This Is My Birthday Week
Starbucks knows it’s my birthday, and I get a free drink.
I love that Starbucks knows it is my birthday and rewards me. It is a way to connect with me in a personal way. I probably give my birthday date to numerous businesses each year, from healthcare to credit card companies, credit unions to airlines. My insurance agents remember, because it is time to raise my insurance rates.
Although my birthdate is required at so many places, even with technology, AI and Siri, few actually acknowledge or remember it’s my birthday.
So back to Starbucks: I remember that Starbucks remembers my birthday, and every year I’m reminded and rewarded by its courtesy. So when someone says to me, why do you pay so much for a cup of coffee, I say: “Loyalty, attention to detail, consistency and it’s a damn good latte.”
And wish Starbucks a happy birthday on March 31.
Mark Mathis
Mark wrote his first direct-mail fundraising letter in 1981 for the University of Iowa Center for Advancement. The effort raised a few million dollars in undiscovered wills and legacy gifts. From that day forward Mark discovered a love of the big idea that moves the needle. After 12 years at KWWL, Mark became a business owner as a co-founder of ME&V — rebranded as AMPERAGE in 2015. After 25 years of leading creative teams in video production, graphic design, PR, writing and web development, Mark transitioned out of ownership in 2021. Today he serves in an employee role as special projects consultant. He is creatively ambidextrous — son of an artist and engineer — and famous for distilling complex ideas down to a few words and a few visuals. Mark is a writer. When he found that many nonprofits struggled with complex branding puzzles, he wrote the book, “NonProfit-NonMarketing .” He also wrote a novel called “Reenactment.” Mark is an active blogger OneMinuteMarketer® with nearly 1,000 readers each week on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter. One of his most popular YouTube videos is on “How to Look Good on Zoom.” One of Mark’s fondest business memories was being named to INC 500 two times and attending the INC 500 conference with other winners. Mark is considered by some a Civil War expert (and that explains his novel). Mark also served as an adjunct professor in the business and in the communications departments at Wartburg College. Mark is a graduate of the University of Iowa and is currently vice president of the University of Iowa Journalism and Mass Communications Advisory Board. Mark is married to state Sen. Liz Mathis, and the two love to travel, even when it means being trapped by a volcano in the Czech Republic for three weeks.
