Atomic Penny

Amplitude: 1) the state or quality of being ample, esp. as to breadth or width; largeness; greatness of extent. (Source: www.Dictionary.com)

Recently I was reading “What The Dog Saw” by Malcolm Gladwell, and there was an article on ketchup. What caught me was the description of how the taste of a food is measured, it is amplitude. Amplitude measures the balance of sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami and how each of these related to the complete taste of the food. Take a minute to read this article, I found it fascinating.

I started thinking of how this can apply to marketing with a big M. Marketing can be a wide assortment of differing activities focused on getting customers to buy your service or product, measuring the results and modifying your processes. This helps to insure a better marketing result and hopefully better sales. Unconventional marketing can become your amplitude if done correctly, or it can become your downfall if you leave the consumer with a bad experience. The depth and breadth of your marketing can increase your amplitude with your customers, prospects and suspects. Make your marketing a savory experience.

Here’s how:

• Create anticipation for your product. Remember the Apple commercial for the IPOD? A silhouette of a person wearing/holding an iPod, dancing to the music, no product, no pricing, just a visceral experience. You can do the same with a well thought out marketing program. Create anticipation and excitement for the product; get the customer in your business to experience more.

• Be exclusive. Work with your distributors to create a product or service that no else has. While that may sound expensive, it can be as simple as packaging two like products into a single package. Combine cocoa with marshmallows or milk with cookies.

• Don’t hesitate. If there is a hot new product or service, be sure the public know you have it in stock. If you have a unique service, trumpet your differences to the public. Make them aware, sometimes it can be done by word of mouth.

• Ask for assistance. Don’t be shy to ask your customers to tell others about you. Be sure to also let your customers know how much you appreciate your customers, a smile and thank you is more than most businesses do these days.

By doing some of these things, you can create a higher amplitude for your business. The experience is the thing. Whether it is visual, tasty, aromatic, and aural or touch, you can raise your amplitude by doing it better.

What is your amplitude?

POWER ON–Mark

A very deserving winner with Dave Adams (Adams G3) and myself

Saturday was Atomic Penny’s First Annual Community Share Day at Utah Valley University. During the basketball game I along with the participating partners were able to give away a car to a very deserving single mother.

As you know I am a proponent of spending less and getting more when marketing.

Free luncheon for sponsor and community organizations-Texas Roadhouse

Car Donation to be repaired and given to a deserving recipient-American Family Insurance

Car Repair for donation- Adams G3 Collision and Repair

Certificate for room rental-Noahs

All marketing and prizes, with the exception of $45 for stamps was donated or provided.

Participating Community Organizations:

Boys and Girls Club of Utah County

Second Chance Foundation of Utah

Habitat for Humanity

Turning Point

In Our Own Quiet Way

Little Heroes Foundation

All of these organizations gave away a donated iPod and raised funds and awareness during the basketball game.

All it took was asking, implementing and following up. Ask and you will be surprised at what develops!

Personally, this was one of the most rewarding events I have ever participated in or organized.

POWER ON–Mark

The holidays are a time when we all find ourselves getting together with friends, family, and colleagues. Since I’ve recently been doing some international traveling, it came to my attention that keeping in touch doesn’t always have to be in person. It can also be pretty darn expensive!  So, here are some free programs that you can use anywhere in the world to stay connected both personally and professionally.

FreeConferenceCall.com

This site provides exactly what its title says and more. Simply set the date and time for your conference call. Notify up to 96 of your closest pals by providing them with the conference dial-in number and participant access code. Then, at the scheduled time, everyone dials in. Done!

There are no advertisements to listen to, no quality issues, no hidden fees, no sales pitches, no contracts, no purchases required, no privacy problems, no limitations or restrictions, and no surprises. Furthermore, you can record your calls for playback purposes. These recordings are also downloadable so that they are yours forever.

Yugma.com

Similar to FreeConferenceCall.com, an account with Yugma.com allows you to invite a group to a conference call for free (up to 20 people). A distinctive feature with Yugma.com is that you will be able to share your computer’s desktop with attendees and use the built-in instant message feature. One screen is better than two, right?!

