Marketing Books

I'm a big fan of motivational literature. However, this book is a little tepid. It might be because the material is pretty old and the writing style and anecdotes reflect the era in which it was written.

It does have some classic principles and it's not a very long book so it's not a total waster of money. I would look for it at a flea market, though. In fact, I bought it used through an Amazon store and it came to me all yellowed and very old looking. It might not even be available new anymore. I'm not sure.

Excellent book, easy read, full of life lessons and wisdom. Great book to share with others.

This book is one of the most powerful, yet easy to read books on the market and it's principles are timeless! It's truly a "SIB KIS" work of art. I have had the pleasure of hearing the author speak and most recently a 90 minute private tour of his business where he personally directed me to classics by Oswald Chambers, Spurgeon and could quote passages and find their location from memory. This visit was unannounced and Charlie had just returned from a chemo treatment! Charlie is living proof of his claims and if any one doubts the connection he makes with our creator to these principles needs to spend just five minutes with him to understand their validity. Charlie is "suffering" with terminal prostate cancer. Yet to see him, be hugged by him and hear the energy in his soul would put most young people to shame. Charlie has no fear of his future and actually is looking forward to this next phase of his "journey". I have read many books that "tell" people how to live. Charlie actually lives his philosophy and tells them to stop trying to be perfect and enjoy the one who is! If you read this book years ago and found it helpful, read it again as odds are you situation in life has changed, but fortunately these principles have not. Even better purchase several books and share them with your friends, family and business associates, it's a great way to pass on the powerful message that can benefit anyone who dares to take them to heart.

I have heard Charlie Jones speak many times. His program designed to turn his kids into readers worked in my family too. This little book is a real gem. It can be a lifesaver on days when there seems no place to turn to for encouragement. His persaonal responsibility attitude is much needed today. Rather than looking for the most fulfilling job or purpose in life it is far more useful to be responsible and turn our lives into positive and purposful examples for others. Life truly can be tremendous if one has the right perspective. Charlie can help you there!

This is a great book that is simple, to the point, and something that you can pick up for a quick read almost every day. Highly recommend.

This is another good book of logo ideas. Great for inspiration. Nicely laid out and the pages are of good quality glossy paper. Very nice book for my collection.

This series is a must have for any designer. Not only is it great for ideas, but a nice tool to have when a wishy-washy client just isn't sure what they want. If you are a serious designer, you must own all the Logo Lounge books.

Always a fan, the assemblage of brands from every corner is impressive and helpful. The Lounge has always been and continues to be a wonderful resource for jump-starting logo block.

Great book for inspiration and search for the right ideas. This time RockPub. is making few more pages showing how the logos work in the graphic design environment.

I was excited to see foreign companies using the latest styles in advertisement, like the russian phone company "BeeLine."

Wold highly recoment this book for a graphic design major and advertisement.

Whether you are fresh out of college or a seasoned Senior designer, you will find this book an amazing resource of ideas, trends and just plain good design.

We actually have purchased every volume and they keep getting better and better. Logo Lounge 3 is no different in terms of the unique talent chosen to be showcased in this edition.

If you need a design spark look no further, this is the book of choice.

[...]

If you are a marketer, or responsible for the sales and or service of a product, then you know that if you don't make sales, you don't make money. It is amazing how many advertisers and marketers forget that fact.

George Parker gets it. The ironic part is that he has far more in common with direct marketers than with the Madison Avenue types that he typically consorts with.

There is a large focus on really understanding the Unique Selling Point of your product. This is often glossed over in Business Schools, but it really is key. If you can't say what makes your product or service different than the competition then how can you expect your clients to get it?

12 well thought out chapters covering print, television, radio, Internet and much, much more.

Although not the final word, a solid read and well though out perspective.

Recommended!

Cheers!

I guess I thought I'd learn something from reading this. But I didn't. That's not the author's fault. He may not have intended the book for an experienced advertising person.

I did enjoy a few tidbits. For example, he told how the use of the storyboard was a tool used by ad agencies to impress clients and win business but it was not necessary or even useful in writing television commercials.

While that's no doubt true, I still find a storyboard useful in developing a plot and use one often. Not for clients but for myself.

