Atomic Penny

I witnessed a near miss with two cars at a 4-way stop the other day. From my viewpoint, both drivers believed they were in the right and the other driver was in the wrong.  Both drivers shared their thoughts with yelling and gestures.  The other thing they both did was to hide behind a two ton car, and sunglasses. It was easy for them to yell, gesture, and express anger, only to move on after the "incident". 

Are you the same way? Do you have a great idea, but hide behind the office door, cubicle wall or computer monitor? If you step out from behind your hiding place are you afraid of being beat up or ridiculed? 

Sooner or later you will catch the attention of a free-thinking manager, mentor or boss. Keep talking and suggesting. Otherwise you will continue to hide and be frustrated. And the only one who loses is you.

Come out from hiding and express yourself. It feels good.

POWER ON–Mark

Yesterday, Atomic Penny invested $50 and was able to get an 800% return for the Boys and Girls Club of Utah County. A great time and a reminder that helping out charitable causes is a great and positive investment.

KSL.COM story about the event.

DESERET NEWS story about the event.

Video

Car Smash Bash for Boys and Girls Club

It was a good time had by all.

POWER ON–Mark

Salt is a common element composed of sodium and chloride, each of which have various other uses, but together they form the simple compound of salt. Why is this important? It is an example of how two elements when combined can create a wonderful outcome. This is also true when you create a marketing program. Take your knowledge and an associate’s creativity, both of you combined can create a powerful program.

Think of it as an exercise in expansion. See how much each of you can contribute to the success of a project. You cannot let the fear of the outcome block your way. Be prepared to inspire, listen and GO! Be the salt of your marketing and business success. It just starts with a sprinkle.

The hardest part is usually starting. Here is a suggestion.

1. Get  a piece of unlined paper, a crayon and an empty space
2. Either write or draw the basics of your idea (no style points are given, and no experience necessary – I suggest drawing)
3. Have someone else look at what you have done and have them add to your writing or drawing with their own crayon
4. Go back and forth until both of you have the basics of the path you are going to pursue
5. Hang the picture where it is visible to all involved (no explanations necessary)

Now you have the salt of your project. And a recipe to follow as you move forward.

• As for recipes, I learned one the other day for steak that was unbelievable. Take your steak, grind twice as much salt and pepper on both sides as you usually would. Cook it over a grill with hardwood as the heat source. Remove when cooked to preference, enjoy!

What recipe for your success can you start today?

POWER ON–Mark

Recently I contacted a businessman that I had done business with, commented on his blogs, tweeted his success and shared his writings with others. Because I knew he was busy, I used his personal email address, and did not want to interrupt him with a phone call. The response I received was not from the business owner, but from some unknown assistant. It read in part, “thanks for writing Bob (not his real name). If you wish to leave a message please go to his website and post a message.”

WOW!

Now I know what my support is worth. It must be that I didn’t attend all the seminars, workshops and consulting he tried to sell me. He will never understand my frustration, but I probably won’t go out of my way to use his services, which are quite good. I just wanted to support him when he started out, and hoped that I could learn something which I did.

By the way, I have emailed or twittered Seth Godin, Pamela Slim and Tony Hseih and received a personal response. I was no only surprised, but more importantly I was impressed. I am not a captain of industry, I am not a major player, and I am definitely not someone who can bolster his or her career. But to each of them I am important enough to respond to, and they have a fan for life.

If you put this in the context of your business, have you ignored your older customers because they didn’t buy everything that was offered? Do you consider the person with the biggest car or highest credit limit more important than the customer paying with cash?

Who stood by you when you started up and when times turned tough? What have you done for them lately?

POWER ON–Mark

Tony Hseih, CEO of Zappos had his book, Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose recently released. Here is what I learned:

I just finished this book for the second time and am wondering who this guy thinks he is? Happiness at work? Building a brand through culture, interaction, transparency and creating loyalty as well as personal relationships? Taking care of customers in a way that WOWS them and creates a reason to return?

This has got to be STOPPED! We cannot tolerate this type of behavior! Allow our employees to think and voice opinions? Making decisions and taking calculated risks? What’s next, provide a nap room and an onsite counselor?
Doesn’t he realize that we as corporate leaders know more than the cumulative brainpower of the collective?

Please help me spread the word, this has to stop, and stop now. Before you know it, the underlings will all be looking for more than a paycheck; satisfaction and a great work environment are not to be allowed. Thinking will result, and sooner or later tattoos of the corporate logo on the ass will disappear.

Join me in putting an end to this kind of thinking. If not now, when? If not you, who?

The lizard king must rise again!

(sarcasm intended)- sometimes translation is necessary.

