I'm a long-time mental health care provider with multiple areas of expertise. I practice in what is a very competitive market, here in Los Angeles, and I felt my web presence had begun to fray. Thus, I initially began to consult with Mark Gentile (aka Tastebuds) on a periodic basis to help me get a better idea of what I was doing right, doing wrong and/or what opportunities I might have been missing. In the process, I discovered that Mark's well-rounded skills and knowledge were clearly of great value. In August 2015, I decided hire him on retainer basis to oversee the design and content of my websites (including search engine optimization) and manage my social media. From the outset, he's delivered beyond what I expected in terms the amount of time he spends really getting to know the nature of my business and in the results he's produced -- my website traffic has more than tripled and my rank in search engine queries have significantly improved. What stands out for me is that he's extremely organized -- he regularly maps out a plan of action on weekly/monthly basis -- and has helped me leverage the relationships with my colleagues for cross-promotion opportunities. I recommend him highly! read more

I manage business development for Traxpay, a B2B financing services company with offices in Germany and the United States. We brought Mark in three years ago to create a new website for us, amongst other things. We gave Mark quite a challenging brief as the website had to work in English and German, and appeal to financial institutions, large corporates, small enterprises, investors and the financial press. Mark not only met these requirements but exceeded our expectations in so many ways. In the original build and with ongoing maintenance and content updates, he has shown a very impressive level of creative ability, not just with website design but with improving the text and creating a number of digital art pieces for us. He continues to produce work of a very high standard indeed, and is proactive in suggesting ideas for new content. Mark also looks after our social media accounts and has generated great interest and many strong leads from there. I can wholeheartedly recommend Mark, he is a pleasure to work with and a complete professional. read more

I have been working with Mark Gentile of Tastebuds since 2011. I hired him to boost my company's presence via social media. He started by asking me to fill out a very extensive questionnaire about my business and my clients. This allowed him to become an expert in my field so that he could understand exactly what was needed within my industry. Mark is very innovative and constantly looking for new ways to boost my company's exposure through my website, content development on my blog, social media and email blasts. He attends networking events and seminars constantly to make sure he is always up to date on the fast paced world of internet and social media. After working with Mark for three years I asked him to redesign my website. Mark is an individual that is both left and right brain. He excels in marketing concepts and he has an excellent eye for design and for photo selection. I highly recommend Mark. He is creative, organized, attentive to your needs, patient and has drastically increased the visibility of my company. read more

I get a lot of compliments from people about the website and logo that Mark designed for my psychotherapy business. Those who know me say that it really represents who I am, which I think is very important, but particularly in the therapy business. Colleagues often ask who designed my website, and prospective clients have said that they get a good sense of my work from exploring it. In the process of developing all of this, Mark worked collaboratively with me to find colors, images, and a structure that would work for me and my business objectives. He talked me through design, SEO, and countless other aspects that would make my website work for me. Mark was timely and respectful in his work and I would highly recommend him for designing a beautiful website and logo for your business. read more

Mark Gentile is knowledgable about a lot of things: branding, design in general, web and user interface design, business strategy, search engine optimization, and the Wordpress platform (which is a whole universe unto itself). And it's good that he's so knowledgeable, because small business strategy today requires all of it! He came up with a great design for my business. It was not only a good design, but it captured the spirit of my business and my personal vibe. Mark had taken the time to learn about my business and this showed in his work. He brings a strong point of view to the table, but he also listens and accommodates. He is extremely painstaking in the execution: he sweats the details, which really makes a difference. I was very pleased, overall. read more

Mark Gentile (aka Tastebuds) has been an invaluable asset, helping me to take my small business to the next level. We started with designing a website, initially for the purpose of promoting a series of pop-up restaurant events. The process was seamless -- he took all my opinions in to account and provided input on best practices that I was not aware of. We created a five-page professional website in 10 days! During that time, I realized that I needed business cards, menus, and a logo, too. Mark's breadth of experience as multi-talented creative really came in handy here. He has made the whole process easy, professional, and fun, which is one of the most important things to have during the first steps of starting a business. read more

In just one year, Tastebuds Marketing has doubled our followers and strengthened our branding on social media. Under Mark's direction, our presence on social media now has a distinct and consistent voice (that I'm proud of!). Being a PR firm, it's such a relief to be able to rely on Mark to post our clients content quickly and effectively. In addition to being dependable, Mark has educated our team on new social media trends and emails us regularly with suggestions for unique content posts. I've received positive remarks from clients about our social media and have referred Mark to a handful clients, being fully confident he can handle the job. read more

Working with Mark Gentile (Tastebuds) has been a valuable experience for me and my business partner. His expertise and creativity has helped to boost our business and elevate our visual branding. He designed our Los Angeles-based real estate sales website and helped create informative content. Mark also manages our Search Engine Optimization (SEO) which has led to increased, valuable web traffic. We even got a direct client due to his SEO and design efforts. Mark is professional and works collaboratively as a team. I found him very forthcoming with marketing suggestions based on his past experience. I highly recommend Mark for your job. read more

Mark Gentile (Tastebuds) was the creative force at New Hope Media for years, setting, and updating, the look and feel of our two print publications and websites. We're fortunate to have continued our relationship with him on a freelance basis. As he's branched out his web work into social media, branding, digital publications, and more, we've benefited from his design and technical know-how in these areas. Mark's a pro, and always a pleasure to work with! read more