Local Websites That Win Customers with Lantern Web Solution Hammad Ahmad

Your business can be the best in town and still lose work to someone louder online. We sit down with Hammad Ahmad of Lantern Web Solutions to talk about the real reason so many local businesses stay “invisible” on Google: the digital side gets neglected while owners grind through jobs, crews, customers, and daily fires. If you’ve ever wondered why the phone slows down even though your work is solid, this conversation hits home.

We dig into what a strong small business website is actually for: building trust in seconds, showing proof with photos and clear service info, and turning a search like “near me” into a real lead. Hamad also clears up two costly misconceptions in website design and local SEO. First, a website isn’t a one-time project, it needs ongoing updates and maintenance to stay effective. Second, social media is powerful, but it’s not your foundation. Your website is the one place you control, and it’s where serious buyers go when they’re deciding who to hire.

Hamad shares how he finds opportunities through Yelp and Google Maps, plus a story of a long-running, award-winning repair shop that had no website until recently, and what changed when they finally built one. We also talk mindset: don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Pair word of mouth with online visibility so your reputation can travel further than your personal network.

If you’re a local owner who wants more calls without wasting money on fluff, listen through and take notes. Subscribe, share this with a business friend, and leave a review so more neighbors can find the help they need.

Transcript

Welcome To Good Neighbor Podcast

SPEAKER_01 0:00

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Joe Longo.

Meet Lantern Web Solutions

SPEAKER_02 0:12

Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast Live. Are you in need of a website that brings you customers? Well, one might be closer than you think. And today I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, Hamad Hockman of Lantern Web Solutions. Hamad, thank you so much for joining me today. How are you doing?

SPEAKER_00 0:32

I'm all good. Thank you so much, Joe, for having me on this platform. Really appreciate it.

Building A Strong Online Presence

SPEAKER_02 0:36

Yeah, I'm so thankful that you were able to make some time to chat about what it is that you do. And we're jumping right into things. Can you tell the listeners what it is that Lantern Web Solutions does?

SPEAKER_00 0:48

So, Lantern Web Solutions, we help local businesses build a strong online presence so they can attract more customers. A lot of business owners are uh owners, they're focused with their day-to-day work, whether that's construction, auto repair, home services, so they're busy with their own thing. So the digital side, it ends up getting neglected. Their digital social presence. So that's where we step in and we handle everything on that end. Their website, their visibility, how they present themselves online. So whenever someone searches for their services on the internet, they can find them and they trust what they see.

SPEAKER_02 1:29

How did you get into this business in this world of work?

SPEAKER_00 1:35

So I got into this because I noticed a gap while I myself was applying for jobs, right? So I saw this gap. I saw that there's a lot of hardworking local businesses doing great work, but online they don't exist. Or they don't have a good presentation or a good showcase of what they actually do. So I already had the technical background. So what really pushed me was seeing how many opportunities these businesses were missing out on just because they weren't showing up online, or even if they did show up online, they didn't have adequate presentation. So it became more than just building websites, it became about helping businesses present themselves properly so that they can grow and compete and we can boost our local economy.

SPEAKER_02 2:28

That that's wonderful, and it sounds like we've we've noticed the same gap and what we're doing here with the Good Neighbor podcast and really trying to get that share people like you with the community and let everybody know what we have available right here. So I'm wondering I'm wondering what uh what are some myths or misconceptions in your industry?

SPEAKER_00 2:54

So one big misconception, I encounter this all the time while I'm calling people up, is that having a website, it's a one-time, well, like one and done thing. You build it and you're done. You leave it on the internet. However, in reality, your online presence it needs constant attention, it needs ongoing maintenance so that you stay relevant and you're effective. So you're actively reaching out to people. Another misconception is that social media is enough. Social media is a very powerful tool to get your business out there, but it's more of an extension of word of mouth referrals. It's not something that you fully control. Your website is your foundation. It's where people go to when they're seriously considering working with you, when they want to see what you do, they are going to look for your website. They want to see pictures, they want to see text, they want to see information. If that's missing or it's outdated, a lot of potential customers won't take that next step and reach out to you.

Finding Clients Through Local Search

SPEAKER_02 3:56

So true. So true. Um we all know that marketing is a huge part of our businesses and putting ourselves out there and our clients out there. I'm wondering how do you target your customers and how are you attracting them? How are you attracting them?

A Real Shop Website Turnaround

SPEAKER_00 4:14

So for targeting customers, I typically go through Yelp, I go through Google Maps, and I look up local businesses that might not have websites, right? If I if I look up landscaping near me or construction near me, or some specific words like that, and you don't show up, or you're showing up low on the list, right? Obviously that's not good. That means people are not uh seeing your business. So I reach out to them, uh, I reach and um I offer my services to help boost uh to help boost their business. And frequently when I'm visiting different shops around the area, so I went to a computer repair shop not too long ago to get a computer repaired. They didn't have a website, they were running for two decades, and they won multiple awards in our district. So they asked me, like, uh, hey, what do you do? So I say I build websites. So they said, Oh wow, perfect. We need a website. We've been out here for two decades, we have multiple awards. We want to showcase our work, we want to get more people in. So I built them a website, and now their business is up in the sky.

SPEAKER_02 5:26

That that's wonderful. That's wonderful. Have you ever thought about jumping behind the microphone and having a podcast and sharing your knowledge in this area with the world?

SPEAKER_00 5:36

I mean 100%. When I was on Facebook and I was looking around um in our local business groups, I found you guys. So I said, why not? I definitely want to hop on, and I definitely want to, you know, promote my service to the rest of the business community, smaller businesses, local businesses.

SPEAKER_02 5:56

That's wonderful. What uh do you do outside of work when you're not designing and creating websites?

Life Outside Web Design

SPEAKER_00 6:04

So I like staying active. I like playing badminton, I like going to the gym, um, spending time with family and friends, studying. So I enjoy learning and growing outside of business as well.

The One Thing To Remember

SPEAKER_02 6:17

I love it. I love it. So if you can tell our listeners one thing that they should remember about lantern web solutions, what would that be?

unknown 6:25

What would that be?

SPEAKER_00 6:27

So I really wish a lot of business owners would understand how much they're missing out on by not having a strong internet presence. Word of mouth is very powerful, but when you combine that with being visible online, that's when real growth actually happens. Right? So it's really important to not put all of your eggs in one basket, right? Um, it's really important to have multiple means of reaching out to people, letting them know that you exist, you're offering the service, and for people to be able to reach out to you.

SPEAKER_02 6:59

Yeah, yeah. So can you tell our listeners where they can find out more about you and your company, Lantern Web Solutions?

SPEAKER_00 7:09

So we have a Facebook page, we post there regularly, we have a LinkedIn page, and we also have our website, lanternwebsolutions.com. Um, you can also reach out through our email, lanternweb solutions at gmail.com. So if anyone ever has any questions, they want to they want me to review their website, or they just want feedback or just some general business advice, I'm always open to helping.

SPEAKER_02 7:34

That's wonderful. That's wonderful. We uh really appreciate you being on the show. And from everyone at the Good Neighbor Podcast, we wish you all the success moving forward in the future. Forward in the future.

SPEAKER_00 7:47

You too, and for every other business tuning in, uh for every other business owner tuning in, I wish you all the best of luck. If you guys need me, you know where to reach me.

Nominate A Local Business

SPEAKER_01 7:58

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to GMPNEPA.com. That's GMPNEPA.com. Or call 572 520