About
Steve Green has been helping pizza operators use their customer data since the 1980s
Store opening specialist, Domino’s franchisee, marketing director, and the founder of GreenMail and PizzaSMARTS, two of the first computerized database marketing services built for the pizza industry.
Steve Green’s journey into computer-assisted pizza marketing began at his own Domino’s Pizza store at 3563 Sheridan Avenue in Buffalo, New York. After developing a computer program and a marketing method of his own, he saw how much sales could improve by understanding customers, targeting the right households and measuring the results of each campaign. Using those techniques, he tripled the store’s sales: from about $3,000 to more than $9,000 a week over six months.
That experience became GreenMail, a computerized database marketing company that first served Domino’s franchisees exclusively. In 1990, when Domino’s decided to compete in database marketing itself, Steve created PizzaSMARTS to serve independent pizzerias, regional chains and other restaurant operators.
Along the way
- 1982Hired as a store opening specialist for RPM Pizza, a 13-store Domino’s franchisee on the Gulf Coast, then made its marketing director. His Tupelo, Mississippi grand opening set a Domino’s record of $37,000 in first-week sales that stood for five years.
- 1982–1985Directed 14 new store openings with average first-week sales of $21,000, from Louisiana and Alabama to California and Nevada.
- 1984–1987Domino’s franchisee with four stores in California, New York and Mississippi. Tripled the sales of the Buffalo store while developing database marketing for the pizza industry.
- 1986Founded GreenMail. Between 1987 and 1991 it set up computer mailing and evaluation programs for more than 500 pizza stores; at one time, one in ten Domino’s franchisees was “on GreenMail.”
- 1990Created PizzaSMARTS for independent pizzerias and regional chains. Installed a database marketing department and data-entry center for 80 Domino’s stores.
- Early 1990sTook the same methods beyond pizza: a 61-store video chain, a pharmacy chain, and a bank in Memphis, Tennessee. Installed a program for a Papa John’s franchisee co-op in Little Rock, Memphis and Huntsville.
- 1995Chosen by Pizza Today magazine to present a seminar on database marketing at Pizza Expo.
- 1997Published the PizzaSMARTS Database Marketing Manual for clients including Johnny’s Pizza (Monroe, Louisiana), Eureka Pizza (Fayetteville, Arkansas) and Steak-Out (Atlanta, Georgia).
- TodayBringing PizzaSMARTS into the Pizza Experience Platform with Pizza Communications.
Steve holds a marketing degree from San Jose State University and an MBA from the University of Mississippi, and served in the U.S. Coast Guard.
In Steve’s words
“What made these programs successful wasn’t simply the computer technology. It was the understanding that different customers respond to different messages, and that effective marketing requires identifying the right audience, delivering the right offer, and measuring the response. The technology has changed. The underlying marketing principles haven’t.”
From his foreword to the 1997 manual
Why the manual is free
Steve is sharing the original 1997 manual at no charge because he believes its principles can still help restaurant owners, marketers and anyone helping independent businesses succeed, and because he hopes it starts a conversation about what the next generation of pizza marketing could become. He welcomes your comments, suggestions and ideas.