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Julie Price

Jan 09
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PodATL Visits The Park Part 1

By Events, Latest News

In today’s marketplace, podcasting is one of the most effective ways to build and maintain brand loyalty. As a matter of fact, podcasting has gotten so popular that as of 2018, Apple had more than 500,000 active podcasts in its library. However, with so many podcasts available to consumers for free, how your show differentiates itself from the others can be the difference between podcasting for a living and podcasting for an audience of one.

With that in mind, we joined forces with Mark Deal and PodATL to host a Comedy in Podcasting meetup featuring a keynote from Atlanta comedian Joel Byars at The Park. Don’t worry if you missed it, this recap will fill you in on what was said, but that’s not all! Mark Deal and PodATL will be back at The Park for a lunch and learn on January 16 for another session. Click here for details!

During his keynote presentation at The Park, Joel spoke about lessons he’s learned and applied to earn his show, Hot Breath! Podcast: Your Weekly Guide to Comedy Mastery, a 5-star rating from 165 people—and that’s just on Apple. His show is on Spotify and anywhere else you listen to your podcasts.

So, what’s the secret?

Well, comedy is the ultimate way to connect with your audience and create trust with them, Joel said.

“If they’re laughing, they’re listening,” he told the PodATL meetup group at The Park.

Even if you’re not intentionally funny, you can still find humorous ways to get the audience to engage with your content.

  • For example, you can pair your ad-reads with a real-life story or record them in a different voice.
  • A catchy intro, show name, or tagline are also easy, calculated ways to pique a listener’s interest.
  • Simply smiling while speaking into the microphone will make your voice sound more welcoming and subconsciously encourage your listener to do the same.
  • Standing while you speak into the microphone is another great way to inject energy into your voice as well.
  • Hard consonants go over with audience wells. Those are words or letters that pronounced differently due to variations in the breath behind a sound. For example, a punchline will be funnier if the emphasis is on the word bucks instead of dollars.
  • Identifying characteristics or behaviors from other things or people you find funny and imitating them (without stealing their material obviously) will surely work for your podcast.

Keep in mind that humor is innate within all of us. Being a comedian means being intentionally funny and viewing the world in a different way, but being organically funny isn’t something to stress over as it can and will happen naturally as long as you are confident, vulnerable, and open to what’s happening (contextually) and what’s being said by your guests and fans.

Aside from being funny, there are other principles to adhere to in order to create a successful podcast.

  • You want your delivery, sound quality, audio, and content to be buttoned up because podcasting is a very intimate platform. You are speaking directly to (or interviewing) someone. It can be an hour longer or more, go very in depth, take place on a tour bus, at someone’s home, etc. Unlike TV, which is made to look glamorous, or radio, which is heavily regulated, podcasting is driven primarily by the audience and host.
  • Always seek feedback from your listeners. If they have given you their time to listen to you, then you should return the favor and listen to them. Incorporating listener feedback into your podcast is a great way to get them to engage with you more.
  • Perhaps the most important thing to know about having or starting a podcast is that it needs to be treated like a job. “I’ve calculated the workflow to be 15 hours an episode,” Joel said. That includes “finding the guest, researching the guest, traveling to the guest, doing the interview, and all of the post-production.”
  • A good way to look at it is, a 30-minute episode can require up to an hour and a half of prep time, an hour-long episode requires that much or more, and so on. In other words, it takes time, effort, research, passion, and patience to make a podcast episode worthwhile for a listener—and that’s before you start recording a single thing.

The next layer of podcasting is having a unique perspective that only you can provide. People don’t want to just hear a regurgitation of information they can find elsewhere, so make sure you have a premise, idea, perspective, or content they won’t get anywhere else. Clearly stating your premise, a one-line summary of your show’s content, is an effective way to establish your perspective.

Now that you have received expert advice from Joel, you can apply the knowledge to your podcast whether it has been created or is still in the work. To achieve success with it, be consistent, be unique, and have fun! If you do take this approach and apply the tips Joel shared, your podcast is sure to be a success!

