From one cold DM to 240+ clients.
I’m David Sassower, founder and CEO of Omis. For the last five years I’ve been helping businesses turn their websites into something that actually brings in customers. Here’s how it started, and what I’ve learned along the way.
01
It started at SMU
I came to Dallas for school at SMU. That’s where I met Zach Khoja, my roommate for a few years, who later started Total Court Construction. Watching friends like Zach build something from nothing stuck with me.
I didn’t start with a big plan. I started with a laptop, a lot of curiosity about websites, and a willingness to message people I didn’t know.
02
The first client came from a cold DM
My first client came from a cold message. No ads, no referral network, just a short note to a business owner offering to help. They said yes, and that was the beginning of Omis.
I’ll be honest: our first website was unusable. It looked fine and did almost nothing for the business. That project taught me the lesson I still build around today. A website isn’t a brochure. It’s the place people go to decide whether you’re legit.
03
Building Omis
Over five years Omis grew from me and a laptop into a team of designers, developers, project managers and marketers working with businesses across the country. We’ve built for more than 240 clients, from law firms and healthcare practices to hospitality groups and construction companies.
Most of that growth didn’t come from ads. Around 70% of our revenue has come from partners and referrals, which taught me that business development is most of the job, and that coffee closes better than Zoom.
04
Websites people (and AI) can find
The way people find businesses is changing. More customers ask ChatGPT who to hire instead of searching Google. When a customer asked ChatGPT for the best court resurfacing company in Dallas and it recommended Total Court Construction first, it confirmed what we’d been betting on.
Today most of our work is strategy and copy, not just design. We use AI to build faster, not to cut corners, and we build on whatever platform fits the business: Framer, Webflow, WordPress or Shopify.
05
Sharing what we learn
I started my YouTube interviews to sit down with Dallas founders, marketers and operators and talk about what’s actually working. The live workshops came next: real business owners, real search data, and a plan built in the room.
I post short videos every week with the lessons I’d want someone to tell me if I were starting over.
Three words we hire, build and sell by.
The same values Omis was built on. They shape who we hire, how we build and how we treat every client.
Truth
We speak with honesty and act with transparency, even when the answer isn’t the one a client wants to hear.
Honor
We do what’s right, even when no one is watching. Our clients’ businesses are on the line, so we treat them that way.
Grit
We persevere, adapt, and never give up. Most of what works online only works because someone kept going.
Let’s work on yours.
Whether it’s a new website, getting found in AI search, or a workshop for your team, I’d love to hear what you’re building.
Contact David