The Provato Group explains how your business can start making you more money, right now

By Beth Newcomb

I remember when I was younger seeing an ad on TV by the White Pages encouraging people to call ahead before visiting a store or business to ensure they were open. The jingle went something like, “Call ahead, Ohioooo. Call aheeeaaaad.”

Can you imagine a time when we had to be told to call a business first before jumping in our cars to make the drive over? These days, I can’t even be bothered to jump to page two on my Google search (may the White Pages rest in peace).

Everyone turns to the internet to find out what’s happening, who’s offering what, and how to make contact. If your business isn’t front and center when the search is on, you’re missing out on more than just a courtesy call to find out if you’re open.

“Actually, today’s consumers don’t want to call,” says Jeff Zart, president of The Provato Group, a Marketing Technology company located in Brecksville.

“They want to find a business online and then connect on their own terms. Sometimes that’s a phone call, but more often than not it may be an email, a chat or the scheduling of an electronic appointment. If you aren’t prepared to connect with your customers on their terms, you’re missing out on a lot of business and it’s only going to get worse.”

And chances are good your competition is cashing in on your deficiencies, big time.

“The reality is that no matter what size your business is, no matter what the product or service, you have to also be a technology company,” Jeff explains. “It’s no longer acceptable to operate with a ‘business-as-usual’ mindset. The proactive companies are the ones adapting to their customer’s growing expectations. Yours should be one of them.”

The obvious rebuttal small and medium business owners might have is: “We can’t afford to be on the cutting edge of technology, run our business, pay our bills and put food on the table.”

So they throw up a one-page website message-in-a-bottle style and hope for the best. The good news is, that strategy will definitely get you online—most likely on Google’s page 10 when someone searches for “plumbers in my area.”

Instead, you can take advantage of The Provato Group’s exclusive new Small/Medium Business Website package (SMBWebPro), and for a limited time pay no set-up fee (regularly $2,499) and a low monthly rate to become the star of your industry’s show.

“Our SMBWebPro package is really exciting in that for the first time ever we’re bringing together the genius of our creative and technology teams along with our customer service specialists and offering the same power-packed tools normally reserved for our corporate clients while making them available to small and medium businesses across Northeast Ohio,” Jeff reveals.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering which other Ohio companies The Provato Group is helping to connect with customers, they have relationships with The Cleveland Clinic, Sherwin Williams and Lubrizol, just to name a few.

Provato’s power-packed Website package includes the complete set-up at no charge, which is huge. A member of the design team will meet with you for a strategy session to review all you hope to accomplish with your website. A mock-up of the site will be made. You get to choose a color palette and design. The content you create will be placed and in about 45 days your custom website will go live. You can choose to add a manned chat feature and appointment booking and management—both of which are included.

“Our SMBWebPro package is perfect for hairdressers, Realtors, plumbers and other tradesmen, independent contractors, accountants, attorneys, doctors and more,” Jeff suggests. “We offer real-time customer interaction. Our chat and real-time scheduling features lets you connect instantly.”

Many business owners struggle to be present in their business, perform the work involved and answer the phone. With The Provato Group’s program, you don’t have to pick and choose which area your business excels in. “Our real-time scheduling feature is huge in that it allows the customer the flexibility of picking their own appointment time. No more calling and leaving voicemails or shuffling through calendars.”

As an aside, the money saved by not having to employ someone to answer your calls will more than pay for your monthly web fee, so it really is worth the investment.

In addition to the chat and scheduling options, Provato Group customers can also add an online shopping component. But one of the best features is the freedom to make the website your own.

“We make it simple for SMBWebPro owners to make their own website changes, so they aren’t constantly having to pay for updates and can make the changes at a time that suits them best,” Jeff says. “Our goal is to see our customers succeed. Small/Medium Business WebPro can help them to do exactly that.”

Find out how you can get your business in the faces of customers everywhere by scheduling a free consultation with The Provato Group. The phone number is 440-546-0768 x110. The office is at 8748 Brecksville Road, Suite 125, in Brecksville. Hours are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m and the website is TheProvatoGroup.com.