Wow...just got on this board and read all your posts, thanks for posting I will address some of your concerns.
Some of my History
I founded, built and sold many pioneering lead generation companies over the past 20 years. Each one has been hugely successful and helped thousands and thousands of business professionals nationwide (you can Google my name 'Jordan Wexler'). In each case, I had to pioneer a new approach to give small businesses an edge - a way to compete against huge corporations with unlimited advertising budgets.
For instance, I founded Information Now, Inc. (
www.AutomaticLeads.com) over 15 years ago and introduced interactive voice response technology (IVR) to the real estate and mortgage community, allowing them to provide 24 hour information on their services, with direct connect, voicemail, faxback, and ANI technology. This allows them to not only provide 24 hour info on their services, but get text-messaged instantly with each caller's phone number - even if they had caller ID Blocking! (revolutionary). I am still involved with this.
I founded
www.Mortgageleads.com over 10 years ago and was one of the first to create an online portal for mortgage professionals to grow their business by buying leads online (I sold this company to one of my partners). It still exists and is very successful.
SmartGuy.com
I recently developed SmartGuy.com to meet the present and future needs of all businesses in a contracting market. You see, the other companies were built for fast moving positive economies, but when business tightens, Smart Guys must stick together (forgive the pun). I knew all too well that for most service businesses, 70-80% of their deals come from referral or past customers. after all, referrals are the highest quality lead you can get since they come from a trusted source. After having analyzed local networking groups, chambers, clubs, and popular advertising, I discovered their weaknesses and limitations and found an automated way to help small businesses everywhere build their business (without having to advertise or spend any money). In fact, it will allow them to establish a constant pipeline of referrals so that they could hire others and spend their time with their families, overseeing their business - rather than working in it every day.
First, for those of you who don't know, SmartGuy.com is a business directory, business network, and referral management system all rolled into one. It can align you with hundreds of other professionals in your area (up to 30 miles in each direction) all willing to provide top quality service and refer you to everyone they know. SmartGuy limits their network to 3 professionals per category per zip code (i.e. 3 carpet cleaners, 3 plumbers, 3 electricians, etc.) Others are put on a waiting list.
By the way, it is only $19 a month (month-to-month there are no contracts) In fact, you can try it 100% risk free - if you are unhappy within the first 30 days, let us know you want to cancel and we will send you your $19 back. As an incentive to grow your own business, we pay YOU $7 a month for each person you refer through your SmartGuy weg page, and $3 for everyone they refer. (in other words - once you refer 3 businesses it's not only not costing you anything, you are making money)
Some concerns expressed by posters
The compensation for everyone is the same (as I listed above). It doesn't matter if you sign up through the home page or through a members web page, you pay the same thing and makje the same thing.
This is not a one man operation. The idea is humurous and only shows that you have either not looked at the site, or know very little about programming, design, or running a company. The development staff alone exceeds 10 people.
This is not an MLM company - this is a service that provides a 2 tier affiliate program to encourage you to quickly build your referral sources and quickly benefit from the alliance of others.
How can SmartGuy help you know? How many businesses are you currently sending business to and not getting anything back in the way of referrals? Have you used a plumber, electrician, accountant or cpa, do you have home insurance, car insurance? I can go on and on. You are probably verbally and financially supporting plenty of people, are they recommending you to everyone they know? How many homes are you in every day? These are local business owners that can benefit from being in this business network. Once they join SmartGuy it will you and them.
As for handing out flyers, well...I can tell you what I do with all the flyers I get in the mail everyday, but you probably dont want to know.
Finally, those worried about being listed with 2 other professionals in your zip code, so what. With 3 professionals per category (there are 400) per zip code, that is a maximum of 1,200 other non-competing businesses in your own zip code that are willing to recommend your carpet cleaning or tile services to everyone they know). Isn't that worth 19.95 month to month? If not...don't sign up. Quite frankly, its first come first serve. The first person to sign up is listed on top, then the next two. After that it is a waiting list. (anyone getting excessive bad reviews is booted and someone from the waiting list gets lucky)
Feel free to respond back with any concerns you have. I am a very religious guy and am really trying to help as many businesses as I can. I also don't like others being picked on. I have personally spoke with several of the people who love SmartGuy and that have commented favorably on this board. They are also good people and become my friends.
I hope you will all sign up (remember you have nothing to lose) and see for yourself what SmartGuy.com can do to help your business. Agai please respond back to keep this thread on top.
My best to everyone!
Jordan Wexler
Founder
www.SmartGuy.com