There's not a lot to this book in the way of helping an experienced copywriter or ad person. There's a dab of dish but not much. There are some pointers for the beginner or the person looking to do his own advertising.

Though primarily intended as a primer for entrepreneurs, MADSCAM is a must-read for anyone interested in or working in advertising. The reason is the author's unrivalled experience. George Parker has logged in nigh-on 40 years at the center of the advertising vortex. George was around on Mad. Ave. in the golden age of the 1960s creative revolution and he's still a vital force in the digital age. No mean feat in an industry that devours youthful vitality like potato chips.

In this book George tells it like it is. MADSCAM is the unvarnished truth. George is evidently allergic to BS. Which makes his tenure in our industry all the more remarkable.

MADSCAM tells you pretty much everything you'll need to know to create your own ad campaign. And it will put you wise to some of the tricks of big ad agencies, or BDAs (Big Dumb Agencies) as George calls them. Reading this will potentially save advertisers and marketers a lot of time, money and grief.

George is as engaging to read here as he is on his many blogs and, perhaps astonishingly, I couldn't find a single swear word!

If you want to advertise your business, book or yourself, this is the only book you need. George Parker tells us in no uncertain terms, what works and what doesn't. He tells us exactly how advertising works, how the industry works and how we can make it work for our business. Nothing is left out, no question is unanswered, and if you want more of George after you read this book you can subscribe to his blogs and keep updated on what else is happening in advertising.

George Parker nails it, breaking down the advertising process step-by-step in a practical, nuts and bolts fashion while simultaneously mocking the mentality of many "BDA's" as he calls them (Big Dumb Agencies). His criticism of agencies adding layer upon layer of abstraction to justify their billings, their obsession with awards, and in his view overall lack of spine is classic for anybody involved in advertising. He does a great job of simplifying things and providing a manual of sorts for entrepreneurs. There were points in this book I laughed out loud and others where I nodded and thought, "Well put George." Check his blog if you want a more bombastic delivery of some of these ideas (if profanity offends you, go read some industry drivel instead).

This book is very useful to the green Legal Nurse Consultant. Very useful and mostly relevant guidance and suggestions by the authors. My only negative comment would be it is in need of a revision to bring it up to speed with the current technology available and in use by the professional audience.

This book is a fun read, as well as a concise, comprehensive resource for the aspiring LNC.
I was amused, educated, and inspired, to continue my pursuit in this area of nursing.
After the discussion regarding the need for writing well to capture and satisfy a client, however, I was a little disappointed that, in editing, many "typos" were overlooked.
Ah, but in this new computer assisted age, that is certainly possible.
For potential buyers, though- do not let that stop you from using this book. Many thanks to the "Team Joos"!

The book was shipped right away and in excellent condition. Thank you.

Marketing for the Legal Nurse Consultant is the most valuable book in my library! The Joos' walk LNCs through the world of marketing with ease. I've been lucky enough to have met these fine people in person and attended their marketing seminars. Here again, this is a "must do" for the independent legal nurse consultant. My cards and brochures went through major overhauls with their help and my business has prospered! Thank you both, John and Betty, for all you do! I'm looking forward to purchasing your next edition.

Betty and John Joos have created THE BEST marketing book for Legal Nurse Consultants ever written! The book is an easy read packed with real-life answers to real-life marketing questions. It is a practical approach to what really works, coupled with humor. Unbeknownst to them, they have become my business partners.

This is not a book which you read through over a period of hours. In fact it is quite possible that you will never read all of the book, but yet find it invaluable.

Fox breaks the sales stage down into logical segments and provides good "plays" to make the sales process more productive. Sales segments include: Thinking, Reaching, Engaging, Keeping.

None of the plays are innovative, but they are relevant. He provides the reader with good insight and detail on "plays" such as print advertising, Linkedin, PR, Customer referrals, Customer surveys etc. He also makes an effort to cost out these plays. I did find some of his costings on the high side, but it is up to you "the player" to make sure you get your value for money.

The book is not cheap, but if you want a good reference, idea book at your fingertip, it is good value.

