Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Hennessey.
Hi Jason, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
My journey began in 2001 when I hired a developer to create a website for my mobile DJ business. The site, Vegas Wedding Mall, was intended to be a one-stop destination for people planning their weddings in Las Vegas. However, after three months, I realized that no one was visiting the site. When I asked the developer about it, he told me that he only builds websites and does not handle search engine optimization (SEO).
Determined to drive traffic to my website, I took it upon myself to learn SEO. I bought several books on the topic and immersed myself in the strategies and techniques. What started as a need quickly became an obsession, and over time, I strove to be an expert in the field.
Here we are, 22 years later, my eight-figure agency, Hennessey Digital has over 100 employees across the globe, and we have been named one of the fastest-growing companies on the Inc. list for four consecutive years. The success can be attributed to our effective expertise with digital marketing and our white glove service to our clients. We stay at the forefront of the latest trends and technologies, constantly exploring new ways to help our clients improve their online presence to increase their leads and revenue.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I firmly believe that owning and operating a business is never a smooth road. Throughout my nearly eight-year journey with Hennessey Digital, I have faced numerous challenges, from hiring the best team without geographic limitations to scaling for sustained growth through training and implementing continuously improving systems. However, it is these challenges and failures that have ultimately set me up for success.
One of the biggest hurdles I had to overcome was learning the art of delegation. I quickly realized that I could not do everything myself and that I needed to rely on my team’s strengths to achieve our goals. This meant identifying my own zone of genius and delegating to others when they were better suited for certain tasks and responsibilities.
I like to think that failure is perhaps both my greatest obstacle and greatest opportunity, and I call it ‘failing forward’. Each setback provides valuable lessons and insights, which allow me to refine my approach and improve my decision-making. I believe that it is essential to embrace failure, learn from it, and use it as a catalyst for growth and development.
As you know, we’re big fans of Hennessey Digital. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
As the Founder and CEO of Hennessey Digital, I am proud to lead a digital marketing agency that specializes in organic SEO and paid marketing. Our agency has earned a reputation as one of the strongest thought leaders in the legal space, with a particular focus on SEO for law firms to increase their leads, cases, and revenue. Personally, I spent years developing my expertise in this area and wrote a book called Law Firm SEO, which has been hailed as the bible for organic SEO strategies for marketing a law firm. This accomplishment is one that I hold dear to my heart.
Over the past eight years, we have worked hard to build our agency’s brand and reputation. Our commitment to excellence and innovation has earned us a great reputation in the digital marketing space, and we have become a go-to agency for law firms seeking to improve their online visibility.
Looking to the future, we are excited to expand our horizons and start working with businesses in new niches and verticals. In fact, my new book, Honest SEO, set to be released in August 2023, will provide valuable insights and strategies that can benefit small businesses across various industries.
What’s next?
I am proud to say that we’re at the forefront of innovation in digital marketing. We recognize the importance of leveraging technology to stay ahead of the curve and help our clients succeed. That is why we are focusing on integrating AI automation and software as a service into our strategies.
Our team has been working on developing Powa, a SaaS tool that will improve the speed of WordPress websites. With over 3,000 hours of development time invested, Powa will help websites perform better, which is a crucial factor in Google’s algorithm. It also addresses the challenge of passing Core Web Vitals, which can be difficult to achieve without the proper engineering expertise.
We are also excited to be leveraging AI in other ways with several proprietary tools that we’re preparing to launch internally. These tools will enable us to offer even more innovative, efficient, and effective solutions to our clients and will help our agency to stand out.
We see AI and tools like ChatGPT as an opportunity, not a threat. And by embracing these technologies and using them to enhance our expertise and capabilities, we’re better equipped to serve our clients and stay ahead of the curve in an ever-evolving industry.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://hennessey.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasonhennessey/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jasonhennesseyfb/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jhennessey/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrorwnhMIn2-uxBuitqFLbA
