Marketing, and search engine optimization ( SEO ) for the independent professional or small business in the service sector are sometimes a tough act. Actually, most of the time is likely more accurate. You don’t know where to start, what to do, how often to do it or how much to spend (although, “invest” is probably a better word).

During my time as a marketing & SEO consultant, as well as a writer, I’ve seen the same behaviors over and over again. Folks scramble about, trying this and that, desperately seeking better page rank, market awareness and, ultimately, more sales. If a tool doesn’t work from the get go, they rush to try something else in their search for the magic marketing bullet. Sorry, but to the best of my knowledge that magic bullet doesn’t exist.

Marketing and SEO works when they’re based on sound, tried and true principles, tactics and techniques. Marketing for a service business often requires a fair amount of soul searching to gain an accurate and authentic understanding of what makes you different – your unique value proposition – since, in most instances, your “product” is you. Once you know what really separates you from the pack, it’s a lot easier to craft the right message, find the right keywords and build relationships that generate sales and grow your business.

When you have the right message, finding methods of delivery that work for you can also be challenging. If you’re not careful and savvy, you can easily find yourself spending a lot of your hard earned money on methods that are either not right for your business, simply don’t work for a service business, or worse, both.

Beyond getting your website’s html, architecture and core content in shape for the search engines, there are on and off page tasks to manage, including tweaking keywords and phrases; link building; writing a continuing flow of quality content development that’s valuable to your audience; monitoring your search results and your competition’s; avoiding pitfalls that can hurt your rankings or worse. Plus, you’ll need to keep up to date with the latest tools and techniques, search engine algorithms and more.

That’s where I come in. It’s my job to gain a thorough understanding of you, your business, your goals, audience and competition. From there, we’ll craft a marketing strategy, whether it be online, offline or both. A strategy that’s just right based on your situation and budget. Together, we’ll implement that plan to get you into the search engine results pages ( SERPs ) and, ultimately, on your prospects’ radar screens

Take a look around this site. Learn about the services I offer and what others have to say about working with me. You might consider reading a few of my articles or blog to get some promotional ideas going or attend one of my presentations.

I work with creatives such as graphic designers, photographers, writers, web developers, authors and musicians, but also those who provide other professional services such as attorneys, accountants, financial advisors and health professionals.

For information and examples of my logo / identity, print and web design work, please visit Tortorella Design.

After you’ve poked around, contact me with any questions you may have. I’ll look forward to hearing from you.