Entrepreneur. Investor. CEO of Awesome Motive.
Download Syed’s free Growth Toolkit and receive exclusive business advice.
About
Hello, my name is Syed Balkhi. I’m a 34 year old entrepreneur turned investor. I have created numerous bootstrapped software companies. Today over 30 million websites use my software.
This is my personal blog. It is focused on entrepreneurship where I share my journey and experiences with you. My goal is to create insightful and relevant content that you can put to work in your personal and professional life. If you have an online business — or want to have one, then this blog is for you.
I was born in Karachi, Pakistan. Ever since I can remember, I have been extremely competitive which makes me work hard at everything that I do. I started my first business when I was 7 years old selling holiday greeting cards for Muslim holiday (Eid). My mom gave me the initial funds to start, and I tripled her investment within a month…
My Companies
I’m the founder and CEO of Awesome Motive. My software powers over 25+ million websites serving billions of impressions every month. Below are some of my well-known online companies:
WPBeginner
Largest free WordPress resource site for non-techy users.
OptinMonster
Convert abandoning visitors into subscribers & customers.
WPForms
The best drag & drop online form builder for WordPress.
MonsterInsights
The most popular Google Analytics plugin for WordPress.
SeedProd
The #1 landing page builder for WordPress.
RafflePress
The best WordPress contest and giveaway plugin.
WP Mail SMTP
The #1 SMTP email delivery plugin for WordPress.
TrustPulse
Use FOMO and social proof notifications to grow your sales.
All In One SEO
The best WordPress SEO plugin to increase your rankings.
Smash Balloon
Create custom social media feeds and display it in WordPress.
PushEngage
Automatically send web push messages.
SearchWP
Most advanced WordPress search plugin.
Easy Digital Downloads
A complete eCommerce solution for WordPress.
Affiliate WP
An affiliate marketing tool that helps grow your business.
WP Simple Pay
A simple way to set up a payment form on your WordPress site.
Sugar Calendar
A sweet, simple event calendar plugin for WordPress.
WP Charitable
Top-rated WordPress donation and fundraising plugin.
WPCode
The best WordPress code snippets plugin.
SendLayer
Reliable email delivery service and API for website owners.
Easy WP SMTP
Improve email deliverability via professional email services.
Thrive Themes
Growth Tool Suite for WordPress to Help Boost Conversions.
Duplicator
The best WordPress backup and migration plugin.
UserFeedback
Easily Collect Feedback From Your WordPress Website.
Envira Gallery
The best responsive WordPress gallery plugin.
Imagely
Best photo gallery plugin to manage your photos like a pro.
Photocrati
Epic themes with beautiful designs and more for photographers.
Soliloquy
An easy, powerful, and responsive slider plugin.
Beacon
Create professional lead magnets and convert more traffic into leads.
BuddyBoss
The #1 course & community platform for WordPress.
SEOBoost
Harness the power of AI to optimize your content.
LowFruits
The best keyword research tool for niche websites.
ClickSocial
A social media scheduling tool for multiple accounts.
OnePageGA
A simple, easy to use one page dashboard for Google Analytics.
WPConsent
Easily manage all your WordPress privacy compliance needs.
aThemes
Create well-designed and easy to use themes and plugins.
My Investments
I also invest in online companies through my growth fund. Here are some of the companies that I’m an investor in:
MemberPress
The best membership website plugin for WordPress.
Formidable Forms
Advanced WordPress form builder for developers.
Pretty Links
Best link shortener and affiliate link plugin for WordPress.
Easy Affiliate
Affiliate management plugin for WordPress & WooCommerce.
Wholesale Suite
Best collection of WooCommerce wholesale extensions.
Advanced Coupons
Generate easy cart conditions before applying coupon codes.
Thirsty Affiliates
Insert affiliate links into your post and pages.
Uncanny Owl
Toolkit to help you build better course websites in WordPress.
Uncanny Automator
Connect your existing WordPress plugins together with no code.
Business Directory Plugin
Easily create any kind of directory on your WordPress site.
WooFunnels
Sales funnel and eCommerce automation plugin for WordPress.
WP Tasty
WordPress plugins made specifically for food blogs.
Nutrifox
Create, customize, and embed nutrition labels on any website.
MemberMouse
An easy to use WordPress membership plugin.
HeroThemes
The leading WordPress customer support solution provider.
WishList Member
Securely protect your membership site with this plugin.
WC Vendors
Turn your WooCommerce store into a marketplace with multivendors.
Seahawk Media
Offer fast turnaround with a white-label WordPress pro marketplace.
AdTribes
Have an unlimited number of product feeds with this plugin.
AccessAlly
Create courses, memberships, and coaching programs.
Work With Me
I do a limited number of keynote speaking engagements and business investments each year.
Syed has a knack for making the complex simple. His keynote was full of actionable insights backed by real results. He is a true practitioner, and one of the best in the industry. We are still get raving reviews, months later.– Ryan Deiss, Traffic & Conversion Summit
Speaking
With multiple business ventures on his resume and years of speaking experience, Syed can inspire and enlighten the crowd at your next event!
Syed has spoken at business conferences, universities, corporate events, and masterminds. He caters his keynotes to the audience, industry, and business level.
When booking Syed to speak at your event, you’re getting a true business practitioner who shares actionable insights and is not afraid of telling it like he sees it (no fluff).
Take the next step to enlighten, educate, and inspire your audience while driving traffic to your event.
Growth Accelerator Fund
Syed loves solving challenging business problems and identifying untapped extreme growth opportunities.
Growth Accelerator Fund is Syed’s own capital fund that invests in businesses that have already found their product-market fit and are ready to scale up / experience significant rapid growth.
Aside from capital, you also get strategy, resources, and execution assistance in growing your business.
Syed works closely with each entrepreneur and utilizes the power of his broad network in helping them turn their most ambitious goals into reality.
Unlike other funds, Growth Accelerator Fund is very selective because Syed only partners with entrepreneurs that align with his core values.
I’ve watched Syed grow businesses with a level of skill and thoughtfulness I haven’t seen anywhere else. He can effortlessly break down complex challenges, regardless of industry, and turn them into actionable growth opportunities. It’s incredible to watch. He’s also a great human being, which makes him a particularly winning partner for all entrepreneurs.– Yaniv Masjedi, CMO Nextiva
Blog
My personal blog is focused on sharing my journey and experiences including lessons learned, mistakes made, and big-wins!
This happened to me in 2024 – Year in Review
2024 has come to an end, and I am grateful for all the new opportunities as well as…
This happened to me in 2023 – Year in Review
Can’t believe it’s 2024 already. The days have been flying by fast. 2023 was an outstanding year full…
This happened to me in 2022 – Year in Review
Wow, this year flew by so fast. I can’t even believe we’re already at the end of December.…
