Marketing Books

I am always looking for what I think is the best sales book to recommend. This is the book for B2B sales this year. A very high sales performer, Bill Stinnett has really hit the mark with this book. If you coupled the strategies and methods of Stinnett with the strategies and tactics used by Bill Freese, (Question Based Selling) you could build the ultimate sales machine in your company. I am just blown away at the thoroughness, quality of process and thought that has gone into this book. When I asked Bill for a review copy he arranged to call me to find out where I was coming from and what I did with the reviews. This gentleman dots the i's and crosses the t's.

Buy it, read it, and keep it on your read often, do not lend bookshelf. Of course if you are content with the status quo, this book will only make you realize how much more there is out there. I am really pumped by Stinnett!

If you want to improve your sales and connect better with your customers, buy this book! Each chapter is full of "aha!" insights that will enhance your understanding of your customer's needs.

Stinnett is an apostle of the "diagnostic approach" to selling, in which the seller undertakes a process of discovery to identify what results the customer is trying to achieve. The focus is always on the customer--his motive, the urgency of reaching the objective, the consequences of doing nothing and remaining where he is, the expected payback from attaining the objective, the resources the customer has available to devote to the effort, and the risks he will face in moving in a new direction. These "Action Drivers," Stinnett explains, govern and control just about every buying decision. If a sale falls through, chances are that one of these "Action Drivers" was missing.

In the first half of the "Think Like Your Customer," Stinnett analyzes how buyers evaluate their options and assess risk. Weeks after reading the book, I still open it up and turn to the chart on page 49, where Stinnett lists the eight major types of value your customer may be attempting to derive from a relationship with you and your company. They are:

Economic Value (increasing revenue, reducing costs, better utilization of assets)
Emotional Value (need for recognition and security)
Simplicity Value (making the easy choice and reducing headaches)
Relational Value (repaying loyalty and commitment; avoiding potential conflict)
Political and Image Value (looking good to others)
Guidance or Advice Value (access to expert advice)
Quality Value (reducing product defects; better service)
Time Value (shorten time to market; free up time for other things)

Stinnett points out for each of these denominations of value, there is a corresponding denomination of risk. Since value and risk are two sides of the same coin, a seller can increase the perceived value of his offering--and overcome prospects' perennial objections about price, by focusing carefully on the customer's concerns and reducing risk in the areas of value that are important to that particular customer.

In the second half of the book, Stinnett dissects the anatomy of the customer's buying process. Instead of focusing our attention on how we sell, Stinnett says we should concentrate on how the customer buys and--more importantly--what affirmative steps we can take to help the buyer move through each stage of the buying process that the buyer needs to traverse in order to buy from us.

Nothing in "Think Like Your Customer" is startlingly new; rather, Stinnett teaches how we can turn our thinking inside out and look at a transaction from the perspective of the buyer.

This book is well organized and highly readable; the reasoning is persuasive, and the advice is immensely practical. Immediately after reading "Think Like Your Customer," I began to conduct conversations with my clients using the tools and skills Stinnett provides. The difference in the quality of the communication was nothing short of amazing. Buy this book and profit from its wisdom!

When I read books on persuasion, I'm looking for effective tools. One of the reasons I like this book is that it has valuable information I don't remember seeing elsewhere.

The chapter on what customers really want is worth far more than the price of the book. It identifies the factors that must exist for a customer to buy from us. And it teaches how to weave key questions about these factors into our informal conversation with the customer.

Another example: The book teaches how to learn what specific results a customer really wants and how to tie that to our product or service. The specific "result" a customer wants may differ greatly from the generic benefits we assume our product or service's features provide.

I've found that using Stinnett's tools to focus even more on how the customer thinks increases sales and the number of satisfied customers.

Bill Stinnett concludes the Introduction to this book with a remarkable statement: "Now let me be clear: I don't take credit for any of these truths [culled from a variety of other sources]. I didn't make them up. They have been there all along, waiting to be observed. My life's work has been to recognize them and organize them in an effort to advance my own career and yours." Stinnett refers to popular sales methodologies which include Strategic Selling®, Solution Selling®, and SPIN Selling®. Whatever the given methodology, its ultimate outcome is an increase in revenue which, Stinnett duly acknowledges, can be accomplished in three ways: maximizing sales velocity, increasing average "deal size" or the "wallet" share, and increasing customer loyalty and satisfaction.