To learn more about podcasting, join us for a lunch and learn with Mark Deal at The Park on Wed., Jan. 16, 2019. Mark will discuss how to find podcasts that already serve your target audience and how to secure an appearance on those shows to ensure good exposure for your brand, service, or product. RSVP here now!

 

Jan 03
Love0
Georgia Swarm hosts Entrepreneurs Night

The Park to Host STEM Expo at Georgia Swarm Game

By Latest News, The Park

January 1, 2019, Peachtree Corners, GA: Atlanta Tech Park is partnering with the world champion Georgia Swarm lacrosse team to host a Tech Community Expo and VIP reception prior to their game at Infinite Energy Arena on Friday, Feb. 1, 2019.

Held in conjunction with a STEM spirit night, the Tech Community Expo allows local tech companies to showcase their products and services to tech professionals, aspiring tech talent, and thousands of Georgia Swarm fans from across the region.

The event also features a VIP reception where tech companies and representatives will be able to network with fellow industry professionals and leaders while hearing a special keynote presentation from a featured sponsor.

Participation in the Tech Community Expo includes a vendor table, tickets to the VIP reception, and tickets to the Georgia Swarm game against the New England Black Wolves that evening.

Why participate in this event?

The Georgia Swarm organization has achieved great success in bringing a new product to the market, similar to how the companies and entrepreneurs at this event are bringing an innovative spirit to the marketplace where they anticipate great success will also follow.

Access to the event and game start at $28. 

Vendor tables cost $150 for a showcase opportunity at the arena from 3:00-5:00 p.m. VIP reception and game tickets are also included.

For $250, vendors can showcase their technology from 3:00 p.m. until the end of the game in addition to getting VIP reception access and game tickets.

Limited sponsorship packages ranging from $2,000 to $10,000 are also available. Sponsors can issue a tech challenge to prospective developers, designers, and STEM students. Challenge requests can be sent to Brock Kolls at brock@techconnecthub.com.  

 

All tickets and details can be found at bit.ly/swarmthepark.  

 

ABOUT US: Atlanta Tech Park is a technology accelerator in Peachtree Corners, GA. The facility features boardrooms, conference rooms, a video podcasting studio, hot desks, private offices, 600+ person events space, and 100+ person auditorium. Membership and insider information can be found on www.atlantatechpark.com. Please follow us on Twitter at @107ATP and on Instagram at @atlantatechpark for the latest news and updates.  

 

Media contact: Asif Lakhani | 404-428-9418 | asif@emnovate.com

Nov 30
Love1

Thank you, Netflix

By Latest News, The Park

We’ve had a great year of firsts here at Atlanta Tech Park in 2018.

Whether it was hosting our first-ever hackathon, the inaugural North Atlanta Tech Showcase, or multiple comedy shows, there have been some truly memorable moments at The Park in our first year.

One of the most unique and exciting moments for us, however, was when Netflix stopped by to shoot the movie Sextuplets starring Marlon Wayans and Molly Shannon.

We’ve been sworn to secrecy to keep details of the plot under wraps, so all we can say is that the movie is due out (pun intended) sometime in 2019. While we can’t share much about the movie itself, we are excited to show everyone the design changes that Netflix made during their week-long stay at The Park.

The most notable change that the crew­, which was all full of wonderful people, made was adding a literal splash of color to our wall in the event space. Whereas we had a blank white wall before, we now have an orange wave running from end to end. On the left side of the screen, the lines are neat and orderly, but on the right side, they become more fluid, pronounced, and bold.

Of course, you’ll also notice our logo prominently displayed near the entrance to the auditorium now as well! Netflix actually added our logo to two other walls in the facility.  One of them is in the Create Conference Room. After seeing how much the logo brightened up Create, we opted to replace the original whiteboard on the wall with a transparent dry-erase board so that the logo could still be seen. We think it’s a hit! The third logo is on the wall outside of the Oasis Conference and Board Room, which was used for a small but important scene.

