Advertising Books

Amanda Boyd, editor of Writer's Digest, announced on April 16, 1998 that Stephen Hawley Martin had won an unprecedented second Writer's Digest Book Award for Fiction. "No one has ever won twice in this competition," she said. "We'll be featuring Martin's book, Death in Advertising, in the August edition of Writer's Digest." Novels and other book length works of fiction are judged based on the quality of the writing. Writer's Digest staff screens entries and sends finalists to an independent panel of judges made up of publishing luminaries. These judges select the final winner. Advertising executives, and journalists who cover the industry, have also endorsed the work as a fast-paced thriller and an authentic look inside the business." "I'm overwhelmed," Martin said. "I felt good about this book all along, and it was a lot of fun to write, but I'd never have thought it would win the top award from Writer's Digest after they'd given it to me once before. I'm keeping my fingers crossed it will do well in the mystery award competitions, too." Death in Advertising, Martin's first whodunit, is set in a fictitious Richmond, Virginia, advertising agency. Shockoe Slip, the Fan District and other prominent sections of the city figure prominently in the story. Martin's previous winner was a suspense novel with a metaphysical theme called, Out of Body, Into Mind. A best seller in the New Age category, it is being reissued in June by Hampton Roads Publishing under the title, The Mt. Pelée Redemption. The first edition under the original title is still available through Amazon as of this writing. (4/21/98)

"Death in Advertising" literally forced me to turn to the next page.

I couldn't believe the way this book was crafted and executed. It gives a whole new meaning to 'Mystery.'

Martin brings to life characters in a way that you wouldn't have imagined possible, and in a setting -- advertising -- that you never before would have cared about.

It's equally exciting that "Death in Advertising" is set in one of the oldest and greatest cities in the south, Richmond, VIrginia.

"Death in Advertising" would make a great Holiday present that they'll never forget!

With his sexy and likable protagonist, Brian Durston, advertising agency veteran and prize-winning novelist Stephen Hawley Martin has created a compelling new voice in the genre of whodunits. Martin should be off to the races with this one. Death in Advertising grabs a reader¹s attention in the first shocking scene and holds on relentlessly to the heart-stopping finish. Durston is a bright young hot shot in the ad game, who at 32 has left the fast track at a huge New York advertising agency to join his uncle¹s medium-sized shop. Why would a guy with a big future and a $150,000 salary do that? His uncle has promised he¹ll soon take over this established, successful firm. The future looks secure until Durston discovers his uncle¹s body, the victim of what looks to him like a staged suicide. Because life insurance companies won¹t pay on a suicide, Durston can¹t buy what is rightfully his, his uncle¹s share of the business. It definitely looks like a set up, so Durston begins a clandestine investigation of the agency¹s shareholders while he simultaneously fights to save the agency¹s biggest account. Then, lo and behold, along comes the beautiful but enigmatic copywriter, Nickie D¹Agostino. What follows is a romance tortured by suspicion, and a frenetic race to find the murderer as time ticks toward a deadline beyond which his uncle¹s stock cannot be purchased. Death in Advertising is a fast-paced thriller with characters that readers will come to care about and enough shady and slimy ones to keep them guessing. People who work in advertising will get more than a few laughs out of situations they no doubt will have encountered. Others will learn what goes on behind the scenes as an agency swings into action on a big new business pitch. All the elements mesh to create an edge-of-your-seat thriller that is impossible to put down. As ADWEEK editor, Jim Osterman, summed up, ³Death in Advertising is an engrossing murder mystery wrapped around the inner intrigue of the agency business.² Whether you are a whodunit fan or not, this is one you will not want to miss.

If you've ever worked with a creative director, an accounting manager or anyone in the ad biz, you'll enjoy this book. A 31-year-old ad exec must win the hope chest account, solve a murder, and explore the challanges of management. Some very funny characters, including a gifted but gutter-mouthed Creative Director, a huckster who knows his business, and a vegetarian Kafka-reading Copywriter who romances the protagonist. The use of the whodunit genre gives Martin license to explore the strange world of advertising, the characters and the fascinating process of art against deadline. He touches on enough detail about the financial world without excess, and the believable, well-drawn and colorful dialogue has all the mercurial fury of Wall Street. Makes me want to read more of his books.