Throughout Stinnett's narrative, his emphasis is on presenting and then explaining "a winning strategy" (actually an aggregate of several strategies) to increase his reader's understanding of how and why customers buy. The chapter titles for Part 1, "Why Customers Buy," correctly indicate how practical his approach is: What Customers Think About, What Customers Really Want, How Customers Perceive Value and Risk, The Cause and Effect of Business Value, and The Value of Customer Relationships. It should be noted that, along the way, Stinnett also offers excellent advice with regard to all manner of "how not to's" and "why nots" when formulating and then implementing what should be a cohesive, comprehensive, and cost-effective game plan to increase revenue.

To me, some of the most valuable material in the book is presented in Chapter 8 as Stinnett explains how to reverse-engineer the buying process. That is, in Stephen Covey's words, "begin with the end in mind." This is a process by which to identify what must happen before a given customer is ready to buy. Previously in Chapter 2, Stinnett introduced what he calls his "Customer Results Model" which involves a process that begins with fully understanding the prospective buyer's current situation. I agree with Stinnett that there is no inherent value (as perceived by customers) in the solution offered by a given product or service unless it will achieve the prospective buyer's desired outcomes or results. As the former CEO of Home Depot once observed, people don't buy a quarter-inch drill; they buy quarter-inch holes. In this context, the quarter-inch drill fills a gap between a current, often an urgent need and filling it.

One of this book's several reader-friendly devices is the isolation of key points presented in bold face. This facilitates and accelerates frequent review of those points later. For example:

"It's a lot easier to sell somebody something if it's positioned as a way to help them achieve a goal or an objective that they already want to achieve." (Page 15)

" Far more critical than what is valuable and important to your customer is why it is valuable and important to them." (Page 65)

"A deep, meaningful, high-trust relationship with a client who has no business disparity [i.e. compelling need], no motive to take action, or no means to take action even if they did have a motive, equals no sale. It's just a relationship." (Page 105)

"It's not what we do in our sales process, but what the customer does in their buying process, that really matters." (Page 135)

"We should spend 80 percent of our time and effort on the 20 percent of our opportunities that carry a strong urgency, motive, and consequence, because these are the deals that can close." (Page 179)

None of Stinnett's key points is a head-snappy revelation, nor does he make that claim. However, all of them - preferably reviewed in the sequence in which they are presented - offer valuable reminders of where the proper focus and emphasis should be during a high-probability customer's purchase process.

There are dozens of excellent books on the art and science of sales, and this is one of the best.

Well-done!

This is one of the best books on selling I'd read in years. In the software world, hard-sell is dead. Try consultative selling the Bill Stinnet way. I used some of the ideas in the book eg., mapping out the buying process and offering it as as part of an important visual information to the gatekeeper to reach the decision maker - and it works! I have used the concept of getting the buyer to think about destination "C" with us rather than trying to be too focused on the offer in "B". There is also a section on how to qualify a prospect with ideas that are worth committing to memory. A combination of Bill's ideas and my experience has turned many of my well qualified prospects into paying customers today.

If you are a career saleperson then this one is definitely for you.

very good book with practical advice that any salesperson can apply on a day to day basis.I really appreciated that this book is so down to earth and crystal clear.

This book was recommended to us by a couple of professors at University of Toledo for its section on territory management. I had initially passed the book by, because the title didn't grab me. The book is very good, even for experienced sales reps. I'd recommend it to any sales rep, novice or experienced.

I was a little hesitant about purchasing this book. I feared it would be one more fluffy time management book. But Mr Kahle has clearly walked the salesmans walk which lends great crediblity. I found his point of view and suggestions to be refreshingly candid and hands-on. One of my favorite passages in the book reads:
"You can choose not to do this. You can be like most of the mediocre salespeople in the world. You can allow yourself to become reactive... or you can choose to work far more effetively by implementing the disciplines of thinking about it before you do it, and thinking about it in the right way. It's a free country. It's your choice."

I am very glad I bought the book and will use it as a reference for motivating my team on a regular basis.

I bought the book to gain knowledge to help my sales team be more effective. I was very pleased with the book overall and learned some good tips to help educate my reps. I would recommend this book to any Sale Manager or Salesperson who wants to be more productive with the limited hours we have in each day.

