Seven lessons from seven years building websites for local businesses: pricing, baseball, doing less, betting on yourself, AI as a tool, winning your town, and fast sites.

A client once had me redesign his whole website. He paid up front. I built it. Then he decided to keep his 20 year old site, the one that gets no traffic.

I'd like to say that was the low point of my career. It wasn't even close to the top five. But it's a good place to start, because the last 7 years taught me a lot, and most of it came the hard way.

I build websites and web apps for local businesses, so that's the lens here. Each lesson comes with a short story and one free takeaway you can use this week. No email signup. No catch.

1. Know what your work is worth

When I started, I was new to running a business. I was a decent designer and developer, and a terrible pricer. I undercharged for a long time, and I left a lot of revenue on the table because I didn't understand pricing.

That 20 year old site story lives here too. The client paid up front, which is the one part of it that went right. Getting paid before the work starts is a good habit.

Free nugget: Before you quote your next job, write down what the result is worth to the customer, not just how many hours it takes you. Then ask for payment up front, or at least a deposit. If you're new, your first price is probably too low.

2. Baseball is right: get back up

Baseball has been in my life since I was 5. It humbles you over time, and honestly that's needed. You can do everything right and still strike out.

Business works the same way. You'll lose a bid, miss a launch date, or watch an ad flop. The lesson from baseball is simple: never give up. You get back up and take the next swing.

Free nugget: After a miss, write down one thing you'd change, then do the next thing anyway. Don't make big decisions on the day you strike out.

3. Do fewer things, and do them well

For a while I tried to do all of digital marketing for my clients. All of it. It was a great way to be just okay at everything.

Now I do what I do well, which is building great environments on web apps so you get calls and leads. That's the job. The same goes for business owners. Most of you think the answer is to do more. It usually isn't. The answer is finding a handful of dependable people to take the tasks that drain your energy, and then sticking with what you're best at.

One more thing I've picked up. When I meet a new client, I ask, "What is your greatest challenge right now?" They usually jump around for a few minutes. Then they get to the heart of the issue. I just wait for it.

Free nugget: Make two lists this week. One is the tasks that give you energy. The other is the tasks that drain you. Find one dependable person for the second list. Then ask yourself the question above, and keep talking until you get past the first answer.

4. Bet on yourself, not on a pile of tools

There's a monthly fee for everything now. Too many tools, too many premiums, and not enough of them are earning their keep. I would rather bet on myself to build something creative than sign up for a bunch of new expenses.

That's not just a money thing. I once lost a client because a tool I used was too inflexible. It couldn't bend to what they needed. So I learned to create my own solution instead of forcing the tool to work. I built my own tool that does a similar job, and it now solves all kinds of inflexibilities the old one couldn't.

You don't have to write code to learn from this. Whenever a tool is costing you more than it's worth, or won't bend to how your business works, ask whether there's a simpler way.

Free nugget: Open your list of monthly subscriptions. For each one, ask: "If this went away tomorrow, what would break?" If the answer is "nothing," cancel it.

5. AI is a tool, not the boss

I use AI in my business. It can be fairly inexpensive, and it has made me faster in a lot of areas. But I use it as a tool, not to run my business. Owners still need to focus on people more than the digital world.

I also write like I speak. Simple and consistent. AI struggles with simple English, and it has a hard time with unique ideas and dry humor, at least for now. So that's what I stick with.

And the advice I disagree with most right now is putting all your chips in AI. It's an excellent tool, and it will keep getting better for some time. Don't ignore it. Just don't sell out 100% to it either.

Free nugget: Use AI for the first draft, the boring admin and the "what am I missing" check. Then read every word out loud before it goes out. If it doesn't sound like you, rewrite it until it does.

6. Win your own town first

Every city, town and area has a market to win. I think the smart move for a small business is to focus locally, and focus on it heavily, before branching out. If you can win in one place, then start trying to win in the next.

Here's what that looks like in 2026. Google still shows Map Pack wins for local services. Searches for "plumber near me" or "dentist in North Augusta" still put local businesses right at the top. That's not going away just because AI showed up.

Free nugget: Search your main service plus your town on your phone. Look at who shows up in the map results. Then open your own business profile and check that your hours, photos and phone number are right.

7. Your website still matters, and speed matters as much as the words

Out of everything on this list, this is the one I'd bet on lasting. A quality website is how clients find you online and decide to call. That has not changed since the day I started.

Page speed matters just as much as the content. That doesn't mean you should write bad content. It means you should optimize for speed first. A great page that loads slowly is a great page nobody sees.

Free nugget: Open your homepage on your phone, on cell data, not wifi. If you're waiting, your customers are leaving. Start with the biggest images and compress them.

Where marketing is now, and where it goes in the next 7 years

Here's my honest read on 2026. The biggest change is AI showing up in nearly every search. Google keeps showing Map Pack wins for local services, and other search engines can no longer be ignored.

Nobody knows exactly how this plays out, and anyone who tells you they do is selling something. My guess for the next 7 years is that the way businesses get found will keep evolving. I expect new places to show up in, and I'm not putting all my chips on any single one.

A few things I do think hold up:

Local first. Win your own town before you try to win the next one.
A quality website that people can find you through, and that loads fast.
Real people. The businesses that stay close to their customers will keep standing out, even as everything else gets automated.

Looking back, a business owner reading this in 7 years will probably wish they had started doing two things in 2026: focusing hard on their local market, and building a site that's fast and clear.

One last thing

If any of this sounded like your business, I'd be glad to talk it through. No pitch deck. Just a call where I ask what your greatest challenge is right now, and then I listen.

Book a call whenever you're ready.

Kenny Flermoen Owner, KN Marketing Solutions, North Augusta, SC

7 Things I've Learned About Marketing in 7 Years