This was my second year at Atomicon. I’m so glad I’ve been twice while it’s on my doorstep because now the new venue is Manchester Central and I have a bit of an idea of what to expect it wasn’t hard to make the leap to saying yes to buying a ticket to travel further away. I’m looking forward to the adventure already!
If you’ve been to Manchester I’d love some recommendations of places to stay and places to eat please.
Atomicon is “Europe’s epic-est sales and marketing conference for Founders & Entrepreneurs”. Epic covers it. It’s multi-track so you can choose who to listen to and find something relevant to your goals. You get the replays for every single talk too – and can watch them all virtually if you can’t make the day in person.
There’s pink everywhere. Giant bubbles, clouds, astronauts. People turn up in their brightest clothes. There are stands with great offers, freebies, things to do. Tea, coffee, snacks and lunch are all included. It’s bright and vibrant and busy and entertaining and all kinds of bonkers whilst also being full of people who are ready to make their businesses better, learn, connect, chat about the stuff they want to improve and the plans they have, feel inspired and be kind to each other.
I spoke to a lot more new people than I did last year (which was my goal! Hurrah!) – helped by going to the Fringe event run by Erin Wong the day before. I definitely recommend popping along to one of these if not more. I didn’t last year and wasn’t really planning on it if I’m honest until my friend Kath asked if Haley and I wanted to go. So worth it. It was great preparation for the next day and everyone I met was brilliant.
We talked about what we were going to do to honour our capacity afterwards and I said I wasn’t going to look at my notes or make a list until a week later. I haven’t gone into detail, that’s why there’s not a lot of information on this post about each talk. Atomicon is a LOT and followed by several super busy days I am not quite ready to dive into my notes and see what changes I’m going to make going forward. Definitely think about what you’re going to do to honour your capacity before you come. You might need time out afterwards.
There’s also tons of extra bits, an app, a Facebook group, monthly online sessions, a whole year to watch everything back, the Big Networking week online, table discussions and fringe events in the run-up to Atomicon.
Top tips: Wear trainers for comfort. Bring water. Bring a big bag because you will have things to put in it. You don’t really need snacks, they’re provided – but if you’re a hungry person think about it. Bring a pen or two. Bring a notebook. Bring business cards or whatever you want to hand out (I left mine in my smaller bag. Don’t do that!) Get your friend to wear a bright colour so you can spot them easily. Plan what you’re going to do first. Join in with some pre-conference day activities. Download the app in advance.
I’m sharing a quote (slightly paraphrased) from each of the speakers I saw (there’s many more videos to watch for the talks I couldn’t do!) – maybe these will inspire you to do great things better and to come along next year? Although one quote from each speaker does a massive disservice to the talks.. really, you had to be there.
“Do one thing remarkably well to fuel future growth.”
The good photos (the ones with the quotes written on and the second Andrew and Pete photo) were taken by Sam Teale Productions, the others by me.
This post includes my Affiliate link to grab tickets for the next Atomicon. Why not come along?
Amy Purdie, The Brand Explorer takes you on an Adventure to discover what your brand is all about, helping you to find clarity with your brand strategy, craft brand visuals that you’re proud of and love to use and to map out your marketing. You can join Bloom or join Amy in your very own Private Brand Adventure.
Amy has been enjoying designing logos, brand identities, illustration, print work and websites – since 2007 fuelled mainly by tea and chocolate.
