By DAVID BERTOLA
dbertola@bizjournals.com | 716-541-1621

Jennifer Smyth, sales manager of Integument Technologies Inc., wants to meet more of the right people so she can sell more of the coatings, sealers and films made by the Tonawanda company.

"We are a small company, and we don't have an outside sales force," said Smyth, the company's lone salesperson, who set up an account at www.sellinghive.com on Nov. 11.

It's a new social media website where she can find someone to introduce her to the right people and, hopefully, sell more.

"It lets you expand into markets with people who have relationships with decision makers," Smyth said. 

Sellinghive helps companies organize people they would like to meet, connecting them to people who can help with initial introductions.

"On Facebook you categorize people you already know, where the goal of our site is to connect companies to those who they don't know," said co-founder Robert Richardson.

His 10-person company, Sellinghive Corp., is based in the SUNY Fredonia Technology Incubator in Dunkirk.

Integument has lots of government contracts but from the commercial side of the business, there are products it wants to sell more of.

"Specifically, the one I put on Sellinghive is an anti-graffiti film," Smyth said.

Richardson said if there are three degrees of separation between someone like Smyth and a potential client, there's probably someone willing to make a connection.

"People are almost automatically matched, usually within a week, with who they want to meet," he said.

The network of individuals at the site that helps companies get a foot in the door are compensated for doing so. As an example, if Smyth identifies someone who can broker a meeting, she'll negotiate a price with that person through the site to make introductions.

Richardson said it's almost like having a built-in sales force without paying for one.

Added Integument CEO Terry Vargo: "It's a way for us to save a lot of money with respect to getting the product out there and have people rep it without having to go to trade shows, which we do, but it broadens our network of sales reps."

When you negotiate rates to get someone's name and contact information, Richardson said, "you pay as you go instead of paying big up-front costs for a sales force."

Companies pay $50 a month. For individuals, it costs half of that to be a member of the site, which is private. This way, only those with accounts can see who's out there and what they're looking for.

Currently, about 100 member companies of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership and Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce are on the site.

The individual accounts there represent more than 15,000 contacts, according to Richardson.

In the coming months, he said, more companies from throughout Pennsylvania and New York will be added to the Sellinghive network.