Martiin, a vetran of the New York and Richmond advertising scene (The Martin Agency) has written a very readable mystery using the Richmond advertising community as his setting. His characters are well-developed and the element of suspense is always with the reader. A delightful bonus for those familiar with Richmond is his accurate descriptions of the geography of the Fan and West End. A very good read. Lit Maxwell, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA.

I liked this book for its gallery sections, over 200 photographs of great DM examples that spark new ideas and methods of execution. The chapters and discussions are well described and give many references and referals I found useful. I particularly liked the discussion of The new Census 2000 Form and the very clever Otis Elevator campaign based upon a Frank Lloyd Wright letter.

Loved this book. I bought this book after seeing David Katz lecture... His writing style is just as good as seeing him in person! Informative, great examples, persuaded me to create even better direct mail...

It was directly based upon an inspiration generated from this book, Design for Response, that I sold my latest design project. There are many great examples in this book that have kept me thinking of new projects.

Finally a book on direct marketing that is NOT just a biography, a self-promotion, or "Mail Order for Dummies." This book actually uses several interesting examples of direct mail to illustrate the psychology of persuasion vis-a-vis design and marketing tactics. Thank you Sherr & Katz.

This book has some great examples of direct marketing that I had never encountered anywhere else, and I have been in the industry for over 20 years...

What I found particularly interesting were the author's comments on each piece, and the detailed case-studies that are the foundation for each chapter.

The case-studies discuss the psychological basis for the responses generated as well as an in-depth illustration of the design elements.

I highly recommend this book.

I bought this book as a wedding present for a couple from Texas that have relocated to Chicago. Up north, they think the "Don't mess with Texas" campaign is about not messing with Texans. I just thought it was a great way of showing what the campaign was really about to all of their visiting Chicago friends. It has great photos with all the Texan icons.

This is a great book for people who are living in various parts of the country and miss Texas. Sold as a coffee table book, it's a great gift idea, providing out-of-staters with the chance to bring some of Texas home to them. The famous celebrities that appear on the pages helped to establish the campaign, further contributing to its good standing. This book serves as a reminder to Texans of just how unique the state of Texas really is. Texans are known for possessing an immense amount of pride for their state, and the excerpts in this book help to explain and reveal exactly why Texans feel this way.

I am an art and photography store owner in Hartford, CT, and I was so thrilled to see this book on Amazon! The slogan just recently won an advertising competition from Madison Avenue, and is now in the Advertising Hall of Fame. I love this book because it really gives a concise but powerful retelling of the campaign. Just like the Absolut Book (about Absolut Vodka) and the several books about the milk mustache campaign, this book retells the birth and subsequent fame of the advertising campaign, and how many different tacts and approaches the firm took. Plus, it has some great pictures and examples from commercials with celebrities and the different ways the slogan caught on. Really a must have book for advertising kids everywhere, as well as artists who are interested in commercializing their work.

Don't Mess With Texas gave a very interesting explanation of the history of the slogan. I think that everyone has heard the slogan, Don't mess with Texas. According to the book, the publication is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the famous anti-litter campaign. Considering it's success I think that the campaign is definitely deserving of a book in it's honor. When you start reading you begin to realize how long this slogan has been around and it brings back almost hilarious memories of old commercials and the different faces of the campaign. How many anti-litter campaign have had the faces of legends like Warren Moon, Jerry Jeff Walker, Willie Nelson, George Foreman , and Leann Rimes. This book encompasses alot of the values that we as Texans hold important and shoot, it looks great as a coffee table book. I would reccomend it to any one looking to explore an interesting story and piece of Texas history turned pop culture.

As an advertising executive, the "Don't Mess With Texas" campaign is, for me, the stuff legends are made of. It was the biggest, longest-running, and most successful public service advertisement in advertising history. It's really quite astounding that a local, pro-environment campaign picked up SO much momentum and even became an important part of American pop-culture. Tim McClure and Roy Spence do an outstanding job of telling their reader everything he/she wants to know about the campaign...and then some! Everything is there--from the first seeds of the idea to the last fully developed commercial (with, of course, lots of celebrity appearances, close-calls, budgeting issues, and interesting stories in between). This is a great book. If you're interested in advertising or Texas at all, it will entertain you.

