Fresh out of Stanford with an MA in Education, I start my career as a high school English teacher.
I quit teaching after I'm nearly killed by an avalanche of ungraded papers sliding off my desk. At least that's how I remember it.
I decide to combine my greatest passion--teaching--with my favorite hobby--guitar, and launch www.heartwoodguitar.com. I advertise by posting fliers all over Seattle. Feet get sore. I realize that if I can learn how to get my website to rank well in search engines, I can save hundreds of dollars on thumb tacks, staples, and moleskin.
After a year of researching Search Engine Optimization techniques and obsessively tweaking my website, I finally rank #1 in Google for the search phrase "Seattle Guitar Lessons." The emails flood in, averaging five new clients a week. Within two weeks, my schedule is full, I start a waiting list, and I raise my rates. A month later, I raise my rates again. It does nothing to staunch the flow of new business.
I have a year-long waiting list. Having posted free chord charts and lessons on my site, I'm now getting over 6,000 visitors every day.
The waiting list is so long, I may never get to the people at the end. Site traffic has increased to 10,000 visits a day. I create a page on my site channeling my potential clients to other guitar teachers I admire. I start helping my friends who are business owners to optimize their Websites.
Helping my friends is so much fun, I decide to make a business of it. Seattle SEO Guru is born!
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