Magnatag InSight
The whiteboard and how it helps us brainstorm, innovate, motivate and create
Whiteboards We Love: Rand Fishkin and Whiteboard Friday’s
Fri Jul 22 2016By: Mike P
With another weekend just around the corner, it’s time for a new Whiteboards We Love blog post. This week we’re looking at a popular online web series hosted by the Internet’s Rand Fishkin, Founder and former CEO of Moz.
Over the past couple years, Rand has become infamously known amongst digital marketers as the host of Whiteboard Friday’s, a series of videos that unwrap the best practices for SEO. Each week, Fishkin unpacks a new topic for the SEO Community with the help of a pre-dawn whiteboard (an example of which we have provided below).
Whiteboard Friday’s have been a widely successful venture for the Moz team—and for good reason. Fishkin’s videos are elaborate and concise, an oxymoron of sorts, but one that mysteriously works. Videos range anywhere from 5-12 minutes in length while diving deeply into some of the web’s most complex search algorithms.
Rand’s delivery is often fast-paced; his penmanship written with purpose, and thanks in part to his visual aid, the conversations never seem to go off the rails. His monologue is guided by the scribbled text on the dry erase board, serving as a visual queue for both Rand and his audience.
Alongside the video that goes live every week, the Moz team also takes time to ensure that there is a digitalized version of the whiteboard illustration available for those that wish to have a high-res version of the walkthrough. The PDF’s serve as an excellent highlight of the talking points of the presentation, while providing data that is accurate and explanatory—which is a big plus for those of us looking to share a piece of useful information.
It’s easy to chalk the success of Whiteboard Friday’s up to Fishkin’s expertise when it comes to all things SEO, but there are plenty of other experts out there looking to share their advice; what makes Rand special?
The format. Fishkin has mastered the art of creating a presentation that equally relies on both visual and audible queues to tell a story. He understands the importance of maintaining a balance between a presentation that relies too heavily on visuals or too greatly on the spoken word. Watch any Whiteboard Friday and you’ll notice: Rand dives into a monologue when using anecdotes, but will quickly turn to the whiteboard when attempting to demonstrate specific concepts. It’s a skill that’s often overlooked when it comes to whiteboard presentations, but is essential to creating material that is captivating and easy to understand.
Fishkin’s Whiteboard Friday’s should be considered the archetype of what a whiteboard presentation should be: an informative presentation that relies equally on both visuals and the spoken work to tell an informative and captivating story.
Do you have a whiteboard you’d like us to cover? Don’t forget to tweet at us (@Magnatag) or visit our Facebook page using the hashtag #WhiteboardsWeLove. We’ll be back next week with another favorite!
Over the past couple years, Rand has become infamously known amongst digital marketers as the host of Whiteboard Friday’s, a series of videos that unwrap the best practices for SEO. Each week, Fishkin unpacks a new topic for the SEO Community with the help of a pre-dawn whiteboard (an example of which we have provided below).
Whiteboard Friday’s have been a widely successful venture for the Moz team—and for good reason. Fishkin’s videos are elaborate and concise, an oxymoron of sorts, but one that mysteriously works. Videos range anywhere from 5-12 minutes in length while diving deeply into some of the web’s most complex search algorithms.
Rand’s delivery is often fast-paced; his penmanship written with purpose, and thanks in part to his visual aid, the conversations never seem to go off the rails. His monologue is guided by the scribbled text on the dry erase board, serving as a visual queue for both Rand and his audience.
Alongside the video that goes live every week, the Moz team also takes time to ensure that there is a digitalized version of the whiteboard illustration available for those that wish to have a high-res version of the walkthrough. The PDF’s serve as an excellent highlight of the talking points of the presentation, while providing data that is accurate and explanatory—which is a big plus for those of us looking to share a piece of useful information.
It’s easy to chalk the success of Whiteboard Friday’s up to Fishkin’s expertise when it comes to all things SEO, but there are plenty of other experts out there looking to share their advice; what makes Rand special?
The format. Fishkin has mastered the art of creating a presentation that equally relies on both visual and audible queues to tell a story. He understands the importance of maintaining a balance between a presentation that relies too heavily on visuals or too greatly on the spoken word. Watch any Whiteboard Friday and you’ll notice: Rand dives into a monologue when using anecdotes, but will quickly turn to the whiteboard when attempting to demonstrate specific concepts. It’s a skill that’s often overlooked when it comes to whiteboard presentations, but is essential to creating material that is captivating and easy to understand.
Fishkin’s Whiteboard Friday’s should be considered the archetype of what a whiteboard presentation should be: an informative presentation that relies equally on both visuals and the spoken work to tell an informative and captivating story.
Do you have a whiteboard you’d like us to cover? Don’t forget to tweet at us (@Magnatag) or visit our Facebook page using the hashtag #WhiteboardsWeLove. We’ll be back next week with another favorite!