Another major addition—and arguably the most exciting—Netflix made to Atlanta Tech Park came in the form of an authentic, orange ping pong table. Extras only used the prop during a scene, but our members and guests have made great use of it.  As a matter of fact, the ping pong table has become so popular that we’re actually having a ping-pong tournament at our members-only holiday luncheon on Wednesday, December 19th.

Lastly, Netflix added one last strip of vinyl paint to the wall above the interior offices in the front right of the building. The color serves as a reminder of the great week we shared with Netflix and of the energy that pulses through Atlanta Tech Park every single day.

So, while you’re waiting for the movie to be released on Netflix, come on down to Atlanta Tech Park and check out the new additions to our facility yourself! We guarantee you will leave feeling productive, inspired, productive, and literally like you just stepped out of a movie set because you will have!

Nov 07
Love1

Inaugural NATS event a huge success

By Latest News, The Park

Atlanta Tech Park was proud to host the inaugural North Atlanta Tech Showcase last week on November 1st, 2018.

The event featured 20+ exhibitors showcasing their technologies to investors, influencers, and tech talent. In addition to the showcase, we had a thrilling panel discussion on the future of North Atlanta’s tech ecosystem, a keynote address, and a startup pitch competition with a prize for the first and second place.

Richard Cope, the CEO of Peachtree Corners-based NanoLumens, delivered a hugely insightful keynote address.

In it, he shared two books everyone should read to learn more about entrepreneurship and five keys to success.

His five keys to success are as follows:

  • Have a service or product that somebody else is willing to pay for.
    1. Entrepreneurs find the void and create the demand.
  • Pivot
    1. Simple changes can yield profound results.
  • Fog of war
    1. Uncertainties along the way are part of the battle.
  • Failure
    1. It happens whether you want it to or not. Then what?
  • A purpose larger than yourself
    1. What good is a product, service, or feeling if you don’t have anyone to share it with?

https://twitter.com/PartnershipGw/status/1058086984252616704

The three books Mr. Cope recommended to everyone were:

  • The Wealth of Nations
  • Victory of Reason

Prior to keynote was a stellar panel discussion on the Trends, Opportunities, and Challenges of Tech Innovations in North Atlanta.

The four panelists were founders of four tech accelerators in Fulton and Gwinnett counties, including our Founder herself, Robin Bienfait.

https://twitter.com/MyASBN/status/1058074489362231296

https://twitter.com/MyASBN/status/1058072845295779843

 

Of course, we couldn’t send people home from the first-ever North Atlanta Tech Show without a pitch competition! There were eight presentations up to three minutes each.

In the end, however, only two companies would win the prizes—each package including a small residency at The Park.

Many congratulations to the 1st place winners Aaron Gobin and Bruce Rasa from AgVoice and the 2nd place winner Molly Proffitt from Ker-Chunk Games.

Lastly, on Monday, Atlanta Tech Park hand-selected a handful of winners from our free membership giveaway! These lucky folks put their business cards in our fishbowl for a chance to win a free membership and didn’t need to spend any money on a Powerball ticket in order to do so.

Interested in becoming a member but didn’t win a membership or have a startup to pitch?

You can still sign up using our holiday special, which nets you three months of membership for half off! Learn more here at holiday.107atp.com now.

 

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Atlanta Tech Park thanks the Atlanta Small Business networking for being at NATS and covering all aspects of the event.

Sep 10
Love0
Robin Bienfait

Robin Bienfait – the Woman Behind it All

By Latest News, The Team

“Growing up in an environment that encourages making more of yourself and supporting others in their development has opened opportunities for me.”

