Green Apple Sales Blog

Many online business start-ups (ecommerce) struggle the first year or two. The reason many do is they are looking for something for free.

Here does this sound familiar? “I will have an ecommerce store built and then I can just use Facebook, Twitter, and blogs to market it!” Sounds great in concept.

Here is the deal, some people will do it and succeed. Do not be fooled though, it was not free. They spent 60+ hours a week producing content, posting to blogs, updating Twitter and Facebook.  9.5 out of 10 people do not deliver effective marketing messages, thus resulting in sluggish sales.  These social media tools are very powerful if used properly.

Then there is SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and PPC (Pay-Per-Click) and affiliate marketing and and and….

Time is money. The funny thing most people want to get into the online business to avoid having to work all the time.  Only to work more promoting their store.  Why?  When a pro can get you much better results in half the time.  You know owning and running a successful business is not the art of knowing it all.  It is the art of finding the people who know what you don’t and working with them.

Starting and running a business online or expanding your physical location to the world online is no different than opening a new location. You must invest properly. Not cut corners. Put your dollars where they produce the greatest results first. Keep it simple and find experts to help guide you through the process.

The internet has produced a ridiculous amount of millionaires in the last decade. Not because they had big bucks. Because they had a good idea and an even better plan to launch it. They stuck to what they know best and found experts to cover the rest.

If you want to own a business, act like a business owner. Takes money to make money. This does not mean you have to buy some huge expensive marketing package.  I don’t think you should need to sign a contract either.

Actually if the company doing the marketing are as good as they claim to be they should be willing to start off with something small to show you results and gain a lifelong client.  My theory is, when I make someone money they will always do business with me.

So I will repeat it one more time.  Nothing is Free. Time=Money=Time=Money….  But marketing always makes you a lot more than you spend, so I guess that’s close.

Call me if you want to brainstorm ideas for your business… and maybe you will end up doing business with us.  Don’t be surprised.

Dan O’Callaghan

www.GreenAppleSales.com

If you have a business and no website it is probably because they never mention websites on your 8-track player!

Seriously how does a business expect to keep with the market and stay competitive if they are missing the fastest growing marketing in the world, the internet.  I recently spoke to a business owner who said “If my sales where up I would invest in a website”  I said “If you had a website your sales would be up”.

I really think a lot of people still underestimate how powerful the web is for all businesses.  To me not having a website in 2010 is like not having a sign on the front of a retail store and keeping the lights off all the time.

There is a ton of benefits a company gets through having a website.  It is often the first thing a prospective customer sees that brings them to your business.  Without one they never even see you.  However they do see your competitors who have websites and they win the business.

Having a website is as important as having customers, as a matter of fact it will bring you more of them.

Cheers,

Dan O’Callaghan

I just would like to make a point. In the last decade customer service in the US has tanked.

Companies outsourced it to people you can not understand, or they put you on the 5 hour voice mail; “if you wear shoes press 2, thank you,  if you like milk please press 3, if you are happy with your cable service and would like to leave a compliment press….” Ridiculous.  I would like to ban those customer aggravation systems.

As much as they cut cost by outsourcing they have felt the loss of customers. This is an opportunity for all the small business owners. You can provide superior customer service compared to any of the large outfits.

Our company has one person the account manager that each client deals with. Their AC knows their business and what is going on at all times and has a personal relationship with them.

We have no customer service, just the same person you talk to every time. I believe this is what has led to our explosive growth in the last few months.

Just a thought.  I just went through a 45 minute dance of stupidity with customer service only to get disconnected and nothing accomplished. Oh well I am sure I would not have understood a word they where saying if they did answer.

It is the companies who offer their customers a good value followed up with excellent service that will prosper in the new decade.

Cheers,

Dan O’Callaghan
Green Apple Sales, Inc.

I would like to tell you how and why the business “game” has changed.

The marketing methods of today are changing fast all while becoming more effective. Some digital marketing sources like, social media, search engine optimization, and pay per click are a few powerful tools. Although there are many more methods.

We are not far from things like Facebook and Twitter virtually replacing news outlets, you can find out what is going on around the world directly from the people. That is pretty exciting as we all know money influences everything that comes through a television.

LinkedIn threatens to take over the business news sector as well, as there are thousands of articles on all industries added constantly. Not to mention you can get specific news on your industry everyday, not when the paper decides to cover it.

With social media we are all able to affect the news!

Some do not know what to make of the changes we face in todays business world. Those who embrace digital marketing are seeing the best R.O.I (Return On Investment) they have ever seen from any other form of marketing.

The internet is the most powerful marketing tool that has ever surfaced. You are able to drive more qualified traffic to your business locally and get world wide exposure if your business can benefit from this.

Social media is the new form of news, but you control it. You have the ability to keep your customers constantly informed about your business. This also keeps you in the back of their minds. That is the entire point of marketing, to make sure people remember you whenever a conversation brings up your profession.

Not only is digital marketing extremely effective it also gives you better metrics to track results than any other form of marketing. You can see how many look, inquire, and convert.

These are a few ways the “game” has changed. In a good way, giving you and every business owner an equal opportunity to market your business as aggressively as the largest companies out there. Digital Marketing is cost effective and if done properly will bring long-term growing success to your business.

Call 815-462-3476 for a free 30 minute brainstorming session on how you can increase sales through digital marketing.

or email us at: info@greenapplesales.com

Dan O’Callaghan

www.greenapplesales.com

A few reasons why all businesses need a website.

If you currently have a business and have no website at all you should ask yourself if it is important to have a sign on the front of a retail store?

Same difference, although if you had great online exposure you could be under a parking lot and gain a large customer base.

Here are a few examples to keep in mind:

1) If you moved to a new area let’s say a suburb called Awesome, IL and wanted to order a pizza, I would bet you would Google “pizza awesome, il” not look for a phone book. Many owners of Pizza restaurants do not have sites and quiet frankly act as if they are not necessary. How much do you think a busy Pizza place spends a month on mailers and print advertising? Probably the same if not more than it would cost to build a great site that markets them 24 hours a day and never gets thrown in the trash. Besides the fact that without a site they are missing the entire online market.

2) A doctor or dentist office. When insurance providers give a patient a list of doctors or dentists that they work with how do you think the patient will do their research to make a choice? The internet, currently there is nothing even close to providing as much info as online. So if the doctor on 1st Ave has a site and the one on 2nd Ave has nothing, who wins the new patient?

3) A niche retail store, I will use “Irish Imports” as an example (one of our clients). If you have a physical location you only sell to your immediate demographic and can only reach them during normal business hours. Not to mention the cost of paying employees and all the fun bills that come with running a retail business. An eCommerce store is worldwide, open 24 hours, 365 days a year and needs no employees working to sell your products. It also promotes your business locally as well. We are in 2010 now and gas is not cheap… a virtual location (online) is no longer an option for the future growth of these businesses.

Those are a few examples. I could go on for days. Give us a call for a free brainstorming session on how getting online will benefit your business.

If you still do not think it is important to be online…. consider where you are reading this.

Dan O’Callaghan
www.greenapplesales.com