Malcolm Gordon

Perth, Western Australia

I build startups, marketing systems, and the occasional viral idea.

Malcolm Gordon

I'm a decade-plus growth marketer and startup community builder — mentoring founders through Startup Weekend and Plus Eight, running digital marketing for Edith Cowan University, and shipping ventures on the side since 2005. Here's the full ledger.

15+ yrs digital marketing, ECU 12+ yrs Startup Weekend mentor 9 ventures founded / co-founded

The numbers

as of 2026
Media spend $10M+

Online advertising media spend to date

Leads 100,000+

Leads generated

Revenue $100M+

Revenue generated for clients & campaigns

Reach 150

Countries with sales generated

Mentored 1,000+

Founders & entrepreneurs mentored

Events 1,000+

Attendees across 20+ community meetups organised

Campaigns 1,000+

Successful campaigns launched

Current projects

active

The career ledger

present — 1999

● gold = venture built   ● teal = role held   ○ grey = mentoring / facilitation

2026 – PresentVenture

WouldPietEat · Hornet Bay · PropCheq

Founder

Three live builds of mine — see Current Projects above for details on each.

May 2025 – PresentStartup Mentor

Spacecubed

Startup Mentor

I mentor during Office Hours, specialising in digital marketing and growth for startups, alongside Curtin Venture.

Nov 2024Startup Mentor

Plus Eight Accelerator Program

Workshop Facilitator

I facilitated the City of Perth Plus Eight pre-accelerator Business Models workshop and an introduction to the Lean Canvas, and ran office-hours mentoring for the cohort.

Sep 2014 – PresentRole

Edith Cowan University (ECU)

Digital Marketing Analyst

Responsibilities

  • Manage the university's paid search (Google Ads) channel end-to-end
  • Own the international digital marketing effort
  • Review and approve campaign media plans
  • Vet advertising proposals and media buys from non-agency vendors
  • Plan and run staff and agency training workshops
  • Grow awareness of ECU's research output, impact and capabilities
  • Report to university executive, school deans and senior leadership
  • Design and implement new processes

Outcomes

  • Managed $20M+ in media spend
  • Consistently delivered a 20:1 ROI on campaign media spend
  • Ran countless staff workshops on SEO, paid search, international digital marketing, Google Ads, and campaign creative review
  • Grew ECU Research newsletter subscribers by 984% through a dedicated campaign
  • Delivered guest lectures to third-year marketing students on career development, search marketing and startup marketing
  • Documented the university's paid search and international digital marketing strategy and processes
Jun – Nov 2013Venture

AdShirts

Founder

I served rich-media banner advertising on t-shirts with embedded digital displays. I killed it once it was clear the concept lacked a real problem to solve.

Feb 2014 – PresentStartup Mentor

Techstars Startup Weekend

Mentor

Responsibilities

  • Promoted and marketed events
  • Handled media liaison
  • Managed event social media
  • Facilitated sessions
  • Mentored participating teams
  • Coached pitches
  • Greeted and registered participants

Outcomes

  • Sold out multiple events, with waitlists in place
  • Mentored 100+ startup teams through Lean Startup methodology, MVP development and market validation
  • Secured earned media in The Sunday Times, Campaign Brief and other publications
  • Planned and ran the event's social media marketing campaign
  • Earned organic promotion from eGroup WA, Morning Startup, ECU and others
  • Mentored several teams that went on to win the event
Sep – Dec 2012Venture

Threadster

Co-Founder

Threadster.co was a crowdfunding platform for indie fashion designers, born out of the inaugural Startup Weekend Perth hackathon.

Responsibilities

  • Created and ran an online advertising campaign targeting fashion-forward consumers in the US and Australia across Google AdWords, Facebook Ads and Bing Ads
  • Secured local and national earned media through media outreach
  • Created and implemented the social media marketing strategy, including platform setup and branding
  • Began posting content to generate buzz and awareness

Outcomes

  • Drove 1,000+ visitors and the first sales within hours of site launch
  • All achieved within a 54-hour hackathon time-frame
2012Freelance

Amman Pasha Hotel

Freelance Website Build & SEO

A 40-room hotel with restaurant in downtown Amman, Jordan.

