Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Fatima Zaidi, Founder and CEO of Quill Inc and CoHost, located in Toronto, ON, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Quill is an award-winning podcast production agency specializing in turnkey branded content. We produce podcasts for enterprise-level brands looking for content that achieves maximum impact and results. Currently, we work with companies like PwC, Expedia, Mckinsey, SickKids Hospital, TD, and other major brands on bringing their podcast to life. Our focus is on producing high-quality audio and strategic podcast marketing tactics to boost your company's podcast ROI. We work closely with your team to ensure that your content goals are met. Many of our clients' shows are award-winning, have been featured in reputable publications, and have ranked on Apple's New & Noteworthy along with other popular podcast charts.

In addition, Quill has created a podcast hosting and audience insights platform called CoHost. It is a product that makes it easy to publish, measure, and grow your show. We also run the Quill Podcast Awards, a yearly initiative where we shed light on not only exceptional indie and branded podcasts but also the companies behind them and the technology that the industry produces. Quill and CoHost have been featured in publications such as Forbes, Business Insider, Entrepreneur, and Inc as reputable and credible resources in the podcast industry. We have also won numerous notable awards, including Veuve Clicquot's Bold Future Award and Women in Content Marketing's Pivot Award.

Tell us about yourself

Like many Canadians, I didn't even know what a podcast was until 2014 when I fell in love with the true-crime podcast Serial. At the time, I was handling sales for a marketing agency. While I loved listening to podcasts, I also realized how powerful podcasting could be for brand storytelling. Unlike reading a book or watching a show, you can listen to podcasts while you cook, clean, work out, or commute, which makes it an attractive medium for brands to reach an audience.

So I left my six-figure sales job to launch Quill. Our tech platform helps Fortune 500 brands and individual creators with the infrastructure and distribution needed to not only create their shows but to find an audience. We've built an impressive roster of international clients, including PwC, Microsoft, Salesforce, Expedia, and SickKids Hospital. Just like you had a phone number for your business in the 1980s, a website in the 1990s, social media, and an app in the 2000s, the next 5-10 years is the wave of audio.

Outside of entrepreneurship, I teach at the University of Toronto, and I'm Co-Chair of the #Tech4SickKids council for SickKids Hospital, the second-largest pediatric research hospital in the world. We are on track to raise 25 million dollars to build a new emergency wing of the hospital, as well as fund some of the world's biggest data and AI projects.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Cash flow is king. The best way to know whether you have a good business idea is to build profitability into your business model from day one. I'm most proud that Quill has been cash flow positive from day one, and we've never needed outside investment. The problem is we've seen so many companies like WeWork going under because they raise large sums of capital so that they have oxygen, but then they don't have to worry about keeping overhead low and focusing on sales because they've extended their runway. How will you know if you have a good business idea if you're spending your time raising capital and not bringing in sales? Raising capital is a full-time job; when you're out talking to investors, you're taking away valuable time from sales when you could be talking to your customers instead. I always say most companies should be bootstrapping at the beginning if they can and focusing on sales/conversions- once you've proven out market traction and proof of concept, then go raise money when you know exactly you'll spend it. You'll get a much better valuation as well without giving away a huge chunk of equity.

What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?

Being a female founder brings a unique set of challenges to the table. It requires us to be resilient, hustle, and get creative in all aspects of our business, especially in bringing in revenue or raising capital. Irrespective of those challenges, it has meant being the hardest working person in the room and always being over-prepared for every opportunity, as preparation equates to confidence.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Being an entrepreneur is a rollercoaster. There are days you're on top of the world and days you hit rock bottom. Good entrepreneurs recognize that getting your ducks in a row takes much more work than commanding them to line up. Great entrepreneurs know that entrepreneurship is a marathon, not a sprint.
  2. Advocate for yourself because no one will do it for you. Often, women are afraid of being too promotional, opinionated, or aggressive. But at the end of the day, we are CEOs of our own brands, and If you don't advocate for yourself, then nobody else will. So my advice is to raise your hand, take the plunge, take credit for your eyes, and know that nobody else has more or less of a right to do exactly what you are.
  3. Thanks to technology and digital transformation, most of us can run companies from our living rooms without interacting with the outside world. However, I have built my entire network one handshake at a time. Offline tactics have the power to form stronger relationships, something you can't get from social media and online tactics. My entire sales strategy has been to focus on building relationships and providing value to your community which I have found to be a much more sustainable long-term approach.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website:
https://www.quillpodcasting.com/
https://www.cohostpodcasting.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fatima.zaidi.167
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zaidiafatima/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/zaidiafatima
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fatima-zaidi-6a6b844b/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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