Today we’d like to introduce you to Sherry Heyl.
Sherry, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
In 2005, I began reading several articles about blogs and what was being termed web 2.0. This new trend aligned with all of my interests. I have 2 degrees, one in Marketing and one in Creative writing and had been working in technology sales for a number of years. I recognized that few people in the ATL area were talking about the trend and that there might be an opportunity for me to create my own path. I left a good paying job and began pitching my consulting services to help companies integrate the emerging new social technologies into their business.
I worked as an independent consultant for several years and then in 2013, I had the opportunity to join and then take over a small digital marketing agency. That role afforded me the opportunity to work on larger, award-winning projects as well as become more versed in the operations side of running an agency.
However, I missed the flexibility that freelancing offered, both in time management as well as in the ability to work on smaller projects. From my previous experiences, I worked out a business model that provided freelancers the best of both worlds, the agency world and freelancing.
Amplified Concepts is a Freelancers Collaborative bringing together talent and resources to meet a client’s needs no matter the size of the project.
Has it been a smooth road?
It has been 13 years since I left a steady corporate job and the journey is still an emotional roller coaster ride. However, I have learned to recognize the patterns and have learned to coach myself through the downturns. My biggest mistake that I am still recovering from is not building out a strong accounting process from the start. Cash flow is the lifeblood of your business. You have to know how to budget, how much you are making or losing from a deal, plan for taxes and set goals for growth.
I never wanted to be an accountant, so I focused on all the parts of the business that I am good at and enjoy such as sales, marketing, project management, campaign strategies. Now, I spend more time than I would like putting accounting processes together as well as learning and cleaning up past mistakes.
We’d love to hear more about Amplified Concepts.
My expertise is in developing a marketing strategy that aligns with business goals. I come from a sales background, so I am always looking at the marketing funnel as a way to push the objectives to the end goal of growing sales. Because I am also entrepreneurial I instinctively help my clients think through new ways to grow or enhance the business. My management experience enables me to manage large and diverse teams to implement our strategies.
Some of the projects that have been recognized include:
Social Influencers Travel Summit was developed in partnership with the Atlanta Convention Visitors Bureau to bring together 50+ Influencers from around the world for workshops delivered by their peers combined with a press tour of the city. This event yielded over 93 million impressions and was recognized by AiMA best of Atlanta, PR Daily’s Digital PR & Social Media Awards in the category of Digital and Social Media for Brand Awareness and received the Award of Excellence by PRSA Phoenix Awards.
Accor Hotels community engagement strategies included weekly Twitter contests with token give-aways, proactive sales outreach to travelers, and responsive customer service. The team received recognition by PR Daily’s Social Media Awards in the category of Best Community Engagement.
Pullman Paris Press Tour focused on telling to story of the renovations of the Pullman hotels to the North American Market. We select 7 influencers whose focus was on Travel, Design, and Architecture and worked with our client to develop an experience that would shape compelling stories by our influencers. We also actively engaged with the influencer on through our client’s social media account provide insider information as well as amplify their stories. The result was an overall online media reach of 57.8 million. The team received recognition by PR Daily’s Media Relations Awards in the category of Influencer Campaign.
Do you recommend any apps, books or podcasts that have been helpful to you?
I am an avid reader of books. I used to devour business books but after awhile they all start giving the same advice. Now the books that I get the most out of are biographies and memoirs. The one that affected the way I look at the world the most is Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. As a teenager, I read Living, Loving, Learning by Leo Buscaglia which I credit for setting the direction my life would take.
My favorite podcast is Hardcore History by Dan Carlin. I think history is an incredibly important subject for anyone who wants to know why humans are the way they are. Dan talks about some of the darkest and disturbing times of humanity and he focuses on how humans dealt with those times. As a marketer, I need to study human behavior and I find this podcast really conditions me to think through why we are the way we are.
I have no long-term commitments to any app other than Candy Crush. I am constantly trying new productivity apps because that is the nature of my job. I need to know a little about a lot of apps so that I can adjust to the app that my clients like the most.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.amplifiedconcepts.com
- Phone: 404-386-9801
- Email: sherry@amplifiedconcepts.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amplifiedconcepts/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmplifiedConcepts/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/ampconcepts
- Other: www.sherryheyl.com
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