Dave Kahle adapts many now common time management processes for the specific use of salespeople in the field. His underlying assumption is that it is much more difficult for outside salespeople to apply the usual techniques, since their lives are so filled with uncertainty. Plus salespeople tend to be action-oriented, so they don't commonly want to spend time planning or setting up systems. But, Kahle argues, such organization is critical to success in sales. While Kahle claims that most time management principles and tactics "totally miss the unique challenges of the field salesperson," the material he covers in the book sounds very familiar. It echoes many other books about goal setting, problem solving, decision making and effective selling. We find that while this may be a helpful review of fairly common material in the guise of time management, the information is hardly unique - although its focus on salespeople's needs may give it additional value for them.

There are tons of books written about being an entrepreneur, business, self help and network marketing. When Jordan told me he was writing a book, I was not only like "Finally!" but also, anxious to get a copy. I am thankful and honored to have had the opportunity to get to become friends with Jordan. I am excited for his future books because I am sure he will continue writing. If there is one business book to read in 2008 or in this life, it is "Beach Money" by Jordan Adler.

I'm 32, but just a 1 year-old baby in network marketing, so I'm open to as many sources of information (books, CD's, etc.) as possible to solidify my knowledge and build my confidence. This book was recommended to me by the 2nd top income earner in our area from our company.

The book was written in plain English, no hype, simple & easy to understand. I could relate to a lot of Jordan's struggles before he became successful. He persisted and just held on to his dream until he got his Beach Money life. So on that basis, this is truly the first book on network marketing that convinced me that making my dreams happen in the business is definitely within my realm of possibility, and it doesn't bother me any more if it takes me a couple of years to phase out of the J.O.B. world. It will be worth it.

A must for every network marketer's library.

This book will definitely give you some answers that you're searching for. Those of you who have jobs or own businesses and need some extra secrets on how to improve your life...must read this book. How many of you would like to go to the beach and not have to worry because you're making money whether you're working or at the beach? This book has more to offer than how to get what you want in life...it helps you learn how to simplify things. Jordan Adler knows what he's talking about.

Also, if you're looking for answers on how to build MLM successfully...this book has them. You can also learn more at www.FirstClassMLM.com.

You must buy this book! Jordan was one of my first mentors and has become one of our best and closest friends. I love this guy! He is a true RockStar and anything he writes or says you gotta listen too!

Be a RockStar in your life,
& Make the world your stage!

Dr Dan

MakeTheWorldYourStage dot com

Jordan Adler's book Beach Money is a great tool for your personal development library. I have been in and around the MLM / home-based business industry for approx. 15 years and have read MANY books on the industry. Jordan's book is right at the top of the list. The book is full of practical, easy to read and understand nuggets that will propel your business forward if you choose to use them.
What I really love about this book is that Jordan shares the good, the bad and the ugly about this industry. He is also not shy when it comes to reminding people that they MUST take the actions needed and actually do the work if they want to reap the rewards or this marvelous industry.

Pharmaceutical sales can be an intimidating industry. Tom Ruff's knowledge will point you in the right direction towards success.

very good book that gives me all the tips to break into sales.
I follow all the advices and i made it.
So i highly recommend that book

I greatly enjoyed the book and have suggested it to many on my friends that are looking into entering the field of pharmaceutical sales. I thought it was extremely beneficial to read to get a flavor of what a pharmaceutical representative do on a day to day basis and how to get into the field. Read this before revising your resume and interviewing for positions it can also save you time in the end if you decide Pharm sales isn't for you.

I bought this book for a friend who wanted to get into pharmaceutical sales, but she had no outside sales experience. She read the book cover to cover, referenced it daily, and in 3 months, she had her dream job. Thank you Tom!

If you are even remotely thinking of breaking into the pharmaceutical or medical sales industry - BUY THIS BOOK!! Because of this book I just got hired with Johnson & Johnson as a pharmaceutical sales rep. I had no prior experience in this industry and I beat out 3 other qualified candidates because I followed Tom's advice to a T. I highly recommend this book if you are seeking a job in the pharma or medical sales industry. It is an extremely difficult task to get hired in this industry but once you do you will be so proud of yourself and on your way to a fulfilling life-long career.

This is a good book if your just starting out. A lot of it is common sense but there are some good pointers. I would recommend it. Easy read. Also has some good resources.

I received this book really quickly and very pleased with it. I love the book and I couldn't wait to get it. The transaction was effortless.