After establishing the services organization for BlackBerry and starting from scratch an enterprise services business for Samsung, Robin Bienfait decided it was time to break out on her own and help businesses and entrepreneurs bring their dreams into reality at Atlanta Tech Park and through her advisory service company Emnovate. An accomplished engineer, technologist, business strategist and leader, Robin remains at the forefront of innovation. She is excited to bring that innovation to Atlanta Tech Park, known as The Park where her philosophy of a local footprint with global intent is flourishing.

As a child, Robin was drawn to engineering and technology and her supportive family of seven siblings and educator parents empowered her to follow her dream of becoming an engineer. Her enjoyment of the fast pace of learning in technology helped her find opportunities where she least expected by being open to mentors she met along the way. “It’s important to enjoy what you do as well as the people you work with. And recognizing that there are many ways to contribute has kept me alert to opportunities that presented themselves,” she says.  It is this experience that she is most excited about bringing to the members of The Park.  Always wanting to give back and help others, Robin enjoys the opportunity to be the mentor to others that are in an acceleration phase in their business.

Always thinking like an entrepreneur, Robin has used her experiences to help the companies she has worked with (AT&T, Blackberry, Samsung) break ground in the latest technologies and establish themselves as industry leaders.  The ability to continue to help industry disruptors is what has her most excited about where she is today at The Park.  With so many examples of how technology can revolutionize business communications, improve supply chain efficiencies and create signification competitive advantages, it was important to her that The Park be state of the art in the technology used to create a global acceleration environment. Transforming business processes along with enhancing and customizing the way people interact is the kind of substantive opportunity created at The Park through Robin and leveraging her corporate connections.

Named one of the 18 Inspiring Women to Watch in 2018 by Inc. Magazine, Robin is a people person and you will always find her out and about at The Park.  She may be chatting with members, getting to know them and their business.  The success stories she is becoming a part of is what excites her about the future. “Over the years, I’ve learned from the most interesting people and sometimes where you’d least expect,” she explains.

 

Sep 05
Love0

Lunch and Learn at ATP – Do You Speak Prospect?

By Latest News, Member Spotlight

What was the last great ad you saw or heard? Do you remember what made it special or unique?

At our July 24 Lunch and Learn, ATP member and Cornerstone Media Group Founder and CEO Mark Treager taught a room full of two dozen attendees how to answer the question “Do you speak prospect?”

Speaking prospect means speaking the language of your prospective buyers and consumers. These days we are in an “attention economy,” which means companies are after your attention just as much as they are after your money.

The first step to succeeding in the “attention economy” is understanding the reach that marketers have today. Prior to the digital age, advertisements could only go as far print or broadcast mediums would let them. These days, however, most marketers are within arm’s reach from prospective buyers as a result of mobile devices.

Another fundamental principle of marketing is understanding the value of “brand,” which is the experience a customer has with you and your product. A simple test to measure your brand’s effectiveness is trying to summarize its mission in 12 words or less. Furthermore, your company’s slogan should be universal amongst all employees.

There’s more to brand than having a catchy or memorable one-liner however. Your brand should tell a story and be intentional about delivering results. It should spark curiosity and the images associated with it should portray results.

Good branding makes you unique and instills confidence in a prospect (“how did they know I need this?!”). Lastly, successful companies with good branding change the way people do things while making the product easily adoptable.

Take Facebook, for example. It’s a relatively simple premise that has changed the entire world at no cost to the user.

Now that you understand two key components to marketing—attention reach and branding—let’s focus on the opposite end of the spectrum, which is what consumers are looking for.

Consumers will withhold information from you, seek similar alternatives (to your product or service), solicit feedback from other consumers, and ultimately buy what they understand the fastest.

The “caveman test” is a good way to gauge whether or not your product or marketing is effective. Essentially, once you pitch your product, the prospect should be able to regurgitate an accurate summary of what you said in less than five seconds. (Alternatively, if they respond with either how your product will make their life better or why they should buy your product, then you have succeeded as well.)

Now comes the execution part of marketing: what methods are most effective?

Right now the answer is actually pretty simple: product video is the most effective marketing tool.