Marketing Playbook: The Manual for Growing Organizations is a compendium of 102 marketing strategies to meet sales goals. A football-style theme and trappings capture the reader's eye, but at its heart Marketing Playbook is all business. Tips, tricks and techniques include the basics for creating a good business card, how to create a series of "thank you" postcards with impact, using web conferencing to give a sales presentation without leaving one's chair, how to break through voicemail, and much more. A surprisingly intense amount of detail on each topic and full-color photographs on every page distinguish Marketing Playbook as a top-quality reference and resource for marketing professionals.

Over the past several years there has been an outpouring of titles dealing with the topic of effective marketing techniques that has spawned a cottage industry of thousands of books, and whose publishers rant that by purchasing their book you will invariably be led to the Promised Land.

I don't doubt that most authors of marketing books often work extra hard to find new and creative perspectives on their subject. Unfortunately, however, most fail, as very often their approach is filled with a great deal of hype, but little useful content.

Now, along comes John M. Fox's fresh and innovative approach with his manual Marketing Playbook: The Manual for Growing Organizations 102 of the Best Marketing Plays to Get Your Sales Team Across the Goal Line, where the author uses the metaphor of a football playbook to tutor his readers on how to develop an effective and winning marketing plan.

The manual organizes itself into 102 plays, each comprising one glossy page with full color images, wherein you have the following sections: a diagram, illustration or picture of the Play when correctly executed, next to the image you have the number and name of the Play, on the left hand side of the page you have the strategies and costs, while the center of the page consists of the Assignments and Coaching Points, and the bottom of the page indicates the Primary Receivers as types, their level, and who is the product or service best suited for.
In addition, Fox includes a value-added bonus by providing at the end of some of the pages a section called Extra Points, where you can download from the author's website extra information pertaining to the Play. There is even a scoreboard that rates the Play's strategic or tactical applicability.
For example, if we look at Play 35, Press Releases That Get Ink, we notice that the focus of the strategy is to get your news story in the press, what are the expected costs of a professional writer, how the marketing team and the PR agency should work together, and ends with vital coaching points.

By presenting the material in this way, devoid of technical jargon, verbiage and redundancy, fundamental principles are broken down into understandable messages that everyone can easily follow. Moreover, the book is as informative as it is fun, as the author has taken pains to be clear and concise, while keeping the tone light and approachable. Although, the author states in his notes that he has written the book from the first-person to company leaders, rookie employees and the self-employed will likewise benefit from its reading.
For those who wish to explore the various topics further, the author provides a bibliography of references, resources and additional reading that correspond to each of the Plays. There is even at the end of the manual a glossary index containing a listing of some familiar and unfamiliar terms the author uses in his presentations.

Norm Goldman, Editor Bookpleasures

This book is very engaging, in fact, hard to put down. As a seasoned marketing executive, I am often disappointed with marketing books yet this one was a pleasant surprise and loaded with useful information. John's suggestions are easy to implement and focused on helping sales make sales! Too many marketers focus on brand image to the exclusion of lead generation and customer aquisition. What good is a brand if there is no money in the bank! This book will keep new and seasoned marketers in growth companies on track with cost-effective ideas to ring the sales bell. An excellent feature is a list of sample vendors and the approximate cost of various "plays"; this alone will save new marketers research time and money and allow them to maximize tight marketing budgets for maximum results. This book is worth every penny and there is something inside that will work for every type of business.

Whether a company needs to know how to get its news in front of people who care through news distribution, or how to present it in a binder, John Fox's Marketing Playbook lays it out ... plus John gives you the names of sources who will help. It's the kind of book anybody in marketing and sales will keep and refer to often.

Morrison has delivered the irrefutable "how to" book for marketers, advertisers, and promoters interested in tapping the student market. His balance of strategic insight, wit, and key market stats is right on-target. (This guy really knows his stuff!) The case studies are highly informative and the strategic recommendations that Morrison provides based on his obvious experience is timeless. I wholeheartedly recommend this book as it's a masterpiece for its genre.