This book really hit a home run for me. It was easy to understand and well written for a Business Marketing book dealing with its subject. The 5 Step Framework should work for anyone needing help in planning to launch and effectively brand a website, as well as any product or service that might not be related with the Online world.

In fact, the Authors' 5 Step Framework is quite practical to apply to any type of business with any size marketing issue. The saavy Marketing Executive will be able to apply this Framework to guide them through a refined process resulting in successful execution of their projects!

My bet is that this book will result in a cult following ala G. Moore's "Crossing the Chasm" and M. Hammer's "Reengineering the Corporation"! I also think that it would benefit the college student seeking additional reading materials....because they don't teach this in Buisiness School....yet! ...Five Stars...

"From Bricks to Clicks" is an easy read that provides a straight forward framework, or process if you please, for creating an Online Brand. In my opinion, I trust that the 5 steps could easily be applied to any business whether online or not! I am flabber-gasted to think that finally in 2001 that this is the first book I have read which clearly addresses these complicated and sometimes overwhelming marketing issues that most every company faces from time to time.

The book's real world examples highlight the authors' experiences, knowledge and how they arrived (step-by-step) at excellent solutions to the problems. Implementing the defined process proves its value time&time again in the book. The 5 step framework they describe is simple and should be easy to apply to small and large projects at any size company.

I am pleased that they would share this knowledge and their 5 Steps Framework in this book. I recommend "From Bricks to Clicks" for any high-level Marketing Executive and I look forward to future books or seminars by the Authors.

a great book about branding and marketing with substance! Most of the books I've read about the web, marketing, and web-marketing either use case studies (many of which are quickly obsolete) to make their case or branding theory. From Bricks to Clicks clearly is written with an understanding of both the value of hard-core branding (not just creating a logo, but building a brand by building a business) as well as what business is all about. I found it engaging and interesting. I especially liked the section on globalization ... I don't think I've seen that discussed adequately anywhere, and this is a great start with really good insight. The last 18 months showed what happens when companies forget/or don't know the basics of identifying and selling value - this book makes doing that right a lot more understandable.

This book is pleasantly different from the other brand books out there, not only because of the method, but also because it logically articulates branding on and off the web-- and integrates it with other areas of marketing. Lots of times branding is a distant cousin to marketing and corporate communications, and this book makes it all fit together. As the creator of a small business, it's useful to me but I can also see how it will help big corporate executives as well. An enjoyable read, and very useful.

This book answers a lot of my questions about how to make branding more of a tangible part of business. It is not so much written about the dot-com failures and successes as it is how the web is integrated with a method that's worked for a long time ... which I think is much more compelling. The international/global elements also added a lot because U.S. companies really need to understand this side of things better. It's an interesting, quick read. The only pseudo-negative I might add is that the cover information actually does the book an injustice ... it sounds too web-centric when in fact the book goes far beyond that. A great alternative and next-step book after the trout/ries and geoffrey moore texts.

Great tool for fundraising planning. Workable model for creating a donation and fundraising plan for nonprofit companies.

Terry & Doug Schaff have provided a virtual road map in The Fundraising Planner. The information is presented in a clear and well thought out manner presenting information that can be seamlessly inserted into your current programs. The planner illustrates how to develop, plan and implement the strategies necessary to conduct successful and accountable fundraising activities.

This book truly has something for everyone. From the neophyte to the seasoned professional, the Schaffs have provided a tool that will take your plans to the next level. The planner truly is a step-by-step guide that does not insult the reader with coddling phrases and usless data. Each chapter delves ever deeper into the raison d'etre for each mechanism used to move the fundraising process.

As a Development Director I found many applications within the planner that I can utilize to complement my planning activities. The real world applications provided after each step are valuable exercises as you facilitate your yearly planning process. The information presented is very timely, relevant and useful.