These advertisements work because they eliminate the technical jargon associated with product development. They are also bold. It’s important to note, too, that emails with links to videos have a significantly higher success rate than emails without them.

Another effective marketing tactic is lead-generation or exchanging a resource (such as a pdf, free e-book, etc.) in exchange for a prospect’s personal info. The most effective way to do this is by sharing your resource with someone in exchange for his or her verified e-mail address. Otherwise, you will give up valuable information for no real leads.

Customer testimonials are effective, but anything more than five is overselling.

Social media is the most universal of all marketing tools, but marketers should identify their audience’s top platform and master that medium first before repurposing that content for other ones.

For those in an operations field, talking triggers are enormously valuable. Essentially that means identifying the first thing people talk about when your company is mentioned. In the case of Doubletree Hotels, for example, their chocolate-chip cookies are a common talking point among vacationers. It doesn’t matter what Doubletree you’ve been to because you have had the cookie that is universal among the company’s entire chain of hotels.

Lastly, measure the success of your campaign with data.

Google Analytics is a free tool that will more tell you more about how your marketing is performing than customers likely ever will. That doesn’t mean customer satisfaction isn’t important, however. Conducting surveys among users of your product is essential, but it’s important to gather information from them that data won’t be able to and vice-versa. So instead of asking “did you watch the video?” in a customer satisfaction survey, you can ask “what did you like the most about the video?” (The data will tell you whether or not they actually watched.)

Have marketing goals in mind before you start any campaign (always run campaigns instead of individual ads, Treager says.) then have monthly reporting and quarterly reviews to make sure you are staying on target.

In summary, your messaging is extremely key to everything you do as a company or brand. The most effective messages are also the easiest to understand. Be prepared to answer the question about what resources you have to ensure your customers’ success, and make sure your website is always updated. It is a 24/7 salesman on your behalf.

 

 

 

Aug 08
Love0
ETHATL Hackathon

ATP to host blockchain hackathon in September

By Events, Latest News

Monday, July 16, 2018, Peachtree Corners, GA: Atlanta Tech Park will proudly host EthAtlanta for its hackathon on Friday September 21, to Sunday, September 23, 2018.

ETHATL HackathonThe hackathon is open to all blockchain enthusiasts and web developers.

Participants will work in teams over a 36-hour period to create a blockchain enterprise idea from scratch then present their final product(s) to a panel of expert judges on Sunday, September 23. Prizes will be awarded to the winners of the competition.

Blockchain beginners and experts, technology experts, designers, and more are all invited to attend and participate in this special event to learn new and valuable insights about blockchain technology and make meaningful industry connections.

Visit www.ethatl.com now to participate in the hackathon or register to attend.

ABOUT US: Atlanta Tech Park is a technology incubator in Peachtree Corners, GA. The facility features a video podcasting studio, hot desks, private offices, an events space, and a 100-person auditorium. Membership and insider info can be found on www.atlantatechpark.com. Follow us on Twitter at @107ATP and on Instagram at @atlantatechpark for the latest news and updates about what’s happening at ATP.

ABOUT EthAtlanta: EthAtlanta’s mission is to unite business leaders with senior hack teams to explore use-cases, network, and create working software for the media and entertainment, supply chain and logistics, healthcare, payroll, and automotive industries. Learn more at www.ethatl.com.

Aug 08
Love0
Conference Rooms, Meeting Space, Community Events

Premier Events are Found at The Park

By Latest News, The Park
Atlanta Tech Park - Oasis Board Room
Tech Accelerator, Conference Rooms
Cafe

Conference Rooms to Community Events

It’s All Available at The Park

The Park is quickly becoming known for its events and meeting space.  Whether it’s conference rooms, meeting space, community events or networking – we have it all at The Park.

The Park is now the home of Women in Wireless, Jr. Dev Meet Up, G.A.I.T. and SWGCC just to name a few.  Each hosts their monthly community events at The Park, taking advantage of the state-of-the-art technology available to them.

