ANSWERING our ten questions this week is Ben Norman, CEO and founder of Koozai, a leading digital marketing agency based in the UK. Ben has authored several SEO (search engine optimisation) books that have sold in excess of 50,000 copies worldwide and has been featured in various media outlets, including the BBC and Sky News. Ben is also an avid speaker who has spoken at many leading conferences, including SES London and Learn Inbound.

1. As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

To be honest, I never knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. Even when I left school I didn't really know.

2. What was your first job?

My first job was fixing old-style CRT computer monitors. I worked my way around from basic fixes to calibration.

3. What is the best decision you have made in business?

Focusing on bringing in the right people and recruiting the person first and the skillset second. A business is all about the people, and we hire the best people.

4. And what was the worst?

I think the worst decisions in general are ones made in haste. But the worse decision I think I have made is trying to replace myself with an MD who did not fully understand the business and culture. This started to move the business away from the course it was on and caused a one-year backward step.

Daily Echo:

5. Who has most influenced you in business?

I could say something cool like Alan Sugar or Richard Branson and people like that have had an influence, but I would say in all honesty it’s the amazing people that work at Koozai and my network of friends in the industry. Our industry is unlike any other that I have known; even your competitors can be close friends and would help you out in a heartbeat.

6. Sandwich at your desk or out to lunch?

Sandwich at my desk; it’s not good but there is always something to do and never enough hours in the day.

7. What is the biggest change in your business/industry that you have seen in the course of your working life?

It would be people becoming more knowledgeable, SEO in particular used to be viewed as a bit of a black art and therefore you used to have to educate before selling, whereas now people seem a lot more informed.

8. Tie or open-necked shirt?

Open-necked shirt or t-shirt. I have banned suits and ties as it is just not us. It’s not our culture or what makes us feel comfortable, so we don’t do it.

9. What’s the ‘next big thing’ in your industry?

The next Penguin roll-out. When Google rolled out the last Penguin update (this is an update to the way links to your website are viewed), it caused websites to be dropped from the search results overnight and caused massive shockwaves. There will be a new update this year at some point and we will see the same again, so it’s more important than ever that business owners understand if they have a potential problem.

10. Where do you see you and your business in five years?

The agency will become bigger and better able to help more clients, and we will also be furthering our expansion into London.