Responsibilities

  • Created the brand guide and style guide
  • Built the site architecture
  • Did keyword research
  • Handled on-page SEO
  • Wrote all content for the site build
  • Did some off-page SEO
  • Set up the social media presence
  • Installed WordPress and configured plugins

Outcomes

  • Ranked in the top 3 for competitive search results relating to Amman hotel and accommodation terms
  • Generated over USD $1 million in bookings through organic search referrals within three years of launch — with almost no updates since
Mar – Sep 2012Venture

Buildcloud

Co-Founder

I built a construction-industry project management platform, ran Lean Canvas assumption testing, and wound it down when it didn't pan out.

Aug 2012 – Sep 2014Role

Edith Cowan University (ECU)

Senior Digital Content Co-ordinator

I built, implemented and optimised online marketing strategies to achieve organisational goals in the most cost-effective way.

Jan – Aug 2012Role

Edith Cowan University (ECU)

Digital Strategist

Responsibilities

  • Formulated and implemented online marketing strategy across best-practice social, content and search engine marketing
  • Set up and optimised PPC campaigns for maximum ROI
  • Created and facilitated monthly online marketing training workshops for staff
  • Created online marketing training materials
Dec 2010 – Jan 2012Role

Edith Cowan University (ECU)

Online Marketing Manager

Responsibilities

  • Project managed the ME Project future-students digital initiative
  • Project managed the ECU Open Day Planner web app
  • Trained staff in best-practice social media account management
  • Facilitated the Media140 digital marketing conference
  • Governed and managed all ECU social media channels and community
  • Reported to university executive, Strategic Governance Services, and school leadership

Outcomes

  • Delivered the ME Project site on budget — won the 2011 Creative Showcase 6.2 award
  • Delivered the ECU Open Day Planner on time and on budget
  • Ran staff workshops that lifted governance of ECU's social channels across schools and centres
  • Delivered Media140, drawing several hundred attendees over two days at Mount Lawley
  • Created and implemented ECU's social media policy
  • Chaired several ECU Social Media Committee meetings
Jan – Dec 2010Role

Business Networking International — Endeavour Shore Chapter

Vice President

Responsibilities

  • Created and implemented an integrated marketing strategy across on and offline media
  • Prospected for new chapter inductees
  • Wrote media releases and handled media liaison
  • Reported on key chapter performance indicators
  • Mentored new chapter inductees
Nov 2009 – Dec 2010Venture

Mal Gordon Agency

Founder · Freelance Digital Marketing Strategist

Responsibilities

  • Built and implemented customised online marketing strategies for SMEs
  • Project managed a team of web designers, developers and animators spread across three continents and multiple time zones
  • Provided creative direction on brand look and feel for SMEs
  • Approved SBDC trainer
  • Designed and delivered social media marketing workshops to SMEs through the Small Business Development Corporation

Outcomes

  • Successfully delivered several website development projects for clients in the fashion, education and legal industries
2009Freelance

The Damascus Hostel

Freelance Website Build & SEO

A hostel in the heart of the Old City, Damascus, Syria.

Responsibilities

  • Created the brand guide and style guide
  • Built the site architecture
  • Did keyword research
  • Handled on-page SEO
  • Wrote all content for the site build
  • Did some off-page SEO
  • Set up the social media presence
  • Installed WordPress and configured plugins

Outcomes

  • Ranked in the top 3 for competitive search results relating to "Damascus hostels" and other accommodation terms
May 2009 – May 2010Venture

Blingvaders

Founder

My retro video-game-inspired jewellery brand — my first genuine viral hit, with media coverage across three countries.

Jan – Dec 2008Role

The Community Newspaper Group (now PerthNow)

Copywriter

I wrote advertorial copy, with the occasional restaurant review.

Mar 2007 – Oct 2009Role

Dark Horse Advertising

Campaign Strategist & Copywriter

Online branding strategist and copywriter — worked closely with clients to build marketing strategies designed to grow their businesses.