Viki Lareau's book Marketing and Selling Your Handmade Jewelry is a well-written, experience-based guide for the novice. With the exception of a couple of small number of typos or misspellings, the book is a delight. I found that I wanted to read it straight through and almost succeeded in doing so before being interrupted. The photos complement the text, and it helps that the reader comes to like the person writing the book (at least I did).

I have purchased other similar books in the past that I skim, but never really take time to read. This book was not only worth the money, it was worth the time. Concisely written, clearly categorized, useful information. I only wish I had read it seven years ago when I first started selling my jewelry, as some of the lessons I have learned a much harder way!
My little company is currently turning into something much bigger and I am so glad I have the insight from this book to help me in negotiating and decision making.

If you're just getting started in the hand-made jewelry selling business, this is a straightforward, well written, and practical guide for the basics of setting up your business. The author provides tips on pricing your work, which are especially helpful. Overall, I found the tone warm and helpful, and it's a quick, easy read.

Michele Cozzens, Owner of Dream Life Designs Jewelry

All this book is, is just a book full of "articles" from sales trainers.
It sounds , at least on paper, like a great idea but, the book is all over the place and needs some editing work.

If you have a library of sales books, this book just takes some paragraphs or articles from different authors and put it into a confusing book.

Like I said, If you have a library of sales material, the book really won't hold your interest.

With over 50 contributing Experts to this book you can't go wrong.

There is so much to be learned it is incredible.

Each leason is short and easy to read. You could take each leason in the book and apply it immediately with out any added cost.

I also had the pleasure of interviewing over 30 of the authors from The Masters of Sales book and if you would like the mp3 audio's for free Register at [...] and under the referred by section put MastersOfSales and we will email you the links to download the MP3's

Thanks Ivan and Don for such a Masterful Book.

Masters of Sales. Secrets from top sales professionals that will transform you into a world class salesman. Ivan R. Misner & Don Morgan. 2007. ISBN 1599181290. This book needs to be on every sales persons shelf beside the phone. Its been quite a while since I have found so many great sales ideas form so many to notch sales people in one volume. There is knowledge here that will benefit newbies right through to old sales dogs. Of course if you are content to not be among the top 10 % of producers among sales people who also are the most voracious readers, then you lose nothing by ignoring this book. Your loss is your competitors gain. Buy it, read it, use the advice and read it again. Yes I liked this book. Its everything that Google library says it is below:

Sold! The magic word. The holy grail. Why are some salespeople remarkably successful, while others make call after call with no results? How do some turn any no into a yes, while others can't even get their foot in the door? For the first time, more than 80 of the most successful salespeople in the world have come together to reveal their secrets to success. You'll learn what makes these outstanding sellers true masters of their craft-and how you can adapt the masters' tactics for your own. Learn Martha Stewart's secrets to promoting yourself as an expert. Discover the 11 key questions to ask from Harvey McKay. Get Anthony Parinello's advice on selling to CEOs. Be trained in guerrilla tactics for direct selling from Jay Conrad Levinson. Find out Brian Tracy's secrets on the psychology of selling. Bursting with valuable advice from Jack Canfield, Anthony Robbins, Keith Ferrazzi, Tom Hopkins, Al Lautenslager and more than 70 other masters of the art of selling, this exclusive compilation of the best sales strategies ever known puts you on the fast track to sales success.

Ivan R. Misner and Don Morgan have co-authored several books, including Masters of Success as well as this one in which 73 "masters of sales" share their secrets. What soon became obvious to me as I worked my way through this book is that I was exploring a paradox: peak performers in sales share much in common (persistence, rigorous preparation, a positive mental attitude, sharp focus, a high energy level, people skills, a thick skin, etc.) and yet each possesses a unique "something" that cannot be duplicated, or even quantified with any precision. Bill George calls it a person's "true north, the internal compass that guides you as a human being at your deepest level. It is your orienting point - your fixed point in a spinning world - that helps you stay on track as a leader. Your True North is based on what is most important to you in terms of your most cherished values, your passions and motivations, the sources of satisfaction in your life. Just as a compass points toward a magnetic field, your True North pulls you toward the purpose of your leadership."

