Going Deep with Aaron Watson: Kris Reid on Taking Giant Leaps and Going Out of Comfort Zones
Aaron Watson, the host of Going Deep Podcast, sat down for a 21-minute chat with Kris Reid, CEO of Ardor SEO, about the success of Ardor and Kris’s giant leap in the digital marketing industry.
In this podcast episode, Kris narrates how he founded Ardor, where his ideas became a business that competes on an international level. He goes on to share his success in building an SEO in Cambodia and the Philippines.
Getting to Know Aaron Watson
Aaron Watson is a podcast host and the co-founder of The Piper Creative. His podcast show, Going Deep with Aaron Watson, features inspirational individuals who talk about passion, perseverance, and life lessons.
It covers various topics, including entrepreneurship, finance, technology, writing, and healthcare.
Aside from the show, Aaron will also host the Going Deep Summit, a gathering of people from different walks of life who yearn to learn from the works of others.
Happening in March 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the summit will feature keynote speakers who are willing to share their life’s work, inspirations, motivations, and dedication in reaching their dreams.
Now, Aaron has put Kris in the hot seat to share his story in building Ardor SEO.
Ardor SEO Today
Ardor SEO is one of the flagship ideas of Kris when he first started in the digital marketing industry.
Ardor has two main products: Ardor SEO and Ardor Media Factory.
Kris explains that Ardor SEO is retail SEO for businesses. In this business segment, Ardor helps companies use search engine optimization to promote and make clients visible in the digital arena.
On the other hand, Ardor Media Meanwhile, Ardor Media Factory is for SEO companies. Ardor is somewhat an SEO outsourcer for these companies. Moreover, this segment of Ardor aims to help businesses utilize digital marketing to their advantage.
Ardor has offices in Phom Phen, Cambodia and Davao, Philippines. Currently, Ardor is competing with international SEO companies.
With the price advantage and high-quality output of Ardor SEO, clients from around the globe seek their services.
The Beginning of Ardor
Kris is a software engineer by profession. He is in the industry of providing software solutions. For quite some time, Kris built a fortune in the financial market. For years, he had been working there until the Global Financial Crisis happened. This tragic economic failure affected many people, including Kris. But, with the money he saved, Kris decided to be a backpacker. He traveled the world, near and far, searching for his next move.
By the time he decided to start again, he had used his knowledge and experience in software engineering. At first, it began with the idea of creating a game he called Mob Warrior.
Little did he know that this game would be his bridge to something bigger, something unknown, and yet will be his life-changing moment.
As Kris was completing the program of the game, a problem came up. Kris wondered how he could make his game known to everyone.
And to cut the story short, Kris accidentally fell into the rabbit hole that eventually led him to the world of SEO.
Ardor took off when Kris realized the full potential of Google’s Page Ranking system. Kris explained how backlinking creates authority.
Using an analogy, Kris illustrated it this way: “When you write a book, and many people are using your book as a reference, then you must have authority. Similarly, if you are a butcher and many butchers are ‘linking’ you, then you must be the best butcher in town.”
The Giant Leap
When Kris was still building his SEO empire, he admitted that he did not know about handling business.
Kris focused on building external relationships with clients. He was always on the go in looking for more clients.
He took a giant leap and went out of his comfort zone as a software engineer. However, Kris thought that his giant leap in the SEO industry is enough risk to take.
Being a company that works remotely, Ardor experienced internal business problems that lead Kris to visit one of his offices in Southeast Asia.
Regardless, Kris used this experience as a learning opportunity. Though he has chosen a field that is not aligned with his profession, Kris strived hard to learn the rules of the game.
He reads books and acquires most of his business knowledge from the books he read. He talks to his entrepreneur friends and asks for advice regarding business management.
The Ultimate Challenge
Kris challenges young dreamers in the audience to go out of their comfort zones. If Kris has to advise his nine-to-ten-years younger self, he would say, “be patient.”
Kris urges everyone to go out and talk to people. “Try to surround yourself with people whom you can learn from,” he says.
For him, he only had friends who were software engineers. If only he could start again, he would go out and talk to people coming from different fields to open him to new ideas and concepts outside his comfort zone.
Check out the full podcast episode of Aaron and Kris here: Episode 122 Kris Reid, Building an SEO Empire in Cambodia and the Philippines. The podcast is also available on Spotify.