Morrison has written the definitive bible for student marketers. Don't let the title mislead you, "Campus Crowd" is just as on-target for marketers interested in teens through twentysomethings as it is for the college market proper. In fact, I'm ordering several books for our ad agency to bring them up to speed. The author devotes a tremendous amount of the book to strategy and infuses the text with just the right balance of stats. The examples, he calls them "Best in Class" case studies, are perfect and there are dedicated sections to both the pre- and post-college segments. Fantastic book. Highly recommended without hesitation.

Given how much college students spend, and their obvious influence on other desirable market segments, Morrison's book is a "must have" for marketers, advertisers, salespeople, and administrators that want to optimize their decision-making with this group. (I actually heard about this book from an overseas colleague of mine.) The author's knowledge is self-evident and the book is a perfect balance of information as well as strategic insight. Morrison even dedicates chapters to future trends (such as privatization and non-traditional students) as well as chapters on targeting high school students, alumni, school buyers, faculty, parents, and recent grads. It's one of the few books that I keep permanently on my desk both to stimulate my thinking as well as to reference key data. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

"Marketing to the Campus Crowd" is an intelligent and highly insightful book from someone that knows young adult marketing cold. Every page oozes the author's obvious expertise with this age group and the book even includes separate chapters on both pre-college students as well as the larger young adult market. As one who works for an ad agency that target's Generation Y, this book is a MUST HAVE! It is both an excellent source for strategic inspiration as well as an overall "how to" guide on tackling this coveted, yet highly elusive, consumer market. Thanks, David, for sharing your wisdom and your wit. Both are deeply appreciated!

Highly recommend this excellent book for marketing pros interested in successfully targeting the student market. Fantastic book! Perfect balance of statistics, great insights on the student psyche, and extensive examples of marketers that are getting it right. Morrison knows his stuff cold and it shows on every page. Can't go wrong with this book, but you can easily go wrong without it! Totally original as there's no other book in Europe (or the States) like it. Five stars. Simply outstanding!!

It's a red book. It has a cover on it. It arrived just like I was expecting it to. It looks great. I like it.

This book came when expected and was in great condition. Terrific seller!

This book is the best of the business books I reviewed for ideas on how to help approach the research and analysis for my business idea. It's more aimed at folks with business ideas that are geared to being large scale enterprises rather than a small individual proprietiorship . This book is the best of the business books I reviewed for ideas on how to help approach the research and analysis for my business idea. It's more aimed at folks with business ideas that are geared to being large scale enterprises rather than a small individual proprietorship. Most of the "How to write a business plan" books are worthless. You can find the same information on the Internet for free - try the SBA website. This provides a nice structure for analysis outside those cookie-cutter books.

Everyone likes their own ideas and everyone believes that their own ideas are fool-proof. There's no way to check and grind your idea/business plan before going to actual VCs. Till now the only way to analyze your idea was by going through the 3Fs (Famliy, Friends and Fools).
Here is where 'The New Business Road Test' comes in as a savior. This book has all the ideas/ procedures/ questions/ & guidelines to review and grill your idea to perfection before plunging into the real venture. There are many books out there to tell you HOW to write a business plan, but none to actually analyze your business plan.
The presentation of the book is quite simple to understand and refer to in future. The 'Seven Domain Analysis' diagram really makes it simple to review any idea/plan and term it as feasible or not-feasible.
I read the book before going into my first venture and it made me look at my business plan in a whole different way. I was not only able to identify the loop holes but also the ways i could improve my business plans. Even today while I am lookin at a new venture, I find myself always going back and refering to this book.
Once Read, this book will make a place in your entrepreneurial life. This is a must-read book for entrepreneurs as well as VC aspirants.

Having launched several major ventures over the past decades, I have learned that careful advance planning and analysis cannot be over-emphasized. Through the years, I have struggled to develop a robust framework to analyze opportunities before investing time and money.

Mullins has beaten me to the task. Full of frameworks and anecdotes, theory and practice. Thorough, logical, insightful, and easy to follow. An excellent roadmap for the novice and expert alike. My three copies are already dog-eared.

There is something universal about the appeal of Harry the dog and his adventures. Little children who have pets in their home environment will easily identify with ALL the 'Harry' stories.

