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Key Takeaways:

Avoiding Scammers

Hi, I’m Jennifer Shaheen, President and Founder of Technology Therapy® Group. As a business owner, there are some things that we don’t love to have to deal with. Sometimes these things are out of our control. Let’s talk about one of these issues today: spam.

Here’s the thing, you can put a spam blocker on your website to try to keep your online forms protected from bots. But the thing is that you will also get spam from actual people who are trying to scam you.

So unfortunately, a spam blocker on your website won’t do much to stop scammers. These are real humans who are trying to swindle you.  I’ve seen this happen, it’s happened to me a few times, and unfortunately, like you, I have to check out these leads.

I work with start-up businesses and many often start with a free Gmail address. A Gmail address does not automatically disqualify someone from being a legitimate lead. One of the ways I figure out whether they’re a real person who wants our services is to ask for a phone call or an online meeting.

One thing you’ll find with those scammers that come through your online forms or emails: they never ever want to talk to you directly.  Most “real potential customers” are excited to speak with me on the phone or over a web meeting.  So, if you get a lead through your website, and it seems legitimate, go ahead and reply to it and always invite them to speak with you or a member of your team. It’s a great way to confirm they are serious and it illustrates up front your personal attention to their business. Once you see that they don’t want to get on the phone with you or they find every excuse to avoid talking to you, I recommend you very politely say, I don’t think we’re going to be the right fit for you.

Remember this is not technically spam, but an actual person trying to scam you and no website blocker is going to protect you from these miscreants.

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Creative Director/Senior Designer

Tom DiGrazia

With over a decade and a half of professional design experience, Tom brings his knowledge of design principles and focus on user experience to every aspect of his contribution to TTG. Paying special attention to each client’s brand, personalized needs and individual interests, he strives to create compelling concepts utilizing intuitive and highly-refined design solutions. In addition to traditional and digital design work and oversight at TTG, Tom also boasts a wide portfolio of web development projects with the company, allowing him to stretch his CSS and HTML skills across multiple platforms and disciplines. He feels that being a designer in the digital landscape of websites, eCommerce solutions, email marketing platforms and social media, it is important to understand the code that goes into these areas as it assists his ability to tailor designs specifically targeted to achieve the best end result and further builds understanding and communication with backend development teams.

In his off hours, Tom is an avid pop culture enthusiast, staying up to date on the latest shows, films, comics and games. He can also typically be found taking part in a whole host of artistic activities that help him further stretch his creative legs. Regardless of the activity, Tom is always accompanied by his dog, Eli, and his cat, Tib.

Specialties:
Design, Photography, Illustration, Digital Imagery Manipulation, Wesbite Development

Platforms/Tools:
Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Lightroom, HTML/CSS, Wordpress

Analyst/Strategist

Courtney Dumont

As Senior Marketing Strategist & Analyst at Technology Therapy Group, Courtney is energized by the ability to flex both her left and right brain daily. Courtney discovered her passion for Marketing at Bryant University, where she spearheaded research on students’ perceptions of Social Media Marketing for her Honors Capstone Project. After graduating Bryant in 2012, she joined the Technology Therapy team, where she’s honed her skills in social media, search and social advertising, email marketing, SEO, and more.

Since joining the team, Courtney has created digital marketing strategies and managed campaigns for clients across the country, ranging from plastic surgery centers, to jewelry stores, to construction companies. With a cohesive, cross-channel approach and a focus on data-driven decision making, she has increased their leads by up to 217%. But Courtney doesn’t leave her zeal for social media at the office; she also runs a local foodie Instagram account with her husband to document their meals across Rhode Island and beyond. Check them out: @hoppilyfed.

Specialties:
Marketing Strategy, Data Analysis, Google Ads, Facebook Ads, Social Media

Platforms/Tools:
Google Analytics, Google Ads, Facebook Ads, Facebook Creator Studio, Instagram, Klaviyo, Mailchimp, Emma Mail, Google Data Studio, WordPress, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, Microsoft Office