Responsibilities

  • Wrote copy for web and EDM content
  • Created, implemented and optimised social media strategy
  • Created and optimised Facebook display advertising campaigns
  • Built WordPress sites and custom themes
May 2007 – Dec 2010Venture

Aluminium West

Director & Co-Founder · Bookkeeper/Administrator

Responsibilities

  • Account keeping for the Perth-based construction business
  • Entered client details into the customer relationship database
  • Calculated and processed weekly payroll for all staff
  • Invoiced clients
  • Completed and lodged regular ATO business activity statements
  • Prepared tax returns
  • Handled debt collection from customers
  • Generated regular profit/loss and other business-critical reports
  • Maintained a small IT network

Outcomes

  • Prepared and lodged ATO business activity statements to deadline, every time
  • Prepared and lodged staff payroll to deadline, every time
  • Kept high data accuracy and integrity in record keeping
  • Kept creditor delinquency and bad debts low
  • Grew revenue to $500k+ in under 18 months and the team from two to seven
  • Sub-contracted on the Gorgon project
Feb 2005 – Jan 2008Venture

The Sleep Cap

Founder

Digital transformation of a paper-based mail order operation into an e-commerce operation.

Responsibilities

  • Selected and implemented the e-commerce engine
  • Created content for the new website
  • Did keyword research and on-page SEO
  • Prepared the online advertising campaign budget
  • Implemented and optimised the campaign

Outcomes

  • Built the site on Mambo with the Php-Shop e-commerce module
  • Populated the site with SEO-optimised content
  • Set up and implemented the PayPal payment gateway
  • Populated the e-commerce module with product images and descriptions
  • Set up, implemented and optimised a Google AdWords PPC campaign
May 2005 – Apr 2007Role

Asgard Wealth Solutions

Corporate Actions Officer

Responsibilities

  • Daily liaison with finance professionals, share registries, clearing houses, Asgard customer service, legal and compliance teams
  • Entered client details into the trust accounting system
  • Processed corporate actions — floats, splits, bonus issues, takeovers, schemes of arrangement, proxy voting, calls and dividend payments — for trustee and wrap accounts
  • Supported and troubleshot Advisernet, Asgard's financial planning platform
  • Trained all new Corporate Actions team members

Outcomes

  • Kept a constant flow of timely communication between the Shares team and the rest of Asgard
  • Created numerous procedure documents for Asgard's software systems, used across the organisation
  • Built a demonstration learning management system with screen-capture video of Advisernet and other Asgard systems
  • Processed all corporate actions to deadline with a low error rate
Oct 2005 – Apr 2006Venture

Charttv

Founder & Vlogger

My technical-analysis finance vlog — the first of its kind on YouTube. I grew it to ~100,000 views with zero paid promotion.

Apr – Dec 2004Role

Elliottician

Course Co-ordinator

Responsibilities

  • Supported clients on the software, liaising daily with international clients across multiple time zones — installs, updates and troubleshooting
  • Planned, built and ran financial-markets software user training programmes
  • Conceived and implemented software design improvements and upgrades
  • Managed and maintained the training content delivery infrastructure
  • Fed user feedback and suggestions back to the software development team
  • Wrote training programme content and software manuals
  • Kept course materials current against ever-changing legal and compliance requirements
  • Liaised daily with IT and Marketing to scope client requirements and new content delivery methods
  • Prepared and presented daily webinar video conference calls to a global audience

Outcomes

  • Was a key contributor to building and shipping cutting-edge finance technology and education
  • Implemented new training content that lifted student performance, understanding and retention
  • Substantially boosted sales through improved training programmes and student comprehension
  • Improved client response and feedback
Apr 2003 – Jan 2004Role

ASX Perpetual Registrars (now MUFG Corporate Markets)

Records Management Officer

Responsibilities

  • Maintained the security-holders register for clients to statutory and service-agreement standards
  • Entered client details into the client relationship database
  • Processed client payment instructions
  • Banked large volumes of share-offer acceptance cheques and payments, quickly and accurately

Outcomes

  • Member of the Australian Foundation Investment Company (AFI) $300 million share issue team
  • Kept strict adherence to KPIs
  • Ensured smooth, efficient banking of up to $60 million in cheques per week
Dec 1999 – Mar 2003Role

Self Employed

Trader/Investor for a Small Family Office

Responsibilities

  • Built and implemented long/short strategies across Australian equities, derivatives and forex markets
  • Swing traded using technical analysis to time market entries and exits
  • Traded across a universe of ASX equities, exchange-traded options (ETOs) and forex