Joe shares his secret to success: always keep going and accept that challenges are a necessary part of your journey.He also shares his early day strategy for attracting new clients as well as why you should vet clients to ensure they're a good fit for your business.If you want to hear more about hosting providers, website management companies, and entrepreneurship in general, tune in to the latest episode. Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at https://kinsta.com/podcast/secret-to-entrepreneurship

In this episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast, Andy Chadwick and Suganthan Mohanadasan join host Jon Penland to discuss their SEO consulting agency Snippet Digital. Andy and Suganthan go into detail about their mission: to help other people's businesses succeed. This means helping out wherever possible, from answering SEO questions on forums to going live on Clubhouse. They're also building tools designed to improve SEO strategy workflows. Tune in to Reverse Engineered's latest episode if you are interested in hearing more about Snippet Digital. You'll also learn some SEO basics and get a valuable piece of advice if you ever want to start an SEO business on your own.Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode athttps://kinsta.com/podcast/seo-knowledge-grows-consulting-firm

Melissa Kwan is the co-founder and CEO of eWebinar. She's been an entrepreneur for over ten years, and eWebinar is the third company she's co-founded. Melissa explains her leadership model and how her tiny startup managed to keep up with business giants like Amazon and Facebook. Together with Jon, she talks about entrepreneurship, the importance of freedom, and creating a positive work culture. This episode also centers on how Melissa designed eWebinar to fit the life she wanted to live by discovering her non-negotiables and focusing on her interests. If you want to hear more about Melissa's entrepreneurial journey, tune in to the latest episode of the Reverse Engineered podcast.Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at  https://kinsta.com/podcast/building-business-around-the-life-you-want

Jonathan Williamson joins host Jon Penland to discuss his co-founding and running three companies. CG Cookie, Blender Market, Mavenseed are all intricately linked, but for the most part, everything starts with CG Cookie.Jonathan talks about how his upbringing allowed him to pursue curiosity, eventually leading him to become the successful entrepreneur he is today. He and Jon chat about Blender and how it became the driving force behind CG Cookie. Jonathan shares his beginnings as a Blender content creator on CG Cookie, navigating the 3D animation market.  If you want to hear more about how these three companies became leaders in the industry, tune in to Reverse Engineered's latest episode.Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at https://kinsta.com/podcast/co-founding-three-creator-focused-companies

Successful business owners and CEOs agree, building a long-term relationship with clients is the key to success. According to Peter Caputa, CEO at Databox, showing generosity is one way to achieve it. ''We have a free product, and we offer a free trial on top of that. If you want it, we'll build your dashboards for free; we will jump on calls and not try to sell you, but help you get set up on that.''Peter also explains why the software-as-a-service model is needed in contemporary business settings, especially in these unsettling times. He also provides some useful advice on making a business unique with the help of SEO, digital marketing, and data.Peter says data forms an integral part of the companies' decision-making process. But he also answers the question: is all data useful data?Check out all show notes and the video version of this episode at https://kinsta.com/podcast/make-the-most-of-your-data