Skype.com

For my atomic penny, face-to-face beats voice-to-voice any day. With Skype.com, all you need is a webcam (cheap ones go for about $20) and you can get free video calls anywhere in the world. The quality depends on your internet connection, but for the most part it is pretty great. Video calls are only one-to-one for now, but the site predicts that this should be remedied in the near future. Skype.com also provides conference call and instant message services for free.

Bonus! For those whose communications are trumped by foreign language:

http://education-portal.com/articles/Free_Foreign_Language_Courses_Online.html

POWER ON

Mark

Retail sales constitute 70 percent of all economic activity in the United States. With the holiday season upon us and the economy toggling between improvement and downturn, I wanted to take a look at a recent survey from the National Retail Federation. It states that U.S. consumers plan to spend 3.2 percent less than last year on their holiday shopping (an average of $682.74 per person from $705.01). So what can retailers do to capture their share of seasonal spending?

In 2008, the general public saw astronomical sales during the holidays. That was mostly due to retailers whose overstocked inventory met a lack of demand. This season, retailers will most definitely cut back on product and I predict we won’t see as many “80% Off!” signs in store fronts. So consider marketing like it is still 2008. But of course, do it smartly and by the numbers:

“39 percent of Americans will begin their holiday shopping before Halloween. People will also be shopping for sales more often (55.0%), using more coupons (41.7%) and putting up last year’s decorations (34.0%). Many Americans will also make changes in gift-giving, planning to buy more practical gifts (36.0%), buying a joint gift for kids or parents (17.3%), and making more gifts (16.7%). Additionally, more than one-fourth of Americans (28.6%) say the economy is forcing them to travel less or not at all for the holidays. [Lastly], 55.2 percent of adults would like to receive a gift card this holiday season, with clothing (48.8%), books and DVDs (48.6%) and electronics (33.2%) among other popular choices.”

When you consider these figures as customer challenges with which you have the opportunity to leverage, then you are on the right track. Solve your customers’ problems, and you’ll be sure to have a very merry Christmas.

POWER ON

Mark

***I’m conducting my own holiday marketing survey at LinkedIn (http://polls.linkedin.com/p/66460/vhdyn). Please feel free to participate as well as connect with me at mark@atomicpenny.com.

Visually stimulating target buyers has always been one of the most effective methods to promote a product or producer. Billions of dollars are spent annually on branding companies with pictures, but that doesn’t mean you have to break the piggy bank to successfully capture your message for buyers. Here are some budget-minded ideas for branding that won’t cost you crazy cash!

-Take the pictures yourself. Photographers can be extremely expensive, and for good reason. They are professionals that have talent and experience. But if you have an artistic eye and a quality camera, why not cut out the middleman? At the very least, I recommend first taking some snapshots on your own as a means to save time by directing a photographer who charges by the hour.

-Flip out! The newest gadget on the market is the Flip Cam (www.theflip.com). For a little more than $100 you can have your very own HD video camera. It is extremely user friendly and produces outstanding video.

-Stock up with stock photos. The web is full of sites that offer royalty-free,professional-grade images. A few to check out include: www.freedigitalphotos.net, www.freefoto.com, www.sxc.hu, and www.freephotos.com.

Please feel free to share any of your imaginative ideas for images below!

POWER ON

Mark

Are you or your business on:

Facebook?

Linkedin?

Twitter?

Plaxo?

Digg?

Do you-

Have a blog?

Website?

Leave comments on similar blogs or websites you can interact with?

Understand social Media?

If you answered "no" or "what is that" to the majority of the above questions, take some time to do what yoou need to do to learn and participate.

Let me know how I can help.

POWER ON–Mark

When was the last time you asked your customers , employees or providers the above question?  Often it is not what you do for your stakeholders but what you can do for them. Next time you have a conversation with one of them, take the time to ask.