Well Done!

I loved this book. It was one of the first books on fundraising for nonprofits I purchased back in 2004 to learn about fundraising in the nonprofit community or sector. Throughout my 2-year stint as an associate consultant at a consulting firm specializing in capital campaign direction, I thought of and refered to this book book often. Besides the fact that it provides a stellar model for NPOs to use in developing a fundraising plan for their organizations, it also introduced me to the 3 C's: Capacity, Commitment, and Connection.

If you turn to pages 85 and 86 of this lovely book you will learn that one criteria for evaluating prospective donors is to consider their "capacity" to give. Another important criteria to consider is the "connection" a prospective donor has with the organization. I like the third criteria term "commitment," but I don't think the author uses it appropriately here. If a donor has already given a gift to the nonprofit, then they are no longer a prospect. They are part of the nonprofit's family so to speak. They merely need to be upgraded over time.

I like to think of there really being 5 C's when evaluating a potential donor or an existing donor:

1. Capacity: How much can the individual give as a gift? The wealthier the better.
2. Connection: What is the individual's connection to the nonprofit? Without some sort of connection there is little hope that the individual will be willing to donate something.
3. Commitment: What is the individual's history of commitment toward this nonprofit or similar nonprofits? Has the individual at least made some donations or volunteered their time?
4. Care: What is the individual's history of caring for or being concerned about the cause or causes promoted by your nonprofit or similar nonprofits? Does this individual at least have some positive emotion regarding your nonprofit?
5. Contribution: What contributions has this individual actually made to your nonprofit? The larger money gifts the better.

This book is designed as a workbook. And it is really well outlined and written. The exercises it includes will help the reader create a fundraising roadmap to success. It will help the reader get a fundraising plan down on paper so the nonprofit it was written for can benefit from it. This book is centered on a fundraising model that most NPOs can follow.

Creating a written fundraising plan is not a waste of time. This is just as true as it is not a waste of time for a for-profit to prepare a written business plan that includes a written marketing plan. With a written fundraising plan in your arsenal of fundraising tools, you will be able to improve your command of scheduling and your ability to coordinate and track fundraising progress. If you cannot monitor your fundraising progress or lack of progress, then you will ultimately fail to reach your fundraising goals. Get this book and use it to prosper. 5 stars!

The Fundraising Planner does a nice job covering the "particulars" of planning without losing sight of the bigger picture. Like other titles in the Jossey-Bass series, this guide is helpful in structuring an approach and strategy for raising funds. Practical and well-written.

This is a pretty solid introductory book to fundraising, donor management, proposals, etc. If you are new to the business I would definitely recommend it, though more experienced people might not find it quite as helpful. (though there are still a some good nuggets of information)

This is a good book. Not intented for those who are looking for an easy 6 step guide for negative campaigns. It is written in more historic case-centered way. International buyers please note all the examples are based on american politics. Mark analyses different sorts of negative strategies and by the end of the book the author gives a brief forecast of what might come.

Great book. It provides a great overview of campaigning from Washington to 2006. We tend to think of politics today as being negative and dirty. The facts are that politics in the 1800's was so much more negative and dirty.

David Mark writes in an engaging style and does not go into more detail than needed. Almost everything is sourced (unique for political books) and you can get into the weeds if you wish.

Highly highly recommended.

This is a compelling, well written guide to negative campaigning. it provides some strong underpinning theories to negative campaigning from an accute observer of campaign methodology. Very useful and well worth purchasing.

Going Dirty is an excellent book covering the recent history of negative campaigning in the US. The book gives an insightful and balanced look into a topic most people wish wasn't there.

Most of the book is filled with case studies of where negative ads were used, and while primarily contemporary (starting in the 1950's), it also goes back a century helping show how it all evolved. The book only considers campaigns in the US but the author does a good job of looking at campaigns across the country (and political spectrum), critiquing those who might think that any set strategy could work without taking into account the people and area.

