About the Authors
Ryan Deiss (pronounced “Dice”) is cofounder and CEO of DigitalMarketer.com, the leading provider of digital marketing training and certifications to small and mid-sized businesses. Ryan is also the founder and host of the Traffic & Conversion Summit, the largest digital marketing conversion conference in North America, and the creator of the Customer Value Optimization methodology.
Ryan’s online business endeavors began at age 19, when he launched his first website from his freshman dorm room so that he could make some extra money to buy an engagement ring for his college sweetheart. It worked! Not only did the girl say “Yes,” but this one, little website ballooned into more than 500 sites, and a hobby had grown into a real business.
Today, his digital-media and e-commerce group, NativeCommerce.com, owns and operates hundreds of properties including DIYReady.com, MakeupTutorials.com, DIYProjects.com, SurvivalLife.com, and Sewing.com (just to name a few), and according to Shark Tank star Daymond John, “His companies practically own the Internet.” He is also a bestselling author, and is considered one of the most dynamic speakers on modern digital marketing today.
Most important, Ryan is a proud dad of four wonderful kids, Jonathan, Joyce, Ruth, and Timothy, and husband to Emily … the girl who said “Yes” and inspired it all.
Russ Henneberry is the editorial director for DigitalMarketer. Prior to joining DigitalMarketer, Russ was on the content marketing team for Salesforce.com; he also helped to launch a blog for a well-known marketing SaaS, growing it from zero to 120,000 unique visitors per month in less than a year.
Russ got his start in search engine optimization and pay-per-click marketing, managing 20 developers and over 600 digital marketing projects for small- to mid-sized businesses. It was at Salesforce that Russ began to master the art of content marketing at all stages of the sales and marketing funnel to create value for a company.
In his time at DigitalMarketer, front-end traffic to DigitalMarketer content has increased by 1,125 percent. The content marketing team, under Russ’s management, generates thousands of leads and front-end sales per month by developing and executing a truly full-funnel content marketing strategy. Connect with Russ on Twitter: @RussHenneberry.
Russ lives in St. Louis, Missouri, with his wonderful wife Sarah, his two amazing children, Thomas and Mary Grace, and an extremely enthusiastic dog named Buck.
Dedication
From Ryan: First, to the amazing team at DigitalMarketer. Thank you for letting me take credit for all your great ideas. This is truly your book. And also to Emily: Thank you for being my inspiration, both then and now.
From Russ: To my amazing wife, Sarah, who has always unquestionably loved, supported, and believed in me.
Authors’ Acknowledgments
We are deeply grateful first and foremost to the entire DigitalMarketer team. This book is an aggregation of the incredible talent and expertise of Richard Lindner, Molly Pittman, Justin Rondeau, John Grimshaw, Lindsay Marder, Suzi Nelson, and Ezra Firestone. The graphics and images that help to illustrate the information in this book are the work of the very talented Britney Arkin and Taylor Nelson.
And to our editor, Christopher Morris, for ensuring clarity in this book and sculpting the rough edges of our writing into something even the most persnickety composition teacher would be proud of.
Last, but certainly not least, to Matt Douglas, whose sheer will and determination brought this project across the finish line. This book simply would not exist without you.
Publisher’s Acknowledgments
Acquisitions Editor: Ashley Coffey
Project Editor: Christopher Morris
Copy Editor: Christopher Morris
Technical Editor: Michelle Krasniak
Production Editor: Siddique Shaik
Cover Image: © Anton Garin image/footage/Getty Images