About Me

I Market Small Businesses the Way I've Marketed My Own

I'm Cris Johnson, That Digital Marketing Guy: a website designer, SEO consultant and Google Ads manager in Western New York, near Niagara Falls and Buffalo. I work with small businesses across the US.

Before I ever worked on anyone else's marketing, I spent more than 20 years marketing my own business. Everything I do for clients, I did for myself first.

Contact Me Read My Story
Cris Johnson, That Digital Marketing Guy
Google Ads since 2002 Yes, also a magician

The short version

How I Got Here

1990sCopywriting gets me on stage full time
Early 2000sSEO turns a one-person show into a six-figure business
2002My first Google Ads campaign
2020COVID cancels every show
ThenA virtual science show and three books
TodayWebsites, SEO and Google Ads for small businesses

Chapter one

Yes, I'm a Magician

In the 1990s, I used direct-response copywriting to chase a childhood dream: becoming a full-time entertainer and motivational speaker. It worked.

In the early 2000s, I turned my magic show into a one-person, six-figure business with three skills: SEO, persuasive website copy and follow-up emails that kept prospects from forgetting me. I also built a six-figure hypnotherapy practice the same way.

My school assembly website has held its place on page one of Google for years, and I still maintain it myself.

What page one has been worth $1.5M+ to my own business over the years, from ranking on page one of Google.

Chapter two

Then COVID Hit

In 2020, every show on my calendar disappeared. No stage, no audience, no income. Honestly, I panicked.

So I built a virtual science show for schools for about $620: twenty dollars in lights and a camera, and around six hundred for a backdrop and banners. It booked about 50 shows during the hardest stretch my business has ever had.

That show led to a science book for kids. Then a book on magic, and one on dog behavior. Writing those books taught me something I hadn't expected: I could write. That turned into copywriting for my own business, then copywriting as a profession, and finally websites, SEO and Google Ads for other business owners.

(The virtual show was my wife Libby's idea. She planted it on our walks in 2020 and only admitted it six years later.)

$620to build a virtual science show from scratch
~50shows booked while live shows were shut down
3books, which led straight to copywriting

Why that matters to you

I've Been the Owner Wondering Where the Next Booking Would Come From

I'm not a marketer who has never had to fill his own calendar. So when I recommend something, it's because it worked for me.

I even test changes in my own Google Ads account before I recommend them to clients. If it's going to cost money to learn a lesson, I'd rather it be mine.

The ground rules

How I Work

One person, start to finish

You talk to me, not an account manager.

Plain English

If I can't explain it simply, I haven't done my job.

Honest answers

Including "you don't need me yet."

You own everything

Your website, your accounts, your content.

No social media

On purpose. I stay focused on websites, SEO and Google Ads.

Tested on me first

New ideas get tried on my own business before yours.

Training

Training and Credentials

Google changes constantly, so the learning never stops.

SEO-Certified Copywriter, SEO Content Institute
AWAI-Verified Copywriter
AWAI Certified Content Writer Specialist
AWAI Certified UX Copywriting Specialist
Member of the Professional Writers' Alliance
Running Google Ads campaigns since 2002

Off the clock

On a Personal Note

When I'm not working, I'm spending time with my wife Libby, who runs LJ Hair Design in Niagara Falls. (Yes, I do her marketing. She's my toughest client.)

Marvel and DC moviesA fan of both universes.
Restaurant copycat cookingTrying to recreate favorite restaurant dishes at home.
Disney and UniversalAlways planning the next trip.
Stanlee, Daphne and StuartThree trouble-making dogs. Yes, Stanlee is named after Stan Lee.

Let's Talk About Your Business

Tell me what you do and what isn't working. I'll tell you honestly what I'd fix first.

Contact Me Call (716) 299-8808