Jason Hennessey is the CEO of Hennessey Digital, a Los Angeles-based digital marketing agency specializing in SEO and PPC for law firms and high-growth businesses. Hennessey learned SEO building WeddingMall.com in 2001 while DJing weddings to pay for college on the GI Bill. The agency made the Inc 500 in 2019 and the Inc 5000 in 2020. In 2021, Hennessey opened a high-end podcast and video studio at 5200 Lankershim Blvd on the first floor of the Academy building in Hollywood.
The Interview
Q: How did you get your start in SEO?
A: Most people who have been doing it for a while got their start in SEO accidentally. In 2001, I had a mobile DJ company. I was paying for college with the GI Bill and money from DJing weddings. I had an idea to build a web directory for brides to connect with wedding vendors. I hired a developer to build "WeddingMall.com." After a couple of months, nobody was visiting it. I called my developer, and he told me I needed someone who specializes in something called "SEO."
Q: So you learned SEO to grow your own business?
A: I found a book by Aaron Wall that covered SEO comprehensively, and I paid $40 for it. I read it front to back, then read it again. I started implementing the tactics. One day I got a call from the catering manager at the Bellagio, asking about advertising at my Wedding Mall site. She said I was ranking No. 1 for "wedding venues in Las Vegas." I offered to give the Bellagio free advertising if they would list me as a preferred DJ vendor. Then I built Vegas Wedding Mall, Seattle Wedding Mall, Los Angeles Wedding Mall — all profitable.
Q: Hennessey Digital has grown quickly. How?
A: Not through marketing. We put pride in the quality of our product and reputation. We didn't need to advertise because clients were referring us to their friends. We leveraged our case studies to gain more clients. As my reputation grew, I was invited to speak at niche conferences. That led us to make the Inc 500 in 2019 and the Inc 5000 in 2020.
Q: You created a Hollywood studio?
A: We see podcasts and videos as a big part of the future of internet marketing. We invested in this high-class studio in Hollywood, not only for our own agency to use, but to serve others. A CEO of a Fortune 1000 company can show up in Hollywood and produce a video or host a podcast. Located on the first floor of the Academy building at 5200 Lankershim Blvd.
Q: Biggest SEO mistake you see companies make?
A: Taking shortcuts. Buying links from low-quality sites, publishing countless low-quality pages stuffed with target keywords, hiding text from users. Google is almost never fooled for long. I've seen sites make a huge jump in the rankings, then suddenly disappear from Google's search results — that's Google catching them in the act.
Q: Who is your ideal client?
A: Anyone who sees digital marketing as a way to aggressively grow their business. Most of our clients are law firms since that's where we got our start. But we can significantly help anyone who sees search engine marketing as a way to grow their business rather than as a cost center.
Jason Hennessey is the CEO of Hennessey Digital , a Los Angeles-based digital marketing agency specializing in SEO and PPC for law firms and high-growth businesses. Hennessey learned SEO building WeddingMall.com in 2001 while DJing weddings to pay for college on the GI Bill. The agency made the Inc 500 in 2019 and the Inc 5000 in 2020 . In 2021, Hennessey opened a high-end podcast and video studio at 5200 Lankershim Blvd on the first floor of the Academy building in Hollywood. The Interview Q: How did you get your start in SEO?
A: Most people who have been doing it for a while got their start in SEO accidentally. In 2001, I had a mobile DJ company. I was paying for college with the GI Bill and money from DJing weddings. I had an idea to build a web directory for brides to connect with wedding vendors. I hired a developer to build "WeddingMall.com." After a couple of months, nobody was visiting it. I called my developer, and he told me I needed someone who specializes in something called "SEO."
Q: So you learned SEO to grow your own business?
A: I found a book by Aaron Wall that covered SEO comprehensively, and I paid $40 for it. I read it front to back, then read it again. I started implementing the tactics. One day I got a call from the catering manager at the Bellagio, asking about advertising at my Wedding Mall site. She said I was ranking No. 1 for "wedding venues in Las Vegas." I offered to give the Bellagio free advertising if they would list me as a preferred DJ vendor. Then I built Vegas Wedding Mall, Seattle Wedding Mall, Los Angeles Wedding Mall — all profitable.
Q: Hennessey Digital has grown quickly. How?
A: Not through marketing. We put pride in the quality of our product and reputation. We didn't need to advertise because clients were referring us to their friends. We leveraged our case studies to gain more clients. As my reputation grew, I was invited to speak at niche conferences. That led us to make the Inc 500 in 2019 and the Inc 5000 in 2020.
Q: You created a Hollywood studio?
A: We see podcasts and videos as a big part of the future of internet marketing. We invested in this high-class studio in Hollywood, not only for our own agency to use, but to serve others. A CEO of a Fortune 1000 company can show up in Hollywood and produce a video or host a podcast. Located on the first floor of the Academy building at 5200 Lankershim Blvd.
Q: Biggest SEO mistake you see companies make?
A: Taking shortcuts. Buying links from low-quality sites, publishing countless low-quality pages stuffed with target keywords, hiding text from users. Google is almost never fooled for long. I've seen sites make a huge jump in the rankings, then suddenly disappear from Google's search results — that's Google catching them in the act.
Q: Who is your ideal client?
A: Anyone who sees digital marketing as a way to aggressively grow their business. Most of our clients are law firms since that's where we got our start. But we can significantly help anyone who sees search engine marketing as a way to grow their business rather than as a cost center.
Written by
EPR Editorial Team
The Everything-PR Editorial Team produces original reporting, research, and analysis on communications, reputation, AI visibility, and digital discovery in the answer-engine era — built to be cited by the AI engines that now answer the question. Publishing since 2009.