With such a vast selection of meeting rooms, larger organizations such as innov8rs and InnoSTARS have hosted conferences at the facility and have been amazed at all The Park has to offer. IOT Summits are hosted monthly here as well.  Digital displays, wireless tech, audio and video support are all available and enhance all of our conference rooms, boardrooms, and meeting space.  We will also be hosting the HeHe Expo and as a Block Chain Hackathon in September.  Partnership Gwinnett will be hosting the North Georgia Tech Showase in November as well. Click here for our event calendar.

Conference rooms and boardrooms are also available to both members and non-members for monthly meetings, executive dinners and more.  The Park has a list of preferred vendors to make planning your event a breeze.

Check out all the events hosted at The Park.  If you have not visited us, why not schedule a tour today.  Ready to plan your event, click here to request a quote.

Jul 25
Love1

It’s All About the Members

By Latest News, Member Spotlight

Seriously! What does make us different?

When talking with members of The Park, one thing is repeated over and over again - "There is no other place like this anywhere!"

Maybe it’s the state of the art facility.  Members have access to conference rooms equipped the latest in technology. From wireless screen connections to digital displays and everything in between, if you need it we have it.

Our online scheduling capabilities enable you to book the room you want when you want. Never worry about double bookings.

Perhaps it is our community events.  From monthly lunch and learns to our wildly popular Wine Wednesdays, we have something going on for our members.  We work to give them the knowledge they need to accelerate their businesses, grow their networks and improve visibility in the community at large.

Some say the perks are where it’s at.  How about free snacks, coffee, and fountain drinks in a cafe with cable TV.  On-site services from dry cleaning pick up/drop off and secured document shredding to color printing and mail service, we have thought of every detail to make life easier and more enjoyable at The Park.

Without a doubt though, it is the people.  The staff at The Park is second to none always there to help.  It makes our members feel like they have a huge team and are ready to take on the world!  We take pride in curating a special environment.

If you haven’t come by to see for yourself what makes us different, why not schedule a tour today.

Schedule a Tour
Jul 16
Love0

Tech Accelerator – Why it’s Different at The Park

By Latest News
Tech Accelerator, Conference Rooms

Tech Accelerator – it feels like the latest buzzword.

It sounds really cool. Yet, what does it mean?  According to RocketSpace, “Accelerator programs are a tool for rapid-growth companies.”

Inc.com’s Fernando Sepulveda also defines the accelerator model as “a holistic business advisory service.”

A primary function of accelerators is connecting startups with mentors, guidance, resources, and funding. Since accelerators’ members already have a minimum viable product (MVP) their resources are often focused on:

  • operations and strategy
  • management coaching
  • branding.

And this is where The Park is different.

Tech accelerator programs out there are a short-term program that last from 3 to 6 months.  They are a set format that companies enter into.  As a result, they may require an equity stake in the companies that participate in their tech accelerator program.

The vision of Atlanta Tech Park is to focus on that business advisory service, providing the much need connections, resources, and guidance without asking for equity in return. Additionally, The Park can connect you with VC funding, but we are also big on bootstrapping. We understand that your business may not fit into a typical tech accelerator program.   As a result, we develop a customized acceleration plan based on your needs.  Take part in training sessions with our partners, such as Nine Labs.  Perhaps you would like to schedule one on one time with Robin Bienfait or one of her team from Emnovate.  Maybe you want to review your pitch.  Here at The Park, you can set the pace and prioritize based on your needs.

You don’t fit the mold and we don’t make you.  Timing is everything and you need to accelerate on your timeline, not ours.  Robin has put together a team to help you where you are at now.  She understands the importance of holding on to equity and how important timing can be in any situation. Networking, sales growth, financial plans, marketing – we are here to help.

Hence, when you are doing your research, remember that not all accelerators are created equal.  At Atlanta Tech Park, we are more than your facility, we are your community.