DotCom Secrets: The Underground Playbook for Growing Your Company Online


Russell Brunson - 2015
    In Russell Brunson's experience, after working with thousands of businesses, he has found that’s rarely the case. Low traffic and weak conversion numbers are just symptoms of a much greater problem, a problem that’s a little harder to see (that’s the bad news), but a lot easier to fix (that’s the good news). DotComSecrets will give you the marketing funnels and the sales scripts you need to be able to turn on a flood of new leads into your business.

Marketing High Technology


William H. Davidow - 1986
    Gives practical advice on developing and marketing products in the technology industry, looks in detail at Intel's marketing campaign against Motorola, and stresses the importance of commitment to a successful campaign.

Ahead of the Curve: Two Years at Harvard Business School


Philip Delves Broughton - 2005
    Twenty percent of the CEOs of Fortune 500 companies are HBS graduates, as are many of our savviest entrepreneurs (e.g., Michael Bloomberg) and canniest felons (e.g., Jeffrey Skilling). The top investment banks and brokerage houses routinely send their brightest young stars to HBS to groom them for future power. To these people and many others, a Harvard MBA is a golden ticket to the Olympian heights of American business.In 2004, Philip Delves Broughton abandoned a post as Paris bureau chief of the London Daily Telegraph to join nine hundred other would-be tycoons on HBS's plush campus. Over the next two years, he and his classmates would be inundated with the best--and the rest--of American business culture that HBS epitomizes. The core of the school's curriculum is the "case": an analysis of a real business situation from which the students must, with a professor's guidance, tease lessons. Delves Broughton studied more than five hundred cases and recounts the most revelatory ones here. He also learns the surprising pleasures of accounting, the allure of beta, the ingenious chicanery of leveraging, and innumerable other hidden workings of the business world, all of which he limns with a wry clarity reminiscent of Liar's Poker. He also exposes the less savory trappings of b-school culture, from the 'booze luge' to the pandemic obsession with PowerPoint to the specter of depression that stalks too many overburdened students. With acute and often uproarious candor, he assesses the school's success at teaching the traits it extols as most important in business: leadership, decisiveness, ethical behavior, work/life balance.Published during the one hundredth anniversary of Harvard Business School, Ahead of the Curve offers a richly detailed and revealing you-are-there account of the institution that has, for good or ill, made American business what it is today.

Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense


Rory Sutherland - 2019
    Wonderfully applicable to everything in life, and funny as hell.’ Nassim Nicholas TalebTo be brilliant, you have to be irrationalWhy is Red Bull so popular – even though everyone hates the taste? Why do countdown boards on platforms take away the pain of train delays? And why do we prefer stripy toothpaste?We think we are rational creatures. Economics and business rely on the assumption that we make logical decisions based on evidence.But we aren’t, and we don’t.In many crucial areas of our lives, reason plays a vanishingly small part. Instead we are driven by unconscious desires, which is why placebos are so powerful. We are drawn to the beautiful, the extravagant and the absurd – from lavish wedding invitations to tiny bottles of the latest fragrance. So if you want to influence people’s choices you have to bypass reason. The best ideas don’t make rational sense: they make you feel more than they make you think.Rory Sutherland is the Ogilvy advertising legend whose TED Talks have been viewed nearly 7 million times. In his first book he blends cutting-edge behavioural science, jaw-dropping stories and a touch of branding magic, on his mission to turn us all into idea alchemists. The big problems we face every day, whether as an individual or in society, could very well be solved by letting go of logic and embracing the irrational.