The subtitle of this book at least implies that by learning various secrets from top sales professionals, the reader will be transformed into "a world class salesperson." That is, of course, nonsense and Misner and Morgan presumably know better. What their book offers, rather, is a rare opportunity to share insights from dozens of successful people, conveniently assembled within in a single source and presented sequentially in eleven chapters, each of which assigned a central theme. For example, "The Master of Sales Attitude: Aligning Your Inner Self with Your Outside Personal Image" in the first chapter and "Closing the Customer: It's in the WOW Factor" in the final chapter.

Most of the contributors were unfamiliar to me but I greatly appreciate what they shared. Of course, Misner and Morgan include essays by "the usual suspects" such as Jay Conrad Levinson, Zig Ziglar, Brian Tracy, Anthony Robbins, and Harvey Mackay. There are at least two reasons why all of them are generally considered "super stars" in sales: first, they sell lots of their own stuff (i.e. books, CDs and DVDs, seminars and workshops); also, they have successfully trained thousands of others (who bought their stuff) to sell whatever their respective companies offer. But again I wish to stress that Zig Ziglar, for example, does not clone himself. His objective is to inform but also to ignite those with whom he has contact, directly in person or indirectly via his books and tapes. He urges those in sales to master basic skills, of course, but constantly stresses the importance of formulating or adopting strategies and tactics that are most appropriate to their own needs and interests. In "Sales 101: What Every Sales Professional Needs to Know" (Pages 15-19), Ziglar makes several basic points of indisputable validity - citing ten highly desirable habits that he has found to be "extremely useful" in all aspects of his life -- but this advice will be of little (if any value) unless and until another person grasps, indeed embraces its meaning and significance, then applies effectively what she or he has learned from Ziglar. The same is true of advice offered by other successful men and women who, like those who contributed to this book, share the lessons they have learned, especially from their failures.

My guess (only a guess) is that this book will be of greatest value if the Contents section is checked out first so that each reader can then determine which themes - and which selections clustered with each theme - are of greatest interest. (Caveat: It would be a mistake to ignore contributions by those who are unfamiliar.) I presume to suggest that there are three basic questions that each person in sales must be well-prepared to answer when in contact with a prospective buyer. The first two pose no significant challenges (or at least shouldn't) but success or failure almost always depends on the response to the third. Here they are:

Explicit: Who are you?
Implicit: Are you honest? Do you know what you're talking about? Have you made an effort to understand my business? Will you protect my best interests? Are you and your organization reliable? Can I trust you?

Explicit: What do you do?
Implicit: Which specific products and services do you offer that I need? Can you answer my questions? Can you help solve my problems? Will you "go the extra mile" when that is necessary?

Explicit: Why should I care?
Implicit: What differentiates you from other sales people? What differentiates your products and services from what competitors offer? What unique value-added benefits do you offer? Will doing business with you strengthen my own customer relationships?

Credit Misner and Morton with carefully selecting and then brilliantly presenting a wealth of material that can help to answer both explicit and implicit questions such as these.

Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out the aforementioned Masters of Success also co-edited by Misner and Morgan as well as two books by Tom Butler-Bowdon: 50 Success Classics and 50 Self-Help Classics.

This book reinforces what you've been told over and over again - selling is about relationships and you must work to be good at it. Throughout this book however, are basic principles that should be reinforced and refreshed. Especially take note of page 239. Role playing is a no-brainer when preparing for any presentation, but how often do we do it with the client who we've already sold? This book truly has light bulb moments!

I have bought more than 100 books on selling techniques, psychology, attitude, performance, etc. This book should be alongside the bible for sales success. I re-read the book as soon as I finished it and I consider myself far more comfortable during presentations using Ms. Miller's advice.

Reading this book is like hitting a hole in one. Finding so much good advice and ideas in one book for sales is rare. I jotted down so many ideas pertinent to my clients I filled several pages! Her section on prospect blind spots is just so dead on target. Blind spots usually encountered are:

* Lack of understanding
* No urgency
* No differentiation between products
* Confusing value with price
* Fear of change
* Fear of large commitment
* No perceived value-add
* Fear of getting burned. Again.

Then she quickly gives you ways to communicate through the blind spots.

Ever heard of a Horse Chart? That's a PowerPoint where you have a picture/chart (say a Horse) with a title that says

exactly what it is (Horse). Nothing about the impact, effect or utility of the chart in the title. Instead of Sales use a title that talks to clients issues. ( Sales drop dramatically in the 3rd quarter)

A line I really enjoyed. " People simply can not imagine needing something they have not experienced - unless its explained in terms of what they know and love ."