I am so excited!! today I was seeing a patient in Greenville, South carolina and much to my surprise, sitting on the floor of her home was, No Roses for Harry. When I was a child (I am currently 54) this was one of my favorite books. When I had my children I tried to find this series of Harry books but could not remember the names. Oh so depressing. My depression lifted today. At this point in my life I have college and high school students, but the future is bright. Maybe my grandchildren can now benefit. So excited. I can guarantee any youngster will sit down and listen to this book, over and over again.

One thing I have found myself doing is going back and buying all these classic books that I read as a youngster. My little one LOVES Harry! He's just as popular with the kids today as he was 50 years ago when he first was published. He gets read over, and over, and over..... in our house and I keep getting requests for more Harry books! Highly recommend!

I loved this book as a child and loved it all over again when I read it with my siblings. They enjoyed it all over again as well. It sparked a good talk about our stories of growing up. It was fun!

When Grandma sends the family a sweater for Harry, he knows right away he doesn't like it. It was a green sweater with roses on it. Harry is white dog with black spots and that's the look he likes. He tries to lose the sweater time and time again, but people keep bringing it back, then a bird grabs a lose strand and flies away, unravelling the sweater as she goes. Soon the sweater is gone, vanishing before Harry's eyes and he is happy. But then he learns Grandma is coming to visit and he is worried.

The family looks all over for the sweater, but can't find it. Then when Grandma arrives, she takes Harry for a walk in the park and up in a tree they see a bird with a new nest which looks exactly like Harry's sweater. This is a nice story. My little guy just loves it and frankly I prefer these children's books from the middle of the last century. They really knew how to illustrate them back then.

Sales folks by nature tend to be uninhibited, and when they become sought-after trainers and speakers, audiences reinforce this tendency by responding warmly to charming, oddball openers and anecdotes. In this case, however, even while providing substantial advice, author George Ludwig demonstrates that personal stories that bring down the house during a speech don't always translate into print. Moreover, a single anecdote, like a sharpshooter's bullet, often has more effect than a machine-gun spray of tales. Some of the stories (maybe the one about "Captain Underpants") don't contribute much. If you put the distracting anecdotes aside, however, what you have left is a very solid book capitalizing on the author's extensive practical experience. Has Ludwig cracked a genetic "sales code" that will help you earn more? Maybe not. However, his seven secrets are seven staples any salesperson needs. We believe that most sales professionals and sales trainers will benefit from his sound motivational and logistical advice.

I love this book! I was quite surprised at Ludwig's refreshing and unique sales approach which if employed will (according to some heavy hitting testimonials) boost your bottom line. Ludwig's "Up Close and Personal" writing style makes Power Selling an enjoyable read while revisiting old strategies and inventing some fundamental new strategies Ludwig's Power Selling will revitalize your selling style. This is a nuts and bolts tool that can be used by sales professionals as well as business professionals across the spectrum for purposes of honing skills in the areas of client communication, client relationships and customer service. Mr. Ludwig might want to do a sequel to Power Selling, leave out the abundance of quotes and stick to his own inventive, ingenious thoughts - they are definitely worth expounding on. C. Roach

Our firm has had the pleasure of working with George in a consultative relationship, and when he told us about his vision for "Power Selling" I was concerned. George is chapter two ... The Power of Real Passion. How are you ever going to capture your energy and enthusiasm for attracting and retaining client relationships in a book...I wondered. Well, he has done it. By reading Power Selling you will feel George's energy ramp up with every passing chapter. This book is the only resource that I've come accross that takes the best of sales success of the past half century and finally connects the dots. If you're looking for gimmicks and a quick fix then move on. But if you have a passion for people and a passion for your commodity, then this book is a must read!

One of the most powerful messages in this book is on page 127. It is here that Ludwig illustrates the sales funnel. This is a core philosophy and driver in the sale profession that many times is ignored. Great book and solid message.PowerPrinciples: Do You Have The Winning Edge?

George Ludwig grasps concepts that seem to have eluded many of the leading thinkers in sales and he debunks many of the myths that revolve around so-called "strategic selling". His original research that uncovered "the seven powers" of the world's greatest salespeople, which are really "best-of-breed practices," is right on the money. This might be the first sales book you could actually hand to your buyer and say "Here's how I'd like to proceed with you," because of the integrity and trust woven into the Power Selling approach. I literally read the entire book cover-to-cover in one sitting, and as of this writing I'm reading it a second time. And Ludwig's on-line assessment tool is a great addition to the book. The book has definitely helped my air charter business grow to the next level and it's the best overall book on selling strategy I've ever read--and I think I've read most of them.

