The web is working for American businesses. The Internet is where business is done and jobs are created.
97%
2 times
of Internet users look online for local products and services.2
as many jobs and twice as much revenue through exports were created by web-savvy SMBs.3
75%
9 out of 10
of the economic value created by the Internet is captured by companies in traditional industries.3
part-time business owners rely on the Internet to conduct their businesses.4
Find out more at www.google.com/economicimpact
The web is working for Minnesota businesses. Google is helping. Across the U.S., Google’s search and advertising tools helped provide $165 billion in economic activity in 2015.1
$3.22 billion
of economic activity Google helped provide for Minnesota businesses, website publishers and non-profits in 2015.1
22,000 Minnesota businesses and non-profits benefitted from using Google’s advertising tools, AdWords and AdSense, in 2015.1
Sources: 1. Google, “Economic Impact,” 2015 2. BIA/Kelsey, “Nearly All Consumers (97%) Now Use Online Media to Shop Locally,” March 2010 3. McKinsey Global Institute, “Internet matters: The Net’s sweeping impact on growth, jobs, and prosperity,” May 2011 4. The Internet Association, “Internet Enabled Part-Time Small Businesses Bolster U.S. Economy,” October 2013 *Note: The total value that U.S. Google advertisers and website publishers received in 2015 is the sum of the economic impact of Google Search, AdWords and AdSense. The value of Google Search and AdWords for businesses is the profit they receive from clicks on search results and ads minus their cost of advertising, estimated as $8 profit for every $1 spent. This formulation is derived from two studies about the dynamics of online search and advertising, Hal Varian’s “Online Ad Auctions,” (American Economic Review, May 2009) and Bernard Jansen and Amanda Spink, “Investigating customer click through behavior with integrated sponsored and nonsponsored results,” (International Journal of Internet Marketing and Advertising, 2009). The economic impact of AdSense is the estimated amount Google paid to website publishers in 2015 for placing our ads next to their content. Please note that these estimates do not allow for perfect reconciliation with Google’s GAAP-reported revenue. For more information about methodology, visit: www.google.com/economicimpact/methodology.html. © Copyright 2016. Google and the Google logo are trademarks of Google Inc.
$5.96 million of free advertising was provided to Minnesota non-profits through the Google Ad Grants program.1
HalloweenCostumes.com MANKATO, MINNESOTA
The Fallenstein kids were the envy of their neighborhood, thanks to mother Jenice’s creative, homemade Halloween costumes. In 1992, sisters Lisa, Heather, and Julie started renting out their old costumes from their garage. Brother Tom joined in part-time while studying computer science in college. After graduation, he decided to scare up new business by selling specialty costumes online. “I started building websites for us in 2004,” Tom says. “By October 2005, everything exploded.” They took over their mom’s house, stocking inventory and shipping packages. “We had to unplug the phone because we couldn’t take any more orders,” Tom says. The family has since turned their garage operation into a full-fledged business in their hometown. HalloweenCostumes.com sells
“The Internet has turned us from a small local rental company into a worldwide business.” TOM FALLENSTEIN, PRESIDENT & CEO
costumes for adults, children, babies, and pets, as well as
outgrown two buildings. They now
accessories and decorations.
occupy a 200,000-square-foot facility,
They’ve used AdWords, Google’s
employ 150 full-time staff, and hire 1,500
advertising program, since
seasonal workers during Halloween.
2007 to attract customers
They’ve launched two speciality
looking for particular types of
websites (fun.com and shirts.com)
costumes. “Our biggest traffic
to keep business hopping off-season.
driver is AdWords, bringing in
And they’re expanding their brand
HalloweenCostumes. com has $70 million in annual sales. Visit www.halloweencostumes.com
millions in sales,” Tom says. They’ve redone their mobile-friendly website
internationally. “My sisters and I stand
to appeal to shoppers using smartphones and mobile devices. Their social
in the aisles here and say, ‘Wow. This has come a long way from our parents’
media, including Google+ and YouTube, showcases their vast inventory,
house,’” Tom says. “Google created the opportunity for me to bring a small
demonstrating everything from mask-making to makeup-application
costume shop online—and then bring it to the world.”
techniques, and conjures up interest in costumes people never dreamed of (even in their best nightmares). Google Analytics lets them track what people are searching for and how they use the website. Since their humble beginnings in their family garage, the business has
