By Linley McConnell

At Gibson’s, we’re very interested in the most cutting-edge marketing ideas to move us forward. We recently started working with an up-and-comer in the dry-cleaning digital marketing space —William Masters and Circadian Marketing. I sat down with him to talk SEO, AI, the evolving customer journey, and why the dry cleaning industry is often overlooked by marketing professionals.

How a Dry Cleaner Led to a Marketing Career

William, it’s been great to learn more about you and your business over the past couple of months, but I’d love to know what got you into SEO and website building. Was it something you did right out of school, or did it come to you organically?

I got into SEO and web design while I was in college. At the time, I was questioning whether I wanted to enter the tech industry. I’ve always been entrepreneurial and knew I wanted to start a business, but didn’t have the capital, so it had to be something with a low barrier to entry that also provided some real value.

Digital marketing stood out quickly. I saw how much opportunity there was and how big an impact it could have on business owners if it was done right.

Without any experience, it was tough to land a paying client, so I took an unpaid internship with a small real estate brokerage. That gave me the chance to learn, build case studies, and understand how marketing can translate into business growth. From there, I landed my first paid client through word of mouth, a dry cleaner in Orlando. Things took off from there.

SEO Explained Simply

Okay, so, before we dive into the specifics, can you explain SEO to me as if I’m in grade two?

People search on Google every day for information, including garment care. The goal is to appear as ‘high’ as possible in the listed sites, for as many relevant searches as possible. SEO is the process of helping your company show up when people search.

To do that, we need to optimize your website, build authority and trust with Google, and create content that matches exactly what people are searching for. There’s a lot happening behind the scenes, from technical setup to keyword strategy, to ongoing updates, which all need to work together.

Why Every Cleaner Needs an Online Presence

So, in that case, what would you say to a cleaner that doesn’t have any online presence, including a website?

Many dry cleaners have been around for a long time and built their businesses on referrals, but customer behaviour has evolved. Today, people are going online when they need garment care, whether they’re new to an area, unhappy with their current provider, or just starting to use these services.

A website makes it easy for those people to find you, trust you, and become a customer. It gives you a place to capture leads, answer questions, and convert that interest into business (sales).

Why Dry Cleaning Is Different

From the day we met, it’s clear you are truly invested in your customers’ business success. You’ve worked with a variety of industries; why lock in on dry cleaning? What is it about our industry makes it unique?

It was a mix of opportunity and previous experience. Early on, I noticed there weren’t many marketing companies that really understood or focused on dry cleaners. It’s a big industry, but from a marketing standpoint, it’s underserved.

My first paid client was a dry cleaner. When we started working together, we began to see significant, predictable growth. That’s when it clicked: Dry cleaning is a unique space because of how people search.

When someone needs a service, whether it’s everyday laundry, preserving a wedding dress, or cleaning household items, they go straight to Google or another search engine. It’s high intent, local, and decision-driven. Once we saw how consistently that could translate into real revenue, it made a lot of sense to double down and help more businesses in the space.

An Industry Full of Opportunity

Is there anything that’s surprised you about the industry?

Definitely, and it’s how much opportunity there is in this sector. It’s an industry with a lot of long-standing, well-run businesses, and with small marketing tweaks, it can make a huge difference. The cleaners who are open to modern strategies, whether that’s improving their online presence, investing in customer experience, or just adapting to how people find services today, tend to see outsized growth.

Starting With Strategy

Okay, so for those cleaners who are interested in modernizing and thinking about how they could work with you or another marketing expert, what’s the first step you take when working with a new company?

Whatever the type of business, the first step is always the same: planning and analysis. We don’t want to waste your time or your budget, so we take that phase seriously from the start. We look at your market, the competition, and how customers are searching for that service.

Then I like to dig into keyword intent. Not just volume, but what people are really trying to do when they search. Are they ready to buy, comparing options, or just researching?

We also study the customer journey to understand where the real opportunities lie. From there, we build a game plan that’s right-sized. It’s about putting the right pieces in place from day one so everything we do helps you grow.

Is there a success story you can share? You mentioned your first client in Florida. How are they doing?

That client is doing extremely well and seeing a solid flow of new customers. We came in and implemented a full strategy. We rebuilt the website, rolled out SEO, ran Google Ads, and supported social and paid digital campaigns. Over the course of the year, they saw a 125% increase in new customer acquisition. They’re now operating at a whole different level.

Beyond SEO: Capturing and Creating Demand

You mentioned a variety of other digital marketing pieces there, so other than a strong SEO presence, what else should companies be thinking about in terms of digital marketing?

Beyond SEO, it really comes down to building a complete presence online. We prioritize based on what’s going to drive results fastest. Google Business profile and Google Ads are huge because they capture people who are actively searching and ready to buy. From there, once you’re seeing a return, the goal is to reinvest and expand.

That’s where platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and other paid channels come in. There are really two sides to it. One is direct lead generation, putting your business in front of someone at the exact moment they need your service. The other is brand building. You want people to recognize your name and to see you consistently. The businesses that grow the most are the ones that do both well: capture demand and brand build at the same time.

The AI Question

We haven’t talked about AI. Everyone is obsessed with it. People are talking about Generative Optimization Search (GEO). What are your thoughts about it?

In my opinion, it’s just an extension of good SEO. If you’re doing SEO well, meaning your site is structured properly, you’re already setting yourself up to perform well in AI-generated results. There are some technical nuances we’re paying attention to that can influence how AI platforms pull and present information. But at a core level, strong SEO fundamentals are what
drive both.

We’re actively tracking how our clients show up across generative platforms and continuing to adapt, but so far, the businesses that rank well in traditional searches are also the ones showing up in AI results.

Scaling Without Losing Quality

Where do you see your business in the next 2 years?

The goal and vision is simple: We want to be widely known as the best-performing marketing company. Revenue growth matters and is certainly a goal, but I believe with a quality-first mindset, that will be a byproduct. At our current size, we’re very hands-on, and the real challenge is scaling that without losing what drives results.

At the same time, we’re building systems that make working with us feel very different from a typical marketing company. If we can scale while keeping that level of quality and separation, that’s the win.

Rapid Fire

Where is a favourite travel spot?

I spent about four months living on different islands in Indonesia last year, and that’s probably my favourite place I’ve been. The people were incredible and the scenery is beautiful. I’d highly recommend Southeast Asia to anyone who enjoys travelling.

What’s a fun fact you’ve learned about dry cleaning?

That dry cleaning isn’t dry, which you already know if you’re here reading this. It may seem obvious, but as an outsider coming in, that was something new to me.

Where can we find out more about you?

You can find us at circadianmarketing.com. We’re also active on Instagram and Facebook under CircadianDigital, and we’ll be putting out a lot more content there. We’re planning to expand onto YouTube soon as well.

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