To bring our technology/resources that we used for the last decade to the local business level. By providing optimal search marketing we are helping the business and thus helping the local community become more sustainable thus lessing the impact on the environment. We all need to act fast to mitigate the effects of climate change.
What is Green Locals about?
The Green Locals program is based on four core principles:
1. In the 21st Century all businesses and organizations must become and stay green. (This is because being “Green” is symptomatic of an organization/business that cares about its world and its customers/users.)
2. To thrive and survive, community based businesses and organizations must be locally connected to each other and the consumer/user. (This is because the small voice, through collective action, can better be heard over the noise of all the national and global businesses/organizations.)
3. Each local business/organization must be actively engaged in 21st marketing techniques. (The employment of 21st Century marketing techniques is the only way to effectively compete with national and global businesses/organizations.)
4. The local municipality or key local organization performs the essential “common denominator” role to facilitate the local business/organization gathering. (This is because it is easier for a well recognized local organization to use its lines of communication to foster the growth and development of the green locals program.)
What does Green Locals Provide?
The Green Locals program equips each subscribing local business and organization with 21st Century marketing tools at a very affordable price. See the attached chart which contains the following major items:
1. Green Certification Standard comparable to other such programs offered nationwide.
2. An active web page that will be recognized by all major online search engines.
3. Customer access through smart phone technology.
4. Weekly social media marketing through use of e-newsletters, Twitter, YouTube and others. We supply most of the copy while the business/organization supplies weekly special features, information and announcements.
How does a subscription to Green Locals operate?
1. The local business/organization executes a subscription agreement, pays the initial work-up fee, and submits the Green Certification Questionnaire for review, scoring and approval. Upon approval the new subscriber is assigned his green certification level (there are five levels with the highest level being the greenest). Any business or organization that fails to achieve the lowest green level is refunded its subscription fee. This should take less than two weeks to complete.
2. An Account Manager is assigned to contact the new subscriber to gather information to prepare a web page for the subscriber to approve. If the subscriber has a web page, the Account Manager will review it and suggest improvements and features that can be employed to enhance it; some of which may require additional services not included in the standard subscription. The Account Manager will be the subscriber’s principal contact with Green Locals for web site services and assistance.
3. The Account Manager will either perform the agreed-upon web page development or enhancements of an existing site and/or arrange for others in our servicing organization to do the work.
4. Subscriber approval will be obtained before posting to the site.
5. The Account Manager will contact the subscriber weekly for website input and provide the subscriber with deadline dates for doing so.
6. During this process a content manager will contact the subscriber and get him/her set up with the various social media marketing organizations, instruct him/her on how the marketing is done, encourage the subscriber to play around with and use each site, instruct the subscriber on the use of Twitter and other communication devices, and give the subscriber some drills to employ to enhance his/her skills.
7. The content manager will also elicit from the subscriber information for the initial e-newsletter content and provide a time table for when items of interest about the subscriber must be received for inclusion. For a retail business subscriber this would be sale dates, new products, sale items, promotional, etc. For charitable or community purpose organizations this would be event announcements, classes, awards, etc.
8. The smart phone application would be available to every owner of a smart phone; (i) to find all businesses/organizations in the Green Locals network by certification, type, address, or other sort division; (ii) to find the selected service on a local map, secure directions, and see a description of services; and (iii) provide feedback on the quality of service(s), the certification, and comment on any aspect of the subscriber’s activity or service.
What does the local sponsoring organization get?
1. If needed, mold the certification process and standards to the local community’s needs and requirements.
2. To the extent necessary, oversee the certification process for fairness and equality.
3. If needed, provide local input on the quality of the Green Locals administration.
4. An income stream from the gross revenues.
5. Access to the green certification data.
What does the local sponsoring organization have to do?
1. Participate in items #1, 2, and 3 (above) to the extent it deems necessary
2. No resources are required.
3. Lend its name to promote Green Locals.
How is Green Locals set up and managed?
1. A non-profit corporation is established using the name and logo provided with two directors: one named by the sponsoring organization and the other by Adobe Systems, LLC.
2. The two directors appoint the officers to operate the non-profit corporation.
3. The officers or incorporators execute several agreements with Abode Systems, LLC:
a. A perpetual intellectual property license agreement for the name, business system, trade mark use and related property.
b. An agreement to administer and run the affairs of the non-profit corporation.
c. An agreement to lease an office and provide other attributes of an active enterprise.
d. An agreement to divide and allocate revenues for services between Abode Systems, LLC and the local sponsoring organization.
e. An agreement on the division and distribution of any residual profits.
4. The non-profit corporation would not have any employees. All employees and service providers would be provided by Abode Systems, LLC.
5. Abode Systems, LLC, through its officers, annually would submit a budget for the operation of the non-profit corporation for director approval.
6. All operations, policies and procedures would require joint director approval.