This is exactly what I was looking for when I started my own company 5 years ago. From high level strategy to detailed implementation, this book has it all. An invaluable tool for growing my small business. I just wish I had it sooner. It walks through all the stages to grow a profitable customer base. I particularly like the focus on details and the personal stories of success and failure. It made it all the more readable. The templates also showed how to easily take a marketing theory and implement it within my own business. I strongly recommend this for any small business owner looking to grow profitably!

I benefited greatly from the common sense approach to marketing offered in this book. I strongly recommend this book to the novice or someone like me who has been running his own business for over 25 years.

The Scarboroughs have written a clear and concise marketing tool. I have used it successfully to "market my new career".
I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for solid advice that works!

This book was OK. I really wish I could rate it higher than I have. But it just fell short in too many areas. I had high hopes for it because there certainly is a hole in the bookstore offerings for how to write a sound marketing plan for one's small business. If the authors had focused more on the subject at hand (how to write a marketing plan) and written a tighter manuscript, they could have produced a best seller since there isn't any competition. Unfortunately, in my humble opinion, the book does not focus just on how to write a stellar marketing plan. Instead, it also includes some talk of success in life, and some talk related to business plans. This book isn't supposed to be about life coaching or business plans.

This past week I have been posting book reviews for books I read a few years back regarding nonprofit management and nonprofit fundraising. Although nonprofits can, and often do, have a marketing plan as well as a fundraising plan, the two plans are designed and written using similar processes. I mention this here because the instant book I am reviewing reminds me of two of the books I recently reviewed: The Fundraising Planner (ISBN: 0787944351), and Ten Steps to Fundraising Success (ISBN: 0787956740). The quality of the instant book lies somewhere in between these two books, but it is more like the second book. And I had hoped it would have been more like the first book.

In the business coaching that I perform as a SCORE volunteer I regularly advise my clients that a wanta-be entrepreneur needs to write a sound business plan regarding the business they want to start. And when they write the business plan there will be a few "subsidiary plans" that need to be written, too: marketing, publicity (public relations), and networking. Generally speaking, when I refer to a business plan I am referring to the subsidiary plans as well. I don't bother to mention them by name.

When one researches and writes a business plan they usually have to: (1) ID the business they want to start, (2) surf the Internet to find Web sites of companies similar to the business they want to start, (3) surf the Internet to find Web sites of companies they will actually compete with for customers, and (4) study the market and customers within that market they hope to sell to. When one performs steps 2 and 3 and studies those Web sites they should be able to determine what marketing techniques those companies use in order to stay in business and prosper.

So what is involved in writing your marketing plan? First, you basically document a consolidated marketing plan that describes how your competitors market their services and/or products. Said another way, what techniques do they use to market themselves? Second, you strategize to make the plan better so when you use it your business will be more successful than the competition. Third, you determine whether or not you are capable of implementing the plan. Fourth, you modify the plan so you can implement it. And five, you integrate the plan into your overall business plan so it works in conjunction with your publicity plan and networking plan.

What I liked the most in this book was that the authors are firm believers in writing a plan. They spend quite a bit of time trying to convince the reader that it is foolish to try to be successful at marketing without creating a written marketing plan. And I couldn't agree more with the authors. However, the chapters they provide on how to create a written marketing plan don't match up with the way I would advise my clients to go about doing it. If the book had been laid out more like The Fundraising Planner referred to above, then things would be different. 3.5 stars!

What I liked the best about this book is that is breaks down a subject that is so intimidating - developing a marketing plan - and makes it manageable. It sounds simple, but I'm amazed that no-one has taken the time to do that before!

I also felt like I "got" a lot of concepts for the first time - like what marketing actually is - you mean it's not the same as advertising??
This book is well worth the money, not just for the advice but for the clarity and "ah-ha" moments it gave me. Thanks for the help!