POWER ON–Mark

John Jantsch has a new book, The Referral Engine, all about building referrals without begging. What is begging? Asking your customers for the names of their friends and family who may be interested in your product or services. The customer came in to buy your product or service, not to give you more prospective customers. At a retail store I was asked for my phone number and email address after paying for my product. I probably will get a survey or call on my “satisfaction” with my purchase. I really just wanted to buy the soap that my wife wanted, not to give a life history. I believe you do your customer a disservice by asking for more and more. At some point it becomes a dissatisfier.

If the customer is happy, they will tell others, if they are not, they won’t. It’s that simple.  Make your customers happy, and give them a reason to refer you.  Your measure will be when you ask your customer where they heard about you in a passing manner.

Your customer is not a checklist, she is a person who made the choice to interact with you. Don’t blow the opportunity by asking more than you need to know.  Begging will get you nowhere, but genuine thinking will get you everywhere.

POWER ON–Mark

You have many choices when marketing to customers. Imagine the scenario where you have $3 left in your marketing budget. You want to reach as many prospects as possible and want to grow your business. Sounds absurd, right or wrong. As a marketer or business owner you have that decision to make every time you begin a new marketing concept.

What can that $3 buy you? Printing, postcards, a couple of banner ads? How about some goodwill and respect? Instead of marketing to the masses, market to the ONE. Who is the ONE? It is the one person who can influence others to interact with your business.

Your $3 can buy a cup of coffee or a piece of pie. Make the interaction special, memorable and personal. A cup of coffee by itself is just a cup, but the conversation and interaction will make or break the deal. Discuss what is important to the ONE. Family, sports, cars, world peace. It is your money but her time. The whole idea is to gain the trust of the ONE. If you do, the ONE can be your gateway to your future. Not only in customers, but in VC, media, alliances.

$3 and an hour of your time. It’s worth the investment.

POWER ON–Mark

Creating a marketing program can be amazingly tough. Do you base it on media, social media, referrals, or inside actions? Do you spend a massive amount of money using a ‘push’ strategy, hoping for the best? Or do you create an ‘pull’ strategy with your customer’s assistance? The possibilities are infinite, as are the frustrations. When starting your Confetti Project, the countdown is an essential step to determining what will work best for you in your situation. The countdown starts with a blank sheet and an open mind. Being proactive instead of reactive can lead to ideas that really fly.

There are resources also that will help stimulate your process. Here are four that can help you out:

Seth Godin-Author, Marketing Expert, All-Around Good Guy

John Jantsch-Duct Tape Marketing

Dave Crenshaw-Author, Time Management Whiz

Pamela Slim-Coach, Speaker, Small Business Expert

These are just a few experts, use them, or find your own. Just don’t carry the burden alone.

POWER ON–Mark

I was reading this blog by Seth Godin the other day and am amazed that this is still the way many of us do business. I wanted to share my experience with two businesses I visited last week. The first was Barnes and Noble Booksellers to look for a video and a book for Mother’s Day. I found the video, and was going to look for the book. I was not allowed to take the video into the book area until it was paid for at that location. While I waited to be checked out, the cashier chose to answer the ringing phone instead of assist me. Then the cashier was upset my gift card did not cover the entire purchase and had to accept cash for the balance due. The cashier was neither friendly nor professional, just doing his job as it was outlined in the manual. By the time I found the book I wanted, the next cashier line was long, and I decided I could get the book elsewhere, and my mother would love a nice plant. She did!

The second business is the bicycle shop, Trek of American Fork. I have developed a relationship with the owners, Jeff and Kris, because they listen to my needs and help me get what I need. Recently Jeff helped a friend buy a bike and accessories. The friend was ecstatic with the service and help she received. Trek of American Fork is also involved in many community events such as a Ride for Haiti, Breast Cancer Awareness Ride, and the ever popular Tour de Donut. While these activities support the shop, they also create awareness and support the community at large.

While one company works to keep the employees in a box, another seeks to spread the influence. Which one is the best company? Which one are you? Are you the Sweeper? or the Spreader?

POWER ON–Mark

The Amish are known for their lifestyle rooted in the past, from their mode of transport to the quilts and furniture. The Amish stick to what they know and do it as well as anyone. CNN reviewed the business practices of the Amish as set forth in an upcoming book by Eric Wesner and discovered a few things that can help every business and marketer in the market today. A few simple but vital important principles came out of the article for me.  They were:

Culture

Cooperation

Traditional Values

Stick to what you know

The most amazing information in the article was the 95% success rate of the Amish business community. A number almost unheard of in today’s competitive  business environment.

There are all sorts of metrics, measures and reports available to see how your business is doing. Maybe keeping it simple, using your skills, and producing a quality experience that spreads the confetti of your marketing is the real answer. People, not pages.