This is a book for those sales and marketing people who want to kick down the doors and storm the castles of their reluctant prospects. In dong so you will be able to make more money than ever before.

This book was recommended to me by Craig Valentine, a former World Champion of Public Speaking, and I am grateful to him for it. Even though I write extensively for a living (print, speeches and video), this book serves as a great primer or reminder of the ways we can make our messages "stick" better in the minds of our audiences. It teaches how to draw metaphors, symbols or analogies (pick one!) that will be meaningful to our intended receivers of our communication. In all, a worthy addition to the bookshelf of any writer or speaker.

Metaphorically Selling: How to Use the Magic of Metaphors to Sell, Persuade, & Explain Anything to Anyone is a guide to making use of metaphors for increased success in business. This book introduces the reader to the world of metaphors, pointing out that the use of metaphors is a fairly natural everyday process. The author then explains that the use of metaphors is actually the key to keeping both sides of the human brain engaged and actively attentive. Furthermore, the use of metaphors further understanding of new material through the connection of this material to already understood, well thought out analogies. In this way, metaphors are the key to keeping clients and customers interested in your presentation while increasing their understanding of the uniqueness of your product. Once, these key concepts are entrenched into the reader's mind, the author guides the reader through various exercises that aim to teach the reader to choose and use metaphors for his or her own purposes.

Metaphorically Selling is an important resource. This book teaches and enlightens the reader while it entertains, keeping both halves of the brain happy. Moreover, the evolving chapters of this book actively guide the reader through those nagging doubts about whether he or she can actually create his or her own appropriate metaphors. Thus, after reading this book, the reader can't help but spontaneously come up with appropriate metaphors for any situation. Though this book is meant for increasing business success, the concepts in this book can be used to communicate or teach more effectively at work and in everyday life.

First let me say I am not an author scatching another authors back (I don't know about you, but I don't even read reviews by other authors because they all reveiw each others books. It is much more helpful to me when I read a review from another salesperson, someone who is in the trenchs or came from the trenchs. I do not know the author, never heard of the author before this book, am not a fan, am not a student at some gurus feet. I am a guy trying to pay my bills and make a better life for my family. And I do it by selling.

I have been in sales and marketing for over 25 years. I have read enough books on sales to fill a library. Some good, most just raw material for confetti, with a few books that are great. I feel this is the most important book anyone in business or selling can read.

I have lost sales even though profit analysis and side by side cost analysis both dramatically reveal the supremacy of the course of action I propose. I go slow, get agreements all the way through, heads nodding, even agreement that they want to go with what I propose. And there are STILL cases where I am flabbergasted and frustrated because the deal doesn't close! Then I know - THEY JUST DIDN'T GET IT! Going slow, getting agreements along the way and my point went right over their heads.

I sell a service to physicians...and they are doctors, not business people. In fact that is how I found this book. I knew I had to find some method of better communication that would allow me to make critical points easy to understand by a lay person without loosing their power. Through searching on google I found a link to this book and the author.

The magic of this book is it immediately enables you to communicate powerfully and effectively with anyone about anything, and in a way that sticks in their mind and they REMEMBER. And in sales and business that is critical to success.

This is why I feel Anne Miller's book is the most important book you will read and this is a book that will put money in your pocket! You will sell more, period.

This book would be number one on my recommended reading list, the next 2 books on sales I would recommend after this are Value Forward Selling by Paul R. DiModica, and Never Cold Call Again by Frank J. Rambauskas Jr.
All three of these books are no b.s, practical, and most importantly, they work in the real world.

A good selection of illustrative business cases, occasional thoughts that we had at the back of our mind organized and presented in a clear and enlightning way. Logical and convincing theory. Good reading for managers who want their daily routine to be in tune with the global picture.

