Press kit
Boilerplate, founder bio, story angles, photos, and contact for journalists, podcasters, and editors covering small business marketing or local tech in the Triangle.
Quick reference
Press contact
Ryan Smeltz, Founder
Email: ryan@secretoptimizer.com
Press email: press@secretoptimizer.com
Phone: (919) 367-1746
Response time: Within 1 business day
Available for: Interviews · Quotes · Podcast appearances · Panels · Background
One-paragraph boilerplate
Use at the bottom of any release.
Secret Optimizer is an AI-assisted local SEO and content marketing service for small businesses in the Raleigh / Triangle area of North Carolina. Founded in 2026 by U.S. Army veteran and longtime marketing professional Ryan Smeltz, the company sells productized monthly SEO retainers starting at $1,500/month, month-to-month — well below the $2,500-$5,000/month with annual contracts that is standard at most Triangle agencies. The first 20 customers get a Founding Member rate of $497/month for year one, then 20% off their tier. The pricing is possible because AI handles the templated 80% of SEO production work, while humans focus on strategy and client relationships. Headquartered in Zebulon, NC. Veteran-owned and locally operated. The legal entity is LCDRMS Enterprises, LLC. Learn more at secretoptimizer.com.
Founder bio
Ryan Smeltz, three lengths.
One-line
Ryan Smeltz is a U.S. Army veteran and longtime sales and marketing professional who founded Secret Optimizer to serve small businesses and veteran-owned businesses in the Raleigh / Triangle area at honest, AI-assisted pricing.
Short version (50 words)
Ryan Smeltz is the founder of Secret Optimizer, an AI-assisted local SEO service for small businesses in the Raleigh / Triangle area. A 10-year U.S. Army veteran (31B Military Police, OIF 07-09 deployment) with over a decade in sales and marketing, Ryan launched Secret Optimizer in 2026 to serve small businesses and veteran-owned businesses with the kind of marketing they can actually afford.
Long version (150 words)
Ryan Smeltz is the founder of Secret Optimizer, an AI-assisted local SEO and content marketing service for small businesses across the Raleigh / Triangle area of North Carolina.
Born in Lancaster, PA, and raised in Mebane, NC, Ryan spent 10 years on active duty in the U.S. Army as a 31B Military Policeman, including a deployment to Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom (2007–2009). After the Army he returned to North Carolina and spent the next decade-plus in sales and marketing across retail, B2B, door-to-door, and phone — most recently as a marketer at two different local agencies in the Triangle.
He launched Secret Optimizer in 2026 to serve two groups specifically: small business owners across the Triangle who get priced out of professional marketing, and veteran-owned businesses anywhere. Ryan lives in Zebulon, NC, where Secret Optimizer is headquartered.
Fact sheet
The numbers.
| Company name | Secret Optimizer (DBA of LCDRMS Enterprises, LLC) |
| Founded | 2026 |
| Headquarters | Zebulon, NC (Raleigh / Triangle area) |
| Founder | Ryan Smeltz |
| Service area | Raleigh, Cary, Durham, Chapel Hill, Morrisville, Apex, Holly Springs, Wake Forest, Garner, Zebulon, Wendell, Knightdale, NC |
| Team size | Solo founder + AI |
| Veteran-owned | Yes — U.S. Army, 10 years active duty, 31B Military Police, OIF 07-09 |
| Pricing | ,200/month (Starter),500/month (Growth), $497/mo (yr 1) or $497/mo (yr 1) one-time (Founding Member, lifetime pricing); $5,000-$10,000 (Personal Setup, one-time) |
| Contract terms | Month-to-month, month-to-month after initial lock-in |
| Website | secretoptimizer.com |
| Legal entity | LCDRMS Enterprises, LLC (NC) |
What's newsworthy
Four story angles.
Angle 1
The honest pricing reset
A local agency built around what AI made possible. Most Triangle SEO agencies charge $1,500–$5,000/month for what's mostly templated production work. Secret Optimizer charges 7–,500. The differentiator isn't software — it's that the founder is willing to cut his own margins because AI cut his own costs.
Angle 2
Free AI Search Visibility Audit
Most local businesses don't know whether ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other AI assistants, or Google AI Overviews can find them. Secret Optimizer publishes a free audit tool that runs 12 checks in 90 seconds and tells any business exactly what's broken. Free for any Triangle (or national) business.
Angle 3
Triangle veteran-led local business
Ryan Smeltz spent 10 years in the U.S. Army (31B Military Police, OIF 07-09 deployment), then 10+ years in sales and marketing across retail, B2B, and at two local Triangle agencies. He built Secret Optimizer specifically to serve small business owners and veteran-owned businesses.
Angle 4
Small-business AI literacy
Secret Optimizer is positioning itself as the local educator on what AI search means for small businesses — through free audits, free educational content, podcast appearances, and workshops. Available for talks, panels, and educational segments.
Pre-approved quotes
Use without asking.
These quotes are pre-approved for press use. If you need a custom quote on a topic not covered here, email press@secretoptimizer.com — usually a 1-business-day response.
On the price gap
"Most Triangle SEO agencies start around $2,500 a month and lock you into a year-long contract. AI doesn't make the work better, but it makes 80% of the templated work faster and cheaper. Some agency had to actually pass that savings on to customers — we start at $1,500 a month, no contract. We're that agency." — Ryan Smeltz
On AI search
"Most local business owners are still optimizing for Google like it's 2018. In 2026, the bigger question is whether ChatGPT and Perplexity can find them — and the answer for most local businesses is no. That's the actual SEO emergency right now, and almost no one's talking about it locally." — Ryan Smeltz
On the Founding Member offer
"We're capping the Founding Member tier at 20 customers. They lock in $497 a month for their first year, then 20% off their tier after that — and once the 20 spots fill, the founding offer is gone for good. Twenty is a number we can actually serve well as a small operation. That's not a marketing gimmick — it's the math of how many clients one founder can be present for." — Ryan Smeltz
On serving small businesses specifically
"Most marketing agencies are designed to serve mid-market companies and call small businesses 'too small to bother with.' That's the gap we built Secret Optimizer to fill. The plumbers, electricians, gyms, and salons in my neighborhood deserve the same quality of marketing that the bigger companies get — at a price they can afford." — Ryan Smeltz
Approved interview topics
Ryan can speak on these.
- Why local SEO costs what it costs, and what's actually changing in 2026
- What AI search engines (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews) mean for small businesses
- How a single-founder operation can compete with traditional agencies
- Veteran experience in entrepreneurship
- Why North Carolina specifically — what's unique about the Triangle SMB market
- The honest economics of marketing agency pricing
- How small businesses should think about AI tools without falling for the hype
- Common SEO scams and how to spot them
Brand assets
Logos, photos, colors.
Email press@secretoptimizer.com for high-res versions of any of the below — usually a same-day response during business hours.
| Logo | Available in PNG (transparent background) and SVG. Standard square crop and full wordmark variants. |
| Brand colors | Optimizer Navy #162B40 · Optimizer Green #4BE56B · Optimizer Blue #2892F8 |
| Founder headshot | High-res portrait of Ryan Smeltz available upon request. Outdoor seated portrait, light blue blazer, professional but approachable. |
| Workspace B-roll | Modern home office setup, useful as B-roll for visual stories. Available upon request. |
| Triangle context | Downtown Raleigh skyline at dusk, available for stories about the Triangle small-business market. |
Contact
Reach Ryan directly.
For interview requests, custom quotes, photos, or background — all routed through the same address. Response time: usually within 1 business day, often same-day.