FAQ

Can you really guarantee a profit increase? I thought nothing on the internet could ever be guaranteed.

Yes, we are guaranteeing a profit increase! But don't confuse "profit" increases with "sales" or "business" increase. We're not guaranteeing an increase in sales at all, only that we will help you become more profitable. That's why our name is the "collaborative," because we show with you to better work with employees, your vendors, workflow in your store, and how you can use different technology to lower costs, and produce better outcomes.

But aren't you simply a website company?

No, please don't call us your "website guys" or your "website company." It's true that the core of what we do starts with a new website, but that's not the limit of what we do. We take that website and show you how it weaves into every aspect of your business. The software we use was designed specifically for the jewelry industry. Many jewelers use point of sale software to help them run many aspects of their business, and several of those POS companies also provide additional value added consulting services. This is a similar business model to what we do.

So aren't you just a consulting firm?

No, please don't call us your "consultant" or "business coach" either. We're not going to give you broad advice about anything after listening to you for 5 minutes. We're going to take those 5 minutes and extend it to 50 minutes, then we're going to ask you to show us your issues either in person, through video, or through webcam so we can experience it ourselves. We'll take some time for figure out how you can best solve your problem and, if we can't do it ourselves, we'll freely, and without taking a referral or a commission, lead you to someone else who might be better suited to provide a solution.

You don't take commissions or affiliate fees from other people you refer customers to?

No. We've built a business on reputation alone. Several other service firms in the jewelry industry have commission or affiliate agreements with the companies they refer jewelers to. That's not how we run the Sapphire Collab. We ONLY refer based on true merit of the person or company we will refer you to.

How do we measure someone's merit? By working with them in the past in one way, shape, or form. Many times we will make referrals to people and companies we use ourselves.

To date, we have referred our clients to accountants, insurance agents, telephone companies, software developers, in-store trainers, photography specialists, merchant services companies, and the list goes on.

This referral process is one of the core strengths of the Sapphire Collaborative. Instead of trying to be all things for every business, we recognize what our limits are and call in outside help when needed to produce the best possible solution for you.

What areas of traditional media do you handle?

Let's face it, we're not traditional in any sense of the word, but we apply our study of advertising success and failures to traditional media like newspapers, direct mail letters, direct mail post cards, billboards, and other signage. We love the TV show Mad Men, and we also have a deep understanding of the advertising great, Rosser Revees, the real Madison Ave man that the TV show is based on.

We study sales methods and results, and we can produce the ad copy and artwork for clients. Furthermore, we know how to marry those traditional ads to the new media digital advertising to create a real marketing plan.

Wait, does that mean you're an advertising agency?

We're thinking that an advertising agency would rather slap together a few ads for you based on a tag line, then run the other way when the ad doesn't work. That's certainly not us. We measure every last advertising attempt to see what's affective and what's not.

Ted Nicolas once wrote that ads that don't produce results are bad and should never be run again. This is a great concept that flies in the face of the concept of "branding," which is to send the same message to your audience over and over again. Realistically, if you could afford to waste money on branding then you wouldn't be reading this website. You probably want results more quickly than the eventual return you get from branding.

So what is the Sapphire Collaborative?

Don't try to pigeon hole us anywhere. Our mission and core values are broad in actions, but specific in focus. We are the collaborative team that find different ways to free up the time of the owners of a jewelry related business, so the can concentrate on growing their business. We do this first by identifying stumbling blocks that they might not be aware of, and how to use different services or technology to make things a little better.

Then we plan a plan new "processes," using technology, to further grow the business by reaching the true customers that should be targeted. Our process creation includes a new website, social media involvement, customer outreach, listening to customers, and better working relations with vendors and service providers. The technology at our disposal includes computers, smartphones, tablets, and cameras.