EP# 130: Discovering the Entrepreneurial Sweet Spot - Rand Fishkin (CEO, Entrepreneur)

What happens when you create a venn diagram that combines discovering your passion with providing unique value and figuring out where your audience is listening? In this podcast, Rand Fishkin, founder and CEO of Moz, believes that is how you find your sweet spot. As with most entrepreneurs, Fishkin knows a little bit about how failure can eventually inspire success. After dropping out of college in 2001, he began working with his mom at an agency where they offered clients web design and marketing solutions. However, they began drowning in debt, amassing over $500,000 from overhead expenses. In 2004, he started a blog called SEO Moz. “I spent four hours a day writing blogs. For the first year, it wasn’t really attracting anyone or resonating with a particular audience,” Fishkin recalls. But after a year of publishing blogs five days per week, eventually the audience came: SEO Moz (renamed Moz) became a credible source of information about the newest marketing phase - search engine  . In fact, the blog became so successful that in 2007, he was able to pay off his debt. While discovering his sweet spot took some time, Fishkin notes, “I have not seen someone in the content marketing world where someone was automatically a massive success. The founder of Buzzfeed had over 11 years of publishing experience before it became what it is today. It’s all about shifting your passions to an area where you can provide unique value.” Additionally, he notes that entrepreneurs should keep their ear to the ground to find where their audience is to avoid choosing the right platform to promote their service or product. As a public figure and thought leader, Fishkin has a few nuggets for entrepreneurs. First, they must be willing to learn, adapt and change for their audience. Additionally, it’s key to experiment with new platforms without over investing in them, in order to continue to grow and learn. Find out more words of wisdom by clicking the link! Check out this episode!