Atlanta's Marketing Center

Atlanta Marketing Agency

There are a number of marketing consultants in the Atlanta area.  A typical Atlanta marketing agency or Atlanta marketing consultant typically covers a particular area of expertise so the term "marketing agency" and "marketing consultant" are generally vague terms that one must look into further.  Most of the marketing  consultants are related to internet marketing (website specialists, search engine, pay-per-click, etc.).  And then there are number of others that might specialize in direct mailers or public relations.

Very few marketing consultants handle all areas of importance to a typical business-- marketing planning along with the various tactics of print advertising, direct mail, website strategies, referral marketing and public relations.

There is one who does serve all these areas...and does them well.  Impact Marketing, Inc., out of Alpharetta, GA guides businesses using the nationally-recognized (Duct Tape Marketing), proven Ultimate Marketing System , from wherever they are now into a business-building operation.  The company is owned by Scott Campbell, a Georgia State University MBA and Certified Internet Webmaster. 

They do an excellent job of looking at a particular business along with the industry they operate in, offer a strong, cohesive plan of growth, then adjust an organization's operations in accordance with the plan.  They are an excellent marketing agency.

Have you found any others?

1st Class Mailing

Direct mail has one of the highest returns of investment of any marketing method.  I need to give a plug to a direct mail vendor in town who I think is excellent.  1st Class Mailing, out of Kennesaw, does an excellent job in the area of direct mail.  They've got all the big machines, the resources (folks), and most importantly, the knowledge on how to use mail most effectively in marketing your business.

The owner, Brandt Kessler (along with the Mail Dog, Lucy), know direct mail.  They're not a printer, they focus on the mail, stuffing, collating, and delivery to the post office.  Their rates are very reasonable and after a couple of mailers with them, you'll be hooked for life.

Their website is www.1stclassmailing.com and their phone number is 770-792-MAIL (6245). Give them a call.

First Research

Most business owners have a general idea of the industry in which they operate, but I often get the feeling that they operate somewhat blindly.

There's a service called First Research that connects the dots for business owners in that they provide comprehensive industry information.  Armed with useful information, business owners get a better idea of averages, trends, and insight that they wouldn't otherwise have.

I'm impressed with the level of detail that owners can get.  For any industry, sections include an overview, competitive landscape, industry employment growth, trends, developments, a financial benchmark against an average size company, trade associations, links, etc. 

The service is really geared for small businesses who need the information but simply don't have the time to invest in researching the information.  The truth is that the information is so good I don't know if someone could even find the information that's this organized in a reasonable time frame.  Each industry profile is $129...in my opinion a good investment.

Do you currently use the service?  What has been your experience?

Atlanta Business Wise

One of the best sources of information on Atlanta companies is a service called Business Wise.  It's consists of a web-based system that has detailed information on over 115k firms in the metro Atlanta area. 

I've never been able to find a directory system that's more accurate than Business Wise.  They keep comprehensive and updated information on each firm.  This includes a thorough list of officers, titles and even email addresses.

Business Wise is not a mailing house.  Rather, it's a subsciption-based database that you can access to build your own mailing list, contact list, calling list, etc.  You can shape the data the way that you one using all types of criteria.

The downside of the service is the cost.  For full access, the pricing is around $14k/year with a low end at around $7k...depending upon the kind of information you're looking for.  The pricing makes the service geared for companies a little bigger in size.  You do have an option, which a number of sales reps take advantage of- Business Wise has an agreement with the library system to provide the service for free online at most Atlanta area libraries.  The free service has a lot of limitations, but I still find it to be valuable at times.

Have you used Business Wise?  What is your opinion?

Training

John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing is offering some highly valuable and timely training via teleseminars on internet marketing in a couple of weeks.  He has broken the training into one hour intervals on three separate Wednesday from 1-2pm.

John passes on all the fluff and drama that a lot of highly-recognized marketing figures use.  His training is very straightforward, informal and practical...much like the Duct Tape name.  The techniques and tips he shares is geared toward long-term growth for your business...in this case it will be in the context of the internet.  The title of the telesummit is called "How to Harness the Internet to Market Your Small Business More Effectively". 

The three live sessions will be on Feb 21st and 28th, then March 7th.  Each participant will receive a workbook, complete with lessons, forms and examples along with an audio recording of each live session.  The cost of the telesummit is just $149.  I highly suggest you enroll in this opportunity.  My guess is that after you apply what John suggests, traffic to your website will increase substantially in about 3 months.  Only folks who are interested in growing need apply...apply here.

North Fulton Business Expo

I don't know what you're doing on March 9th, but if it's just hangin' around the office looking for something to do, I highly recommend you attend the 1st annual North Fulton Business Expo.  It will be an all-day event at the Atlanta Marriott on Windward Parkway in Alpharetta.

There are a number of speakers that will cover topics like 'Growing your business using other people's money', 'Legal issues and staying out of trouble, 'Is your service business charging enough', along with others.

There'll also be about 80 exhibitors covering all aspects of businesses.  I strongly encourage you to go and check it out.  I'm sure you'll pick up a number of good contacts as well as a lot of good, practical information.  The best part about it is that it's completely FREE to guests.  There are still some opportunities to advertise for it.

Here is the website for the event--
http://www.gnfcc.com/business_expo_2007.html

Quite a Track Record

You just can't beat the results from the help given to Georgia small businesses by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC).  The SBDC is a network of offices and consultants that assist small businesses.  They do this through counseling in the areas of planning, strategy, finance, operations along with others.

According to a recent study, SBDC existing business clients increased their sales by an average of 29.66 percent compared to the average Georgia business that experienced a 4.76 percent growth. 

I don't know about you...but just based upon that information alone, if I were a small business owner, I would be knocking down the door to look at some of the things the SBDC has to offer.  Their Georgia website is here--http://www.sbdc.uga.edu.  If you have a hard time identifying someone to help, let me know and I might be able to assist.