THE MOMENTUM EFFECT - HOW TO IGNITE EXCEPTIONAL GROWTH covers all aspects of management, both external and internal, of a successful company sustaining high growth. It demonstrates how momentum powered firms significantly increase value for all stakeholders, including customers, employees and shareholders through the following eight steps:
* Momentum Design
o Compelling insights that can only come from time spent with customers;
o These insights lead to compelling values by understanding the deeper human drivers;
o Compelling values lead to power offers meaning power with customers and power to generate growth;
o Power offers generate customers with compelling equity maximizing the value of customers to the firm;
* Momentum Execution
o Power offers are continuously tweaked and improved until they become irresistible;
o The delivery of the power offer leads to superior customer satisfaction what the author calls vibrant satisfaction;
o Vibrant satisfaction leads to vibrant retention and
o Vibrant engagement of the customer. Momentum companies engage customers at an emotional level to generate positive, momentum-driven action.

Each of these eight essential components of momentum strategy are described in detail and richly illustrated by real life stories from momentum companies like Wal-Mart, BMW, Skype, Apple and IKEA, to name just a few. These momentum driving components allow you to systematically harness the powerful, sustainable energy that can take your firm to the new efficiency frontier, driving the exceptional growth that will propel you into a different league. Finally, the Momentum Effect is a never ending journey, not a destination.

Jean-Claude Larreche is professor at the renowned European management school INSEAD and a consultant with leading global corporations.

THE MOMENTUM EFFECT is a joy to read and a must read for anybody who needs to excel in today's competitive world. Kai Wenk-Wolff (MBA INSEAD) is a turn-around specialist for manufacturing operations.

This is a book that brought me an excellent and coherent view on so many concepts and principles in the area of marketing. From design to delivery, all consequent phases are clearly described with the use of many very interesting case studies from all over the world. The book provides an approach that you can use to build a so-called power offer, which is a superb customer offering to realize `exceptional growth' in your business. Of course, it doesn't guarantee that you will create extraordinary profits with your service or product, but it certainly gives you many handles to improve your product design, development, sales, after sales etc in a coherent and fresh new way. It connects all those elements as customer value, retention, pricing, emotions, distribution etc, without giving you the feeling that it opens doors that already are open.
The book is very easy to read; when you start, you want to proceed to the end. It is a book you want on your desktop so you can have a look at it regularly, read some pages and think them over. I had the honor of attending a course at INSEAD of Professor Larreché and was inspired by his lectures, but you can feel his enthusiasm and professionalism while reading the book.

When I first leafed through this book, I thought it was a novel. How else could one interpret the fact that tables, figures and diagrams are just a small part of only the 10% of its total pages! Authors of scientific, marketing and management books have not used us to such a minimalism. J.C. talks substance, not visuals. Even for this reason, this book is exceptionally impressive. This "nothing less than exceptional growth" book smells strong, innovative thinking. It's a book on business total philosophy rather than a simply marketing or management text. It provides a sharp anatomy of things, supposedly known in a business enterprise, with the result that bold substance is revealed. Doing things right is not enough for Larreche. One has to do things exceptionally right. "Very satisfied customers" is not enough. Delighted customers should be the basic purpose of any business. Superb, total value to customers is running throughout the book. More revenues for less relative marketing expenditures is to look for. Anything else does not provide proof of the existence of momentum in a business firm. Larreche, a recognized expert of marketing, emphasizes its customer value building wisdom, rather than its routine functional elements commented about and stressed in all common marketing texts. This book, as product, provides the customer with real super value. It has been some time since I read a real best seller to be!

A lot of companies and agencies are pushing buzz words such as Customer Centric approach or Marketing 360°. The book from Jean-Claude Larreche is a great balance between strategy perspective and operational implications. It demonstrates that the success in creating value and momentum for growth is at the end of the day a cultural shift within companies. It offers a thinking platform and practical examples which are very useful to convince and address your customers and targets (internally and externally).

I strongly recommend this book for:
- Marketers who are looking for a holistic approach to review their customer focus strategy
- Consultants and agencies for reviewing their recommendations in light of what is driving success at the end of the day

I do not recommend this book for people who think that:
- They have the best product and brand in the world which is good enough to be sold by itself
- Decision makers for whom quarterly results is the main horizon for their strategy

Most of the comments there already says all - it's definitely a mega weapon in sales manager hands, what author gives, and book can be read and re-read again, there are lot of examples, situations analyzed - just great.
Just one thing I wanted specially note: THANK YOU, to author, who were the first (at least I saw), who explained how to react on the answer: Yeah, buddy all's great with ya offer, but your price is 2 times higher than all other vendors"
Thanks!