While most of the book feels like more of a history of negative campaigning near the end it goes into more analysis. (Ironically the author's analysis starts in a chapter talking about negative campaigns that failed). Though I found the book intriguing I would have liked it to have focused more specific tactics of negative campaigns, and less of a history of them. Too much of the book just reads like a history lesson rather than a real analysis. I still had some questions floating in my head about negative campaigning (how it wears on the public, it's ebbs and flows, possibilities for the future, etc) that I wish had been answered by the book, but perhaps I'll just need to read the authors follow up work.

Written by David Mark (editor-in-chief of Campaigns & Elections magazine), Going Dirty: The Art of Negative Campaigning is a no-nonsense history of negative campaigning in American politics, with especial attention paid to case studies of notable races during the modern era of television. In particular, Going Dirty notes campaign negativity has increased sharply since September 11, 2001, with commercials routinely suggesting that political opponents are irresolute in pursuing the war on terror. Going Dirty explores incidents when negative campaigning has backfired, most often due to non-credible charges or the attackers failure to correctly gauge the sentiments of the electorate, and incidents when negative campaigning has been remarkably successful, which are common enough to explain its persistence as an electoral tactic. Accessible to lay readers and political scientists alike, Going Dirty is a nonjudgmental, thorough, insider's history of an undeniably strong aspect of the American political institution, and highly recommended.

Keep it simple book is what I mean. Not going over and over ideas. They are just simple and worthy ideas that will put your brain and business to work efficiently and directed toward the goal of anyone that wants to have positive results on any sales arena.

Forget everything you ever read or heard about the overly complex sales process. Beck distills the complex sale and what you should be doing to execute on every facet of the process to a very Nike'ese "just do it". He includes real world examples and aligns them into practical approaches for selling. If your a soaring eagle sales person the advice given by Beck may seem like a dose of common sense but the book is a refreshing dose of reality for either the seasoned road warrior, the newbe or anyone inbetween.

I don't normally like sales books but this one was actually pretty good. There are quite a few suggestions he makes which are actually good. He covers everything from writing proposals to handling objections. This book is written in simple terms, so simple that a lot of sales people overlook them. You may not read the entire thing from cover to cover but I'm sure you take away a few hints to help you with your sales.

Terry Beck's selling wisdom is practical and based in common sense. Many of the suggestions here pertain to the most basic of all sales traits: persistence. It's refreshing to hear a sales guru say simply that it's a salesman's basic job to make the call, and he has no one but himself to blame if he doesn't. The advice here is grounded in hard work: show initiative, do your homework, know your product, cater to your customer, be yourself and don't make phony pitches. More distinctively, Beck corrects a lot of myths that actually harm your ability to make a sale. Of course, if you're a weathered sales veteran this information is not exactly breaking news. But if you're always looking to sharpen up your skills - and in this day and age you should be - we [...] recommend this well organized and conversational manual.

A practical guide to mastering complex sales situations - ideal for people selling big-ticket items such as enterprise software, equipment, or other "purchased by companies, not people" goods or services.

Tom Egelhoff has written a practical guide to marketing for businesses in small towns where ever they may be. One does not need a university degree or buckets of money to implement his ideas which are bound to assist any small business person to grow his business. Tom is genuine and sincere about what he has written, much of which is cleary based on his own experiences.

As an Advertising Manager of a small town newspaper based in North Eastern Victoria, Australia, I find Tom's book to be very useful and relevant to small business marketing in my area and I plan to use it frequently to assist my clients with practical marketing advice which value adds to the Advertising advice that I give.

I recomend the book to all small business people, especially those working in smaller communities.

When I needed to learn how to promote the Religion Dept. at the college I work at, this book came through with ideas and wisdom I could understand and implement!

This book is excellent for someone with absolutely NO marketing/promoting experience or educational background. The ideas are sound and, often, not expensive. The best thing is that it is adaptable to any type of group/organization/business.

The format is "friendy." Tom gets his points across in a way that YOU know YOU can do. He gives plenty of useful tips, and when this book is used in conjunction with the Internet, the information at your findertips will astound the reader!

This book is guaranteed to turn even the most unknowledgable person into a whiz at promoting "whatever" it is you need to promote, even Religion Departments!

