Take 5: Lisa Wehr

Lisa Wehr knows most small companies can't afford big digital marketing budgets. But she says it's as important as ever to get their messages out on the Web.

 Wehr founded Oneupweb 14 years ago in Alaska as a search engine marketing company. It has since moved to Traverse City and expanded to include social media marketing, podcast production, online display advertising and other digital marketing tools.

 Consulting from Oneupweb typically costs $300 an hour, something many small startups can't afford.

 So, Wehr and a handful of her employees drove around the state in a motor home last week, offering free consultations. The tour visited Lansing, Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids and Traverse City. About 20 people consulted Oneupweb during the Lansing stop.

 "I would say three-fourths of the people we've talked to are working several part-time jobs and trying to start something on the side for themselves," Wehr said. "It's nice to see that people aren't sitting at home wringing their hands and worrying about it, but they're trying to just take control of their destiny and get something happening."
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Why did you go "on tour," offering free online marketing consultations?

 There are a lot of displaced workers down here that are starting up their own businesses, really small companies and just trying to survive, so we thought we could help them. They can't afford us, so let's give it to them.
What kind of help do you offer?

 I wanted to be able to help them focus in on the thing that's going to have the biggest impact the fastest.
What are the challenges for small businesses that would like to use digital marketing?

 Their biggest challenge is they're trying to do it out of pocket. When you go out there to get something done, there's not much out there that's free. At the very least it's costing your time.

 They're really not familiar with what all their options are.
What's the importance of digital marketing?

 With the inception of the Internet, marketing started to evolve and change anyway. But this recession means that we're never going back. People's buying patterns are changing. The mentality and the culture around the Internet has changed. It's kind of a situation where you have to adapt or die.
What's your best piece of advice?

 The first and most important thing is that they not be afraid, because that paralysis prevents you from going anywhere. My second piece is do one thing, focus on one thing. I can't say, 'Oh you need to do search engines or you need to do social media,' because it is going to vary so much between everybody.

Posted via email from Yellow Door Media