What happens when a Canadian entrepreneur flips broken PlayStations into millions, gets a $10M buyout, then loses almost half to taxes and builds again? In this episode of Marketing Misfits, Norm Farrar and Kevin King sit down with Peter Kostandenou to uncover the highs, lows, and lessons of his unconventional journey from eBay hustler to tech exec.
Peter shares how he:
- Accidentally went viral on TikTok by falling asleep as a DJ 🎧
- Scaled Hostopia from $3M to $60M and sold to Deluxe for $124M 💰
- Built a full AI marketing suite (Mopro) for local businesses 📈
- Lost $4M from bad tax planning — and what he’d do differently 🧾
- Built an offline car club community to test real-world brand loyalty 🏎️
You’ll learn:
- Why Google and ChatGPT rely on real reviews and social signals to rank your business
- The critical difference between automation and AI agents
- What GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) means for your SEO strategy in 2025
- How to build trust signals through structured data, social media, and review responses
- What a roofing contractor can teach you about the power of a single bad review
This episode is packed with branding gems, ecommerce evolution, and raw business truth. If you’re an entrepreneur, agency owner, or tech builder, you need this one.
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
01:43 A Tech Entrepreneur's Journey
09:38 The PlayStation 2 Resale Success Story
21:38 The Rise of Hostopia
31:47 The Evolution of Small Business Marketing
34:04 The Future of Websites: AI and Social Media
35:14 The Role of AI in Content Consumption
40:06 The Importance of Reviews for Small Businesses
42:46 Effective Review Strategies for Local Businesses
49:35 Managing Negative Comments and Social Mentions
58:29 Automation vs AI: Understanding the Difference
01:01:27 Branding Stories: Car Club and DJing
01:09:48 Final Thoughts
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