Interview with CEO of Reboot Online Marketing Ltd.

SelectedFirms in an Exclusive Interview with Shai Aharony, CEO of Reboot Online Marketing Ltd.

 

1.  Tell us briefly about your company and how Reboot started this journey.

 

Reboot Online started as an SEO company after some of the biggest brands in the UK noticed that our businesses were outranking them in the organic search results. It took a little while for the marketing directors at those brands to start reaching out to find out how we were doing it.

 

At the start, we ran technical SEO, content marketing, and link-building campaigns for brands and businesses in many industries.

 

Since day one, our agency has been built on data and experimentation, and our research has been picked up and shared by all of the biggest names and publications in the SEO and digital marketing industry.

 

As the agency grew, we noticed that SEOs were using the same old tired link-building strategies and decided to look for a better way to do things.

 

We experimented with every form of link building, and our testing eventually led to the creation of our digital PR service, where we create data-driven stories that grab the attention of journalists and allow us to earn backlinks from the highest authority publications and websites on behalf of our clients.

 

Today, we are an established and award-winning digital PR agency of 75+ employees who have worked with many of the biggest brands in the UK and internationally to support their SEO and link-building efforts. We have also launched a traditional PR and paid media offering to help our clients drive large-scale growth across multiple channels.

 

2. How do you lead Reboot as CEO, and what do you expect from your team?

 

As mentioned above, experimentation and data are built into everything we do, which has always been a conscious decision at the leadership level. This extends beyond our marketing campaigns and into the wider company culture.

 

For example, off the back of an Icelandic study into the productivity benefits of a 4-day working week, we experimented and tested for ourselves to find out if this led to any productivity and employee well-being gains.

 

We launched a 6-month trial of a 4-day working week and, through careful tracking of the data, found that it did indeed help improve productivity and staff well-being. As a result, we immediately rolled out the 4-day work week permanently.

 

We expect a lot of creativity, proactivity, and efficiency from the team, especially now with our shorter work weeks. The success that we've had in recent years has been largely the result of this.

 

3. What is the greatest achievement of  Reboot so far?

 

Reboot Online is particularly proud of the many experiments that we've published over the years, which have helped inform and educate tens of thousands of SEOs and dispel some of the common myths that have been previously accepted throughout the industry.

 

We have also been behind some amazing campaigns that have gone viral and been shared around the world.

 

Our campaigns have been featured in and picked up by all of the mainstream and regional press and even shared personally by big names like Dwayne Johnson and Mike Tyson.

 

4. What approach does Reboot follow to keep up with ever-changing SEO trends?

 

Testing is everything in the SEO industry. Many SEOs see limited results because they need to experiment with what works and find the newest strategies to drive meaningful growth.This is why testing, data, and experimentation are at the core of who we are as a company.

 

We have invested heavily in our team and benefit from the insights offered by diverse people with skills and knowledge in everything from data analysis and visualization to technical SEO, content marketing, traditional PR, and paid media.

 

5. What gives  Reboot an edge over the rest of the competitors in the industry?

 

Although I have already mentioned it a couple of times above, again, our approach and the way in which we're always experimenting with our methods and strategies help ensure that we're always on the front foot when it comes to campaign results.

 

SEO and digital PR agencies quickly saturate the hottest new techniques and campaign types, so without experimenting, you'll always be late to implement and work with the newest technology and approaches.

 

We are also one of the few agencies investing heavily in a dedicated data team, which makes the world of difference.

 

Journalists are on the lookout for the latest and most exciting data sets, especially when this links to the latest trends being written about in the press, and our data experts allow us to bring proprietary data into everything that we do.

 

6. What are the key factors that Reboot considers for a successful content strategy that aligns well with the client's objective?

 

Any successful content strategy needs to ultimately be working towards improving revenue and profit for the client.

 

So, from the outset, a good understanding of the client's business and any important factors like those listed below will ensure that the proposed strategy aligns with the client's objectives:

 

• What products or services are most profitable for them
• More comprehensive marketing activity is going on internally that we need to be aware of
• Any internal data that they may have access to and which can be used in campaigns
• Key industry trends and any critical dates within the space

 

Adaptability is also important since the client's objectives can change over time.

 

Flexibility on the agency side and the ability to pivot campaign strategy when required will also help deliver the best results.

 

7. How do you see future technologies driving growth and innovation in digital marketing in the coming years??

 

It would be hard to answer this question without mentioning artificial intelligence (AI) since this is such a clear example of an emerging technology that is going to have a significant impact on digital marketing in the years ahead and be used in so many ways to drive growth and innovation.

 

Generally speaking, such technologies play a huge part in everything from streamlining internal processes and operations to campaign creation and client account management.

 

Many of these technologies will allow people to do more with less and run campaigns that otherwise might not have been possible. The key with them will be to try them out, be open-minded in how they could be used, and regularly check in with both team members and clients to find out how they're being used and to what effect.

 

8. Given the recent buzz surrounding the term "ChatGPT," what are your thoughts?

 

The buzz around ChatGPT has been tremendous within the SEO and digital marketing space, and it has much to offer.

 

The key to getting the most out of the tool (for now, at least) seems to be how you use it and what instructions you give it.

 

From our tests, there are still a reasonable few limitations of the technology, and there are also some more confidential tasks that you wouldn't want to hand off to a third party, but we've also found some incredibly helpful uses for it.

 

For example, our SEO team has found it incredibly useful for small coding tasks and automating certain aspects of their reporting work.

 

Where it falls short at the moment appears to be on the creative side, and we're still finding that internal ideation sessions generate significantly more original and creative ideas than ChatGPT can provide.

 

9. According to you, what are the most important factors in ensuring maximum client satisfaction?

 

Actually, keeping track of client satisfaction is probably the most important thing, as it seems that this is not the norm at every agency.

 

Next would be regular and frequent communication with the client since this is the only way to truly understand their satisfaction with the agency's work and the results generated.

 

We are big believers in spending our time on the areas that will drive the most impact, too, instead of banking billable hours and spending them on anything that could do with fine-tuning. This goes a long way in helping the client see that their investment is being wisely spent and likely to generate a meaningful return.

 

10. You've been in this sphere for a long time; what is the final piece of advice you would like to give all entrepreneurs out there?

 

The second you stop adapting and experimenting is when things are going to slow down, so always being open to change and welcoming a wide range of ideas from any available sources is hugely important. Not only being open to change but proactively looking to experiment and find the next best thing should be at the forefront of every entrepreneur's mind.