You mak be amazed at what you will learn, and what you can do for those who depend on you.

POWER ON–Mark

As a small business, you want to create exposure for yourself in the community you are hoping to tap into. There is one way to create a buzz about yourself or your business. Charity! When I say charity, I don’t mean writing a check, I mean finding a charity and being a champion for its mission. You can do this simply and easily, but make sure you are willing to put them first, ahead of your own marketing and business desires.

I discussed this in my September 29, 2009 post regarding the NFL and the support for breast cancer awareness. This time instead of a national sports league, I want you to consider it in the context of what you as a small business owner  or marketing professional can do.

An example of this can be as easy as having a donation station for drop offs for the charity. Have the charity advertise your location(s) as drop offs. This gives donors the opportunity to visit your location and gives you the opportunity to capture new customers.

Imagine the exposure you will receive if you become the largest collector and contributer to the ongoing success of the charity. Everyone wins!

Cost becomes irrelevant as you support a local cause and help those in need. Find a cause you can support here. www.liveunited.org.

POWER ON–Mark

Atomic Penny, in conjunction with Adams G3 Collision Repair and UVU Athletics, is pleased to announce the First Annual Community Share Night on December 5, 2009. Community Share Night is being held to recognize the efforts of community organizations in the Utah Valley area. This event will be held at the UVU vs. San Jose State basketball game in the McKay Events Center.

The featured community organization will be Turning Point, and the Womens Resource Center a resource for non-traditional students who have faced hurdles in returning to school and rejoining the business community.

Additionally, local community organizations will be present to provide information pertaining to the services that are provided to the citizens of Utah County. Your partnership dollars will provide valuable assistance to these organizations.

As a local business, we are offering you the opportunity to be a part of this special event. Partnerships are being offered for a pre game dinner, 2 media timeouts (6 total partnerships) and halftime festivities. Partnership levels are:

• Time-out Sponsor  : $250 plus a  prize to be given away ($50 minimum value) 6 Available. Recognition during the time out, partnership information on handouts, opportunity to nominate community organizations.
• Pregame Dinner for Spotlight Organization and Sponsors: $500 (2 Available) Recognition at pre-game dinner, partnership information on handouts, opportunity to nominate community organizations.
• Halftime Sponsor $400 plus a prize to be given away ($50 minimum value) 2 Available. Recognition of Partnership during halftime festivities, partnership information on handouts, opportunity to nominate community organizations.

As partners, tickets to the game will be made available and you are encouraged to invite family, friends, and clients to this exciting event.

At halftime, there will be a special presentation courtesy of Adams G3 Collision Repair to a very deserving individual. Halftime sponsorships will assist us in bringing this presentation to reality.

All monies collected (with the exception of supply costs) will be distributed to participating community organizations.

Plan now to be a part of this exciting event. For more information and to sign up as a partner, please contact Atomic Penny at 801-995-5550 or via email at atomicpenny@gmail.com. Response requested by October 28, 2009.

I have a good friend who started sweeping floors at a Kimberly-Clark. He tells the story of pushing the broom from one end of the floor to the other and back, all shift long. Dave went on to hold several jobs before his current venture, he owns a car repair shop. While on the surface that may not seem like much, I can guarantee if you met Dave, you would want to work for and with him, and buy him a drink (or two).

If you walked by him on the street, he would probably smile at you or give you a nod. He has no really distinguishing characteristics other than his thick black and gray hair. He drives a regular car, lives in a nice house and has a great wife and great kids. However there is one thing about Dave that will get you every time. His simplicity.

He has a simple belief that if you stray off course, get back to your center. He believes that if someone needs help, you help them. If you need an ear, he has one.If the state shoots a moose and it  damages your car, Dave fixes it.  No questions, no request for payment, just Dave. No need to reciprocate, just pay it forward.

Now earlier I said Dave was simple. He actually has a simple belief. Treat people like they deserve to be treated, then do it better than anyone else.

Dave is simple–SIMPLY THE BEST

POWER ON–Mark