Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple’s Success by Ken Segall

Posted on September 4, 2013     Leave a Comment

If you’re an apple fan girl (like moi) then (like moi) you devour anything related to their marketing in the hope of becoming theInsanely-Simple300 next Steve Jobs – but without the ‘strong’ personality, crazy fruit diets or getting fired. (BTW if you don’t know about any of these things then read his biography, it’s a goodie).

Silliness aside, I do think Steve Jobs + the marketing apple produced under his watch = genius.

And so, yes. I loved this book.

It’s all about simplicity, apple having it and how you can get it.

Here’s six quotes to get you thinking about simplicity

(all quotes from the book) 

  1. “Given the option, any sane person will choose the simple path over one that’s more complicated.”
  2. “As those who have worked with Apple will attest, the simpler way isn’t always the easiest.”
  3. “They seem to forget that trying to please everyone is a good way to please no one.”
  4. “The basic rule of business on the Internet is no different from the one in real-world stores. The faster and simpler you can make the buying experience, the more business you’ll do.” Read More

Robin Hood Marketing: Stealing Corporate Savvy to Sell Just Causes by Katya Andresen

Posted on September 1, 2013     Leave a Comment

Okay this is another great title, right? I just immediately get an image of ol Robin charging along on his horse about to steal marketing concepts from Coca Cola!
Valuable book for any marketers working in the not for profit scene, in particular I like how it’s focused on action and getting shit done (though the author doesn’t use those words of course). It’s not one of those books talking about a complicated strategy or concept where you come away wondering exactly what you’re meant to be doing with your marketing plan this year.

Here’s my top takeaways: 

(headings = mine, all quotes directly from the book)
Accept your customers frame of reference – work with what they know/believe 
“Anything we communicate will get twisted according to the mind it enters. Our ideology is simply not as powerful as our audience’s own mental machinations. As marketers, we have to accept people for who they are and work within the framework they have.”
Research is vital and often common sense 
“Of course!” Good research sometimes seems like common sense, but it’s frequently not so obvious before the research is conducted.

How to talk to anyone, by Leil Lowndes

Posted on August 3, 2013     Leave a Comment

I was rather shy as child. I wish there had been a children’s version of this around in my local library.howtotalktoanyone

It would have needed to be much simpler – as even as an adult I got a little overwhelmed with all the ‘techniques’ – over 90!

Here’s a few that stuck with me – as you’ll see the book content is quite a bit wider than just ‘talking’, here they are:

1. Use the grapevine

Rather than directly praising someone Leil advises using the grapevine to spread your message. The example she gives is in a work setting (Ruth did an amazing job on the website project) but I imagine that this will work in any situation. Imagine: instead of gossiping about your friends, pass on some praise.

2. Use their strongest sense

If you’ve read a few of these communication books (particularly verbal skills) then you’ll come across this often – but it’s worth repeating. The trick is to play to a persons strongest sense. The three are visual, auditory (sound) and kinaesthetic (feeling). Most people are more dominant in one area. The trick is to figure out what it is and then use it. For example I’m an auditory person so I love it when people respond to me with things like “that sounds good” or “can you hear me out”.

3. Ban the one-word answer

Ever been in a networking situation when you’re working your arse of, barrelling out the questions to your new-found friend and receiving answers like ‘yeah’ ‘nah’ ‘maybe’. Either your new-friend is a dick… or they’re just a bit shy and need this advice: don’t leave someone hanging, always offer more than a one word answer. As Leil says:

“Do humanity and yourself a favour. Never, ever, give just a one-sentence response to the question, ‘Where are you from?’ Give the asker some fuel for his tank.” Read More

Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds and Actions by Guy Kawasaki

Posted on August 2, 2013     Leave a Comment

I’ll confess: I wasn’t enchanted by this book. enchantment

I didn’t hate it. If I did it would have ended up in my stopped reading Kindle file – because life’s too short to read shite books!

