This is an interview with Robert Downey, Co-Founder, Simply Be Found
Can you introduce yourself and share your expertise in digital marketing? What unique perspective do you bring to the field?
I’m Rob Downey, co-founder of SimplyBeFound.com. I come from small business—I’ve run shops, built service companies, and lived that world where every dollar matters. But I’ve also been around tech for over 30 years. So I sorta bridge the gap between old-school hustle and modern digital know-how.
What makes my perspective a little different is that I don’t just know marketing from a strategy deck—I know it from scraping by, testing things that didn’t work, and finding stuff that does. I don’t care about clicks unless they turn into calls. I’m all about helping local businesses actually get found without wasting their time or money chasing the wrong shiny object.
How did you start your journey in digital marketing, and what key experiences shaped your career to where it is today?
I started messing with digital marketing back in 1995—back when building a website meant writing raw HTML and praying your modem didn’t kick you offline halfway through an upload. I didn’t come into this as a marketer—I came in as a small business guy just trying to get noticed. I had to learn tech because nobody was handing out roadmaps, especially to local folks like me.
Over the years, I’ve led over a thousand marketing campaigns and helped launch more than 5,000 websites—across all kinds of industries. But it’s the small business owners that shaped me most. Watching them get left behind by big-budget marketing and BS tactics—that lit a fire in me. That’s why we built Simply Be Found. It’s not about shiny tools. It’s about helping real people show up where it matters, without getting overwhelmed or outspent.
Being a fourth-generation entrepreneur means business is in my blood, but it also means I know what it’s like when payroll’s tight and your reputation is your marketing. That perspective? It’s what keeps me grounded in everything I do.
You’ve mentioned the importance of localization in international SEO. Can you share a specific challenge you faced when adapting a digital marketing strategy for a different culture or language, and how did you overcome it?
Yeah—localization’s a tricky beast. One time we were helping a U.S.-based service business expand into Canada, and on paper, it looked simple. Same language, similar culture, right? But we tanked early on because we didn’t realize how different search intent could be between regions. Canadians weren’t searching for “contractor near me”—they used terms like “local tradesman” or spelled things with an extra “u,” like “favourite.” Stuff you don’t catch if you’re just doing keyword research from a desk in Colorado.
So we paused, talked to real folks in that area, studied their listings, and even listened to the way they described things in local forums. Then we rewrote content—not just translated it, but made it sound like them. And guess what? That’s when rankings turned around. It reminded me that SEO isn’t just about being seen—it’s about being understood. If it doesn’t sound familiar, people scroll past.
In your experience, how has voice search optimization impacted digital marketing strategies? Can you provide an example of how you’ve successfully implemented voice search optimization for a client?
Voice search has changed the game—especially for local businesses. People aren’t typing “Mexican restaurant Denver” anymore. They’re saying stuff like, “Where’s a good place to grab tacos near me right now?” And that shift—from keywords to conversation—is huge. Most websites and listings just weren’t built for how real people talk.
One client we worked with—a mobile dog groomer—saw a massive bump once we optimized their listing and site for natural-language questions. We built out a Q&A section using the exact phrases people were asking Google or Alexa. Stuff like, “Do mobile groomers come to apartments?” or “How much does it cost to get a big dog groomed at home?” It wasn’t fancy—it was just human.
Within a couple of months, they started showing up in voice search results and got more direct calls, not just clicks. That’s the power of meeting people where they are—literally how they talk when they need something.
You’ve emphasized the importance of building trust through customer reviews. What’s your approach to handling negative reviews, and how do you turn them into opportunities for improving a business’s online reputation?
Look—every business gets a bad review sooner or later. It’s just part of being human. The trick isn’t avoiding them—it’s how you respond. I always tell folks: respond like you’re having a real conversation, not writing a legal memo. Don’t deflect, don’t attack. Just own it. Thank them for the feedback, apologize if it makes sense, and show that you’re taking steps to fix the issue.
We once had a client get a nasty review about late arrivals. Instead of ignoring it, we helped them reply with honesty: explained they were short-staffed that day, apologized, and offered to make it right. That review didn’t disappear—but new customers saw that response and trusted them more because of how they handled it.
