Changing times call for changing tactics. So says John Lovoy, CEO of Infomedia.
The work is the same as ever, building robust back-end mechanisms to make commercial Web sites efficient and effective.
But the pitch is different these days.
“Everybody has problems with sales right now. You can’t talk about spending money to improve a Web site, but you can talk to them about increasing their business,” said Lovoy.
As a result, Lovoy said the company changed its focus to Web marketing in mid-2008.
The company concentrated on helping clients drive traffic to their sites to generate leads.
“That is our laser beam focus right now,” he said.
The pitch has proven appealing to some of Birmingham’s corporate giants like Alagasco, and to clients in a diverse range of other industries for the relatively young company.
Founded in 1994, Infomedia’s revenue increased 15 percent in 2008 to $1.43 million – and the company has averaged 12 percent growth since 2005.
Lovoy has backed up his company’s innovative new sales strategy by making some significant major personnel move.
The company hired two top-notch specialists in search engine optimization techniques, Jerry Brown and Rebecca Morrow.
“Anybody can do search engine optimization, but to do it well is incredibly specialized. It changes daily,” Lovoy said.
Looking ahead, Lovoy said the company will pursue its “laser focus,” while working hard to ensure clients understand just how much a big-muscle Web site can – and cannot – do for their business.
“We don’t want to have anyone with unmet expectations, but in this area it is really difficult,” he said.
That means spending a lot of time educating clients and making sure they know what they are going to get.
“We can usually predict where they will end up in a Web search, for example, but you can’t make any guarantees,” Lovoy said.
– Adam Stone