I have written 3 sales books and I believe Paul Cherry has written as good a book on questioning as I have ever seen. He takes asking questions to a new level and we recommend it to all of our clients. I have read it twice and I plan to read it over and over. If you believe that by asking better questions you will be more effective in selling then this book you have to read. You won't get one idea about a great question you will get 20. We believe that effective selling demands that as sales people we provoke thought when we interact with our customers or prospects and questioning is the best way to do that. Paul Cherry shows you exactly how to ask questions that engender thinking. An absolute terrific sales book.

Very affordable. Quick read. Great help in training new sales people. It's always a challenge to get my sales staff to really connect with customers and close a sale. This simple book helps them figure out what to say, or what to ask.

Finally, a sales guide that gets right to the point. I've read so many of these sales and marketing texts that lead the reader through a series of generalized statement such as "get to understand your clients needs" or "know who buys your products". These are pretty obvious statements in my mind. Of course, getting to know my customer's needs are going to help my business. It only makes sense that I will sell more if people actually need what I am selling. But how do I find out who my customers are, what is really important to them, and most importantly how do I get them to buy from me rather than from my competitors?

Questions That Sell is the answer. This book gives detailed examples of real questions to use to engage a potential client so that you can actually find out what they need, what their current problems with your competitor are, and how willing they would be to buy your product. I particularly liked the sections on how to determine whether the individual talking to you really wants you to phone back tomorrow or if he or she is just trying to let you down easy, how to determine if you are talking to someone who can actually make a buying decision, and ways to move along clients wanting to sit on the fence.

Skillful questioning is a key to high-level selling. This well known truth that caused me to buy this book hoping it would further my knowledge base.

I found it poorly organized and very very hard to read. At the end of the day it wasn't worth the money I spent.

I've been trying to get my business going for the last few years and its been very frustrating. I found this book by accident in my local library a month ago and have been kicking myself ever since. I read it cover to cover and just now ordered it through Amazon.com so that I can have a copy of my own. It broadened my business perspective, yet has given me more focus to what I am trying to accomplish. This book has really inspired me to redouble my efforts.
Its so rare to find authors that aren't so egotistical that they can't just explain the information. It seems most of them have to either treat the readers like they are idiots, or talk so above the them they can't get any use out of the information. The information in this book is not only clear and concise, the writing style flows and reads very smoothly.

I've used Marcia Yudkin's ideas on writing letters to editors twice. Each time, a variation of my letter lead to a small feature in a newspaper and, even better, new sales! I even have a repeat customer - which is like gold! What I like best about the book is that there are enough different ways to get publicity, that there's a style or method for everyone. You don't have to be outgoing, network like crazy, make sales calls or anything. If you want to be "low key", there are still ideas in this book that will appeal to you and be effective, too.

I am the PR Chairperson for my organization. We are planning our National Convention for July 2002. This book is great. If gives me the basics I need to head up this committee and to know how to handle myself in an area in which I have no experience. Just last week I called a contact at a local newspaper who immediately said.."sorry, can't speak, I'm on deadline." I had just read the chapter that addressed this; how not to take this personally because this is what happens in their line of business. However this person continued to apolgize, took my number and promised to call next week. Admittably so, I am a sensitive person. So, had I not read the book, I probably would not have felt as confident as I did!

Not for nothing, but somewhere on the backburner I wouldn't mind considering a career in this field....somewhere down the line.

Once again, Yudkin proves she's marketeer extraordinaire! From the get-go of this book, I guarantee if you do the things she suggests (from press releases, tip sheets, bios, and brochures) you will bolster sales for your company. This is in area where Yudkin shines - from showing how she worked her own deals to be lucrative for her, to recounting a story of how one woman created spin for a seminar she never gave!

This is a fun read on material that could have been dry. This is one book that won't collect dust on your bookshelf but will be used as a resource again and again.

Yudkin's "Six Steps to Free Publicity" is in reality an easy-to-follow guide to successful marketing and publicity for your business. Yudkin provides the know-how for you to gain publicity, generate name recognition and be considered an expert in your field with fast, free ideas from tip sheets, to press releases, to speaking engagements, to utilization of the Internet. Her true life examples of others will have you laughing out loud with how simple it can be. You'll be taking action before you finish the book and you will reread it over and over to make sure you haven't missed anything. Get your own copy of Yudkin's "Six Steps to Free Publicity" and step into the success you've been dreaming of. Her advice is sound, but most of all, IT WORKS!