Plus, I don’t fancy blogging about books I hate – it’s really not me – I always think of the poor author stumbling across rapid Amazon reviews and crying themselves to sleep everynight.

So… I’m left in the rather awkward position of being rather neutral and a bit bored with it really. It’s sort of part-self-help, part-marketing a little bit all over the place.

I’d say in summary it’s around persuading and convincing people to your ideas

Here were the few quotes that did jump out at me (note: few)
(headings = mine, quotes = directly from the book) 

On overcoming resistance
“Ask “What if … ?” When you’re making no progress with a person, ask, “What if we were to change this?” Asking a hypothetical question to see if he’d agree if you made changes is a great way to overcome resistance.”  Read More

Who Gets Promoted, Who Doesn’t, and Why: 10 Things You’d Better Do If You Want to Get Ahead, by Donald Asher

Posted on July 26, 2013     Leave a Comment

I’ve said before that I adore these career type books and this one lived up to my hopes. who-gets-promoted

Fulled with loads of great, common sense advice, you’ll read it and then create a new career plan for your dream job! Or at least have a fair idea of how to improve your current work habits and succeed on.

As for my own advice I would say that we too often (me included) blame other people or what happens (projects, too much work etc) for how our career is progressing, this book reminded me there are always things within our control and there are always opportunities to improve.

Seven kick-arse career tips

(all quotes directly from the book)

1. Know what you’re doing
“But before I get to the secrets, let me give you a piece of essential advice that isn’t a secret at all: Do your job, and do it well.”

2. Make it their idea
“The smartest subordinates can walk into their boss’s office and say, “I think we should paint the walls green, the color of money!” and before they leave, they’ll have convinced their boss that the whole thing was the boss’s idea in the first place. More commonly, the boss will take your idea, change it, and begin to formulate a plan to implement it. Do your best to be the instrument of that change.”

3. Keep a brag sheet
“If you or your team or your department achieves a win, you need to go to your computer and—without being observed—log it onto your “brag sheet,” which should be a private memo to yourself.”

4. Keep learning
“Lifelong learning is required for lifelong success.”

5. Forget yourself, it’s about your boss
“Always make your boss look good.”

6. Ask for what you want – you may just get it!
“Here’s my absolute rule for negotiating: Ask for what would make you delighted.”

7. Failing is fine
“Don’t be afraid to fail. Too often we aim for the middle because we don’t want to deal with spectacular success or failure. But we can only stretch ourselves by aiming for things that we don’t know if we can do.”

If you like this type of read, then another good one is Managing Up: 59 Ways to build a career-advancing relationship with your boss. 

Grab the book here. 

Happy reading,

C

Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business (New Rules Social Media Series) by Ann Handley, C.C. Chapman

Posted on July 22, 2013     Leave a Comment

Solid, solid book for anyone wanting a practical overview of content marketing. The how and the why-the-hell-should-I-learn-Content-Rules_3Dthis-new-fangled-social-media-thing are all covered here.

I liked how this was uber practical and actually drilled down into the types of content you could create… stuff like webinars, blogs, podcasts – the pros and cons of each and how to do it basically (read: cheapo).

Can’t say I’m a fan of those other books that are airy-fairy… you know the ones when you finish reading and think: what the hell did I just learn there? Anywho, this isn’t one of them 🙂

Onto my favourite quotes.. drumroll please…

(headings = mine, all quotes directly from the book) 

Content rules
Next time someone in a meeting says ‘content rules’ (with a smug expression on their face) – you can fire back this eloquent response: “Content may rule, but your online content must be the right sort of content: Customer-focused. Authentic. Compelling. Entertaining. Surprising. Valuable. Interesting. In other words, you must earn the attention of people.” (and then finish with: boom)

All companies are publishers
Have you heard that all companies are now media companies? This is what that means: “when we say that businesses are becoming publishers, we’re referring not to the process of putting ink to paper or printing and binding books but to the notion that creating and delivering relevant, valuable information to people will drive new business to you.” Read More