Hello!
I am Ross Dunn.
SEO Expert, CEO / Founder of StepForth Web Marketing Inc.
& Co-Founder of First Dentist Marketing Inc.
As seen on
About Ross Dunn
Ross Dunn is a Canadian entrepreneur and businessman from Victoria BC who has founded two successful internet marketing companies, hosts a popular SEO podcast, has spoken at multiple conferences, trade shows and has worked with several fortune 500 companies.
Ross grew up with an entrepreneurial spirit which when fueled passion for computers and technologies resulted in the natural transition to be his own boss and ultimately start his own internet marketing company.
Ross Dunn is a Canadian entrepreneur and businessman from Victoria BC who has founded two successful internet marketing companies, hosts a popular SEO podcast, has spoken at multiple conferences, trade shows and has worked with several fortune 500 companies.
Ross grew up with an entrepreneurial spirit which when fueled passion for computers and technologies resulted in the natural transition to be his own boss and ultimately start his own internet marketing company.
YEARS IN SEO
YEARS PODCASTING
CLIENTS SERVED
AS EVENT SPEAKER
The Origin of StepForth Web Marketing
In 1997 Ross was a Skipper at a whale watching company! Yes! A professional whale watcher! Working for Prince of Whales Whale Watching he had many responsibilities. One day, he was asked if he could build them a website. So, he built his first commercial website! (Jumping ahead, they became his first and longest client for 21 years)
He enjoyed creating the website, but he had to learn how to get it ranked. At the time, no one else was doing this work. Primarily, graphic designers did all the website work and much like today, it’s easy to make a website look good that no one will find. He then ranked an online Casino #1 for the keyword “poker” and his business exploded!
Shortly after, he was hired by Time Inc to do competitor analysis. He was also brought into Sports Illustrated and Fortune magazine to do in-house training. Before he knew it, he was doing speaking gigs, took over the SEO 101 Podcast for WMR.FM, and was published online and offline.
His work was exciting, but he wanted to make an even bigger impact. He found he could do this with small and medium businesses. And this is where StepForth was born!
Other Business Ventures
In addition to StepForth Web Marketing, Ross Dunn also co-owns another business and has been involved in a few recent projects of note.
First Dentist Digital Marketing
Along with co-founder Michael Lambe, Ross began First.Dentist. An SEO and Design company focusing on the creation and marketing of dental websites. In 2014 Ross joined forces with First.Dentist to become SEO director, and utilizing the skills and talents of the StepForth team in addition to new team members at First.Dentist, started helping dentists in the US and Canada increase their visibility online.
Covid19Now.com
While this data has become easier to locate in recent months, in the early days of the COVID-19 Pandemic Ross found that finding information specific to British Columbia was often buried deep in government websites that were difficult to navigate. He saw an immediate need for an easy to use website to help get the most important information to the forefront for British Columbians and Canadians. The end result was the birth of Covid19Now.com
Covid19Therapy.ca
Shortly after the website Launched, Ross was presented with a proposal by one of his SEO clients, local Psychotherapist, (the late) Corrinne Allyson. She was interested in setting up a website to offer free therapy sessions to first responders within British Columbia, modeled after a similar free service which had been setup in Ontario. Working with StepForth, Covid19Therapy.ca was born and grew amidst the pandemic helping first responders in need. It is now offline.
Anti-Whaling.com
Ross was the site designer and manager of this extremely popular anti-whaling website back in the late 90’s and early 2000s. His efforts helped to raise the profile of the plight of Gray Whale hunting in the Juan de Fuca Strait. He also was a Director of the West Coast Anti-Whaling Society.
AntiSharkFinning.com
Soon after watching the impressive movie Sharkwater, Ross got in touch with belated biologist Rob Stewart in order to acquire profound photos to create a supporting website for sharks. As a long time fisherman and a marine naturalist, Ross felt the need to support the movement to ban shark finning.
Personal Life
Ross was born and raised in Victoria, British Columbia. Growing up in Oak Bay, he graduated from Oak Bay High School with a hunger for outdoor recreational tourism and a penchant for marketing. In 1997, he began his first business, BraveArt Website Management which took off quickly and allowed him to purchase another local marketing company after which he re-branded the company, StepForth Search Engine Placement Inc., and ultimately StepForth Web Marketing which he still owns and operates today.
New Podcast Episode
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New Podcast Episode
Want to Be a Podcast Guest?
Invite me as a Speaker
Companies Ross Has Worked With
Over the years, Ross and his team at StepForth have provided consulting and SEO services to a wide range of business. While he got his start doing design work and ultimately SEO for local Victoria BC Companies like Prince of Whales, he has worked with hundreds of small and medium sized business from all over the world. Ross has worked with large fortune 500 companies such as Time Inc. Interactive, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Singularity University, Golf Asian, as well as the Government of Canada.
The web’s oldest and longest running SEO podcast! – Since 2006
Host of SEO 101
Since 2009, Ross has hosted the longstanding SEO podcast, SEO 101 on WMR.FM where he discusses the latest SEO and online marketing strategies with his co-host Scott Van Achte.
SEO 101 is Search Engine Optimization from the very beginning. It provides helpful information for beginners without overwhelming them with too many technical details.
SEO 101 on WMR.FM has earned several top podcast ratings from the Search Engine Journal, HubSpot, Authority Labs, The Hoth, Reddit’s SEO Community, and more.
Testimonials
“I’ve had nothing but good success with StepForth. And I can share with you that in the first six months after having started with Ross, our return on investment was 35 to 1. That actually is far superior to what we were getting. Not only in terms of existing physician referrals, but also our existing patient referrals combined, we began to see more new patients just from our actual, SEO work with Ross.”
– Dr. Dale Macdonald, Elite Sport Performance
“We started back in the early 2000s with StepForth and I’d say we’ve launched 3 or 4 websites since then with their marketing services. And we’ve just been very happy. We love the results, the communication, and the customer service that we get every time we’re working with StepForth. They produce.”
– Greg Esterhai, Foresite Sports Inc.
“When we first started Sitka Law in 2016, we had actually no reviews or no rankings on Google. Since using StepForth at the outset, we have rocketed up the rankings in Google and we’re now first on a number of different search engine results, including real estate lawyers, and business lawyers. The relationship that we’ve had with StepForth has been fantastic for our business, and we really appreciate the insight and the advice that they’ve provided us.”
– Christian Hoy, Sitka Law
“I’ve worked for a few other people and now have my own company, and I’ve always called on Ross and his StepForth Web Marketing team if we need help or if a client needs help or advice. And certainly I do a lot for not for profits. And Ross has always been there to offer that that key support and and help help us connect them where they need to be connected. I will always call on StepForth Web Marketing when it comes to SEO advice. Their my go-to, PERIOD, and I can’t recommend them enough”
– John Espley, Connection Skills