Mark Goren of Point to Point
Meet Mark Goren, founder of
Point to Point, a leading business-to-business digital marketing firm with 18 employees. With clients throughout the country who share a common goal of scalable top line growth, Point to Point helps companies find, sell and grow customers.
How did you come to be an entrepreneur?
It started at the kitchen table during family dinners. We always seemed to be talking about business. That was probably influenced by my father, who had a typesetting business, and my mother, who sold woman’s clothes. Entrepreneurship became part of my DNA and helps to explain the airline charter, alarm systems, color separation and software development businesses I started in addition to Point to Point.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve had to face in your business?
The biggest challenge and greatest opportunity have been the constant of change. Every business I have been involved with has been completely redefined and reinvented by new technology. It’s helped me to understand that you can’t work against change. But instead you need to embrace what the new will be, versus what you currently think your reality should be based on what you have created. In other words, construction, deconstruction and reconstruction are always in play.
What motivates you to go into work each day?
Three things: Helping our clients achieve their objectives; growing the talents of the people I work with; and improving my own skills.
What are some of the advantages to doing business in Cleveland?
Cleveland is a great place to do business. There’s plenty of talent, professional service infrastructure and a passion to do great work. People that live here tend to be committed to the region and their families and share in a Midwest work ethic. I see a kind of toughness and determination to succeed. Whether it’s crappy professional sports results, cold winters or whatever the headline downer is, we keep moving forward. Cleveland is the embodiment of construction, deconstruction and reconstruction.
What advice would you give to someone starting a company here?
Forget about the whole Cleveland thing. Don’t start a business because you want to show the world it can be done here. Start a business because you have a genuine passion for what you’re doing. It sounds cliché, but there aren't any short cuts. People that have a genuine interest in perfecting their mission have a real shot at greatness. Not for greatness sake, but rather for the fire in their bellies.