Humbled by an employee discussion in our Atlanta office, I was pleasantly surprised that given the hypothetical situation of winning the lotto, all employees said that after a brief holiday, they would want to come back to work at Marketing Eye.

The engagement level on a day-to-day basis in our Atlanta office is very high – not to say, other offices are not the same. Company culture is everything and there are many reasons why it has a direct impact on bottom line.

There are a number of lessons learned from having a start-up in Atlanta that is inherently different from other offices we have. 

The first being that all employees have chosen each other

Usually, a senior manager or myself makes the ultimate choice on who is going to join the team and in what capacity. Instead, in Atlanta, I have been over-ruled twice, and both times, I had to put my hand up and say that my choice would have been wrong for the team.


They are happy to have a job that offers career advancement

With high unemployment and the fact that every person in our office actually knows someone who has been laid off in the past few months, each employee is happy to have a job and is willing to put in the extra effort to drive the performance of the team. They also understand that the success of the team can help advance their careers and enrich their future.

There is a sense of ownership

I am not sure whether this is something that specifically relates to a “start-up” mentality, but each employee is like a “mini-owner” of the business. They all contribute to any decision being made whether it is where the office is located, whom they work with, what clients we take on or what is for lunch and who is going to pay for it. Every business decision is theirs as much as it is mine.

Know each employees personal goals 

We have discussions every other day about what our personal goals are, from what car we want to drive, to how much money we want to make or what is our dream holiday. We share this as a TEAM not one-on-one. Not just with our partners, but as an entire team, so that we can work as a team in helping each of us deliver upon our life goals.

Mix it up a little

A good friend of mine has a high-end investment company and he recently changed the seating plan of the entire office. The employees hated it. They didn’t like change but I pose the question, as he did, ‘is not changing it up a greater risk with employees becoming bored and stale, at a risk of getting burnt out?’ We change where we sit regularly, play dress-up often and in general, are not afraid to embrace change as a positive and adventurous way to live life at work.

Say what you want, when you want

Giving people freedom to say what they think at any given time without repercussion is paramount to ensuring that every person feels like they are being listened to and can express themselves in their own individual way. Some people may say things they don’t mean, caught up in a moment in time, while others want to voice their opinion. We listen and never judge.

Treat your employees how you would like to be treated

When I worked for other companies, I was lucky. Each boss let me do my own thing and work to my strengths, showcasing my ability to be innovative, think outside the box and deliver high quality work that pushed the envelope. I was able to do this because they believed in me, and my capabilities – with no deference to age, experience or stereotypes. Our team in Atlanta is treated like they are part of a family and what they say counts.

Set clear goals and share them

Marketing Eye only expanded to the US in 2013 and with this expansion we have a clear set of goals – and every single employee knows them. It’s simple - we need to get 1000 clients in 5 years, that are engaged, and doing business not only with us, but with each other.  Our goal is to deliver smarter, faster and more effective marketing services to each of our clients in a way that they have never seen before.  

There are more things that every employer can do to spearhead profits in a business through human capital – and all of them are good, if you can engage the employees you have and continue to drive business goals through new and old recruits.

There are proven links between productivity, customer engagement, quality, retention, safety and profit. By blending strategy with practical steps in which to engage employees at a level that they resonate with will ensure that your business outperforms expectations.

According to a Forbes article, unhappy employees outnumber happy ones by two to one worldwide. The question is how can you as a SMB change this statistic in your business? What can you do better and how will that impact your bottom line?

What Marketing Eye can do to help you:

• Develop an internal marketing and communications strategy aligned to your overall business goals. Utilizing our 10 point plan, we capitalize on your strengths as a business and re-define through employee consultation, how to improve your business performance and outcomes. Investment: $2,000*
• Have an employee culture handbook that clearly describes your culture to every current and prospective employee. This 15-page book clearly documents what your business culture looks like and how employees can get the most out of working for your brand. Investment: $1,500
• Independent internal survey of employees covering what they think of the company brand, through to how they would like to be engaged with and what they want from leadership. Investment: $700*
• Complete company marketing strategy covering external and internal marketing objectives, tactics and deliverables. Investment: Starting from $2,000.
• Monthly internal newsletters including copywriting of a 2-page newsletter, design and distribution. Investment: $500 per newsletter.

Marketing Eye uses marketing and communications best practices powered by technology, systems and processes. Our strategic approach is only matched by our creativity and knowledge of specific industry sectors.