Negative reviews can actually boost your credibility—if you handle them with grace. It shows you’re real, and that you care more about relationships than perfection.
Given your expertise in local SEO, what’s one common mistake you see businesses make when trying to improve their local search rankings, and what’s your advice for avoiding it?
One of the biggest mistakes I see? Businesses think just claiming their Google Business Profile is enough. They fill in the basics, maybe toss up a logo, and then forget it even exists. But local SEO isn’t “set it and forget it”—Google wants to see activity, consistency, and real engagement.
My advice? Treat your profile like a living part of your business. Post updates regularly. Answer questions people leave. Add new photos. Keep your hours right (especially during holidays—seriously, that’s a trust-killer when it’s wrong). The businesses that actually use their profile—not just claim it—are the ones who win in local search.
And whatever you do, make sure your business info is the same across the web. One wrong phone number on some random directory can drag your rankings down more than you’d think.
You’ve talked about the balance between digital and traditional marketing. Can you share a case study where you successfully integrated both approaches for a client, and what were the results?
Yeah—one that sticks out was a local HVAC company. They’d been running flyers and newspaper ads for years, and honestly, they weren’t getting much traction anymore. But the owner didn’t want to drop traditional completely—he just wanted it to work better.
So we tweaked the whole approach. Instead of generic ads, we focused the messaging around voice-search-style questions—stuff like, “Need furnace help fast?” or “Looking for AC repair near you?” And every flyer had a short, memorable domain and QR code that linked to a mobile-friendly page we built, optimized for local SEO and call tracking.
We also synced it up with their Google Business Profile updates and added some Q&A content that matched the flyer language. The result? They didn’t spend a penny more—but their call volume nearly doubled during peak season. Why? Because everything finally worked together, instead of fighting each other. Print sent people online, and online actually converted ’em.
In the rapidly evolving field of digital marketing, how do you stay updated with the latest trends and technologies? What’s your process for evaluating new tools or strategies before recommending them to clients?
To be honest, I don’t chase shiny objects. There’s always a “next big thing” in digital marketing, but most of it’s noise—especially for the small businesses we work with. I stay grounded by watching how real people search, talk, and buy. That means tracking changes in voice search, Google updates, and local ranking behavior, not just reading trend reports.
When I do test something new—whether it’s a tool, tactic, or platform—I always try it on our own stuff first. If it doesn’t help us show up better or save time, I’m not recommending it to a single client. I’ve been around tech for over 30 years, and I’ve learned that the newest tool isn’t always the best tool. What matters is: does it work for real humans running real businesses?
That’s the bar. If it clears that, then we’ll roll it out with our team, refine it, and then bring it to our members. We don’t beta-test on clients.
Looking ahead, what do you think will be the next big shift in digital marketing that businesses should prepare for? How can they start adapting their strategies now?
AI is changing search in a way we’ve never seen before—and it’s already happening. The old game of ranking #1 on Google is shifting. With AI Overviews and voice-driven results, people aren’t getting ten blue links anymore—they’re getting one answer. One spoken answer in some cases. If your business isn’t showing up in that one answer? You’re invisible.
This is going to wreck the old “more traffic = more leads” mindset. It’s not about traffic anymore—it’s about trust signals and direct answers. Businesses need to start optimizing for how people ask questions out loud, not just how they type. That means building content that actually answers things, updating Google Business Profiles regularly, and embracing tools that help you show up in AI-driven results—not just web pages.
We’re heading into a world where your visibility depends on how clearly and locally you answer the right questions—not how flashy your site is. Start thinking like your customer talks, not like a marketer writes. That’s where the future lives.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge and expertise. Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Yeah—just this: Small businesses matter. They’re the backbone of every town, every Main Street, and they’re the ones getting hit hardest by all the tech changes flying at us. I’ve made it my mission to make digital marketing feel doable again—to help real folks show up without needing a degree in SEO or some huge ad budget. So if you’re out there feeling overwhelmed or like you’re falling behind, just know this: you’re not alone. And there are tools and strategies built for folks like you—by folks like me who’ve walked in your shoes. That’s what keeps me going every day.
