Greg DeKalb chats with online advertising expert Nsenzi Salasini about how he helps business owners leverage targeted online advertising to generate new business.
"Essentially, for me, online advertising came as a as a necessity. I was reselling financial services. You think once you put it out there, they will come, but no one came."
It was then that NSenzi needed to figure out how he was going to sell his services. "I got a newspaper ad business card size on the back of a newspaper. We thought we were going to have this amazing return, because we didn't know better. Crickets. And then went to Groupon and tried that. Long story short, nothing worked. Then I came across this this cute little thing called Facebook ads and I saw the power behind it."
Nsenzi goes on to talk about his journey and how he has put everything on the line and advises others to be committed to do the same. The reason he says is the value the customer gives when he/she gives you that vote of confidence whenever they open up their wallet to you. "The likes and the comments on Facebook and LinkedIn, that's good and great, but at the end of the day you need revenue to keep the engine moving."
Originally from Centralia in Southern Illinois, Greg DeKalb has become quite the mover and shaker in Chicago focused on launching start-ups. After receiving his B.S. from Eastern University and an MBA from DePaul, Greg followed his entrepreneurial passion creating his own company, AppointmentsIQ, an on-demand sales and recruitment firm aimed at humanizing the process and encouraging engagement amongst decision makers.
Together with his long-time friend, Tony Paoella, he co-founded Tony P's Networking Events planning and executing energetic networking experiences all over Chicago that give professionals an opportunity to meet and make meaningful connections. Proven to be wildly successful, even if you haven't met Greg personally, chances are you've been to a Tony P event. While expanding the reach and depth of Tony P's to other networking groups like Green in Chi, he's also been busy scaling his solutions thus far nationwide by building a proprietary SaaS Digital Marketing Platform technology.
While he's not busy launching start-ups or spending time with his kids, Greg makes it a priority to give back to the Chicago community. He's currently a board member for St. Jude's Global Warriors and A Boy and His Dream Foundation. A big believer in the values that were instilled in him by his parents, Greg is committed to serve as an inspiration to his own kids reminding them to stay true to themselves, stay focused, and always create.