This book is an inexpensive must-have for new or emerging small businesses. It includes the basics such as sales forecasting, success principles, advertising, promoting, and marketing concepts. Most importantly however, it is written for small businesses in a community setting. It includes several worksheets and explains the necessity of learning about the "Miracle Mile". The content is practical for both the new and experienced business owner.

Tom Egelhoff's book is a fantastic reference for anyone thinking of beginning a business in a small town. I enjoyed the questions Egelhoff posed because it helps the reader to define and focus their marketing plan and to consider ideas they may not have otherwise thought of. The book is easy to read and understand with wonderful suggestions.

Mr. Egelhoff gets to the heart of how to market your business in a "small town" format. However, the information he gives is practical and useful for all scales of business. His book helps to develop the user's business model from defining who you are, identifying who you sell to and how to critique what you've done. Mr. Egelhoff gives practical and specific areas to consider and useful suggestion and areas to avoid. This book is well worth the reading for anyone seriously considering starting their own business.

Drawing from more than ten years of professional involvement in the pulltab instant win ticket industry, Don D. Basina's The Insider's Guide Instant Win Tickets (Pulltabs): How To Win, How To Sell, How To Profit is a unique, thorough, expert, instructional reference about how to sell and profit from instant win tickets, and also how to better understand the odds of playing instant win games. Simple diagrams, basic advice and direct training form a wealth of information about the ticket industry. The Insider's Guide Instant Win Tickets is highly recommended reading for those on both sides of pulltab ticket gaming.

Until I read Mr. Basina's book, I would never have purchased a pull-tab. I generally won't purchase something I am not familiar with. His book provided concise information that I found to be very useful. I will definiately begin purchasing pull-tabs every opportunity I get.

Until I read Mr. Basina's book, I would never have purchased a pull-tab. I generally won't purchase something I am not familiar with. His book provided concise information that I found to be very useful. I will definiately begin purchasing pull-tabs every opportunity I get.

I enjoy reading an informational book that can summarize exactly what I am looking for. The "games-for-a-profit" field is new to me and I searched for a straight to the point book. THANK YOU!

I would recommend this book for anyone that sells and plays pulltabs. The author gives detailed information on how to sell more pulltabs. Determining the odds of winning for each cash prize helped me win more often!

Last 2 months I read 20 books about e-marketing issues and this book is the most structured and easy to read book i have ever read. They give visual examples and this makes the understanding more easy... If you want to please your customers please yourself with this book...

I am a final student who major in Marketing in City University of Hong Kong. I have got a lot of learning insight from this book. This book give me an overview of different types of loyalty and how it can uses in the e-commerce. This book is divide into three parts. The introduction of eCRM, the eCRM customer loyalty business process and the eCRM customer loyalty infrastructure. Actually, I agree very much that loyalty is very important especially for e-business to encourage customer to repeat purchase. This book also give many technical support to those who want to build an e-business to their business. This book gives me a lot and I hope you also can find something insides it such as me!

"Loyalty Marketing for the Internet Age offers managers a variety of ways to secure loyal customers and customer retention strategies. I found the end of the success stories, checklists and case examples extremely helpful.

As an Internet consultant specializing in the field of eCRM, I've had to stay ahead of my clients by reading the latest, greatest books on the subject. This one stands out. It includes financial models to help you monetize the benefits of customer loyalty, extremely helpful "action plans" after each section and up to date case studies. This is a must read for anyone trying to sell, plan and execute an eCRM initiative.

Formulating a Loyalty Marketing strategy can be a challenge-further implementing your strategy can be a much greater challenge. Kathleen, has established a clear approach to blending strategy with implementation which is practical and useful. Executives who are struggling to identify which book is a blueprint toward 'Attracting,Serving, and Retaining Customers' have in my view one of the key books which is not fluffy and gets right to the heart of it.

Specifically- she has enlightened me to identify that not all loyalty is the same, and as a marketer-you must understand that different customers are loyal for different reasons and under different conditions.

One only needs to see my personal copy of this book to know that it has been poured over...covered in notes, highlights, stickynotes and folds- a true sign of a great book. (In my view)