Ultimate Sales Machine


Chet Holmes - 2007
    And his advice starts with one simple concept: focus! Instead of trying to master four thousand strategies to improve your business, zero in on the few essential skill areas that make the big difference. Too many managers jump at every new trend, but don’t stick with any of them. Instead, says Holmes, focus on twelve critical areas of improvement—one at a time—and practice them over and over with pigheaded discipline. The Ultimate Sales Machine shows you how to tune up and soup up virtually every part of your business by spending just an hour per week on each impact area you want to improve. Like a tennis player who hits nothing but backhands for a few hours a week to perfect his game, you can systematically improve each key area. Holmes offers proven strategies for: • Management: Teach your people how to work smarter, not harder • Marketing: Get more bang from your Web site, advertising, trade shows, and public relations • Sales: Perfect every sales interaction by working on sales, not just in sales The Ultimate Sales Machine will put you and your company on a path to success and help you stay there!

Designing Brand Identity: An Essential Guide for the Entire Branding Team


Alina Wheeler - 2003
    From researching the competition to translating the vision of the CEO, to designing and implementing an integrated brand identity programme, the meticulous development process of designing a brand identity is presented through a highly visible step-by-step approach in five phases.

Fascinate: Unlocking the Secret Triggers of Influence, Persuasion, and Captivation


Sally Hogshead - 2010
    It's more persuasive than marketing, advertising, or any other form of communication. And it all starts with seven universal triggers: lust, mystique, alarm, prestige, power, vice, and trust.Fascination plays a role in every type of decision making, from the brands you choose to the songs you remember, from the person you marry to the employees you hire. And by activating the right triggers, you can make anything become fascinating.To explore and explain fascination's irresistible influence, Sally Hogshead looks beyond marketing, delving into behavioral and social studies, historical precedents, neurobiology and evolutionary anthropology, as well as conducting in-depth interviews and a national study of a thousand consumers, to emerge with deeply rooted patterns for why, and how, we become captivated.Hogshead reveals why the Salem witch trials began with the same fixations as those in "Sex and the City." How Olympic athletes are subject to obsessions similar to those of fetishists. How a 1636 frenzy over Dutch tulip bulbs perfectly mirrors the 2006 real estate bubble. And why a billion-dollar "Just Say No" program actually increased drug use among teens, by activating the same "forbidden fruit" syndrome as a Victoria's Secret catalog.Whether you realize it or not, you're already using the seven triggers. The question is, are you using the right triggers, in the right way, to get your desired result? This book will show you.

Buying Trances: A New Psychology of Sales and Marketing


Joe Vitale - 2007
    This thoroughly documented and easy-to-read book is the first of its kind. Vitale gives you the keys to their minds. All you have to do is turn the keys. They said 'yes' to you long before you said a word and they were begging to buy from you shortly after you uttered your first sentence. Buying Trances is an exciting ride to the edge of the mind. His finest work to date." -Kevin Hogan, author, The Psychology of Persuasion and Covert Hypnosis "This book maps marketing's final frontier-the customer's mind-and exposes the buying trance. Frankly, this may be the smartest marketing book ever written." -Dave Lakhani, coauthor, Persuasion: The Art of Getting What You Want "As with all of Vitale's books, there are magical secrets chucked out like a mad Vegas poker dealer on every page. Not only will you learn to put people into buying trances with this book, the act of reading it will put you in a trance and force you to master it." -Mark Joyner, #1 bestselling author, The Irresistible Offer: How to Sell Your Product or Service in 3 Seconds or Less "Vitale's expertise in hypnotic marketing combined with his extensive research challenges the reader on many different levels. He forces you to delve deeper into the benefits of creating a buying atmosphere and a trance-like desire on the part of your prospect. I found this an absolutelyfascinating book." -Joseph Sugarman, President, BluBlocker Corporation "Buying Trances is not your run-of-the-mill marketing book. It's an exceptionally well-written, well thought out, high-level work that gives the reader unique insights into how to capture a prospect's attention. Cutting-edge stuff that is a must for every serious marketer to absorb and implement." -Robert Ringer, author, To Be or Not to Be Intimidated?: That Is the Question "Vitale's understanding of how and why people think and act like they do is remarkable. Byunscrambling complex ideas and explaining them in simple language, he reveals how to fashion messages that will turn people into compulsive buyers of our products and services. Now we can take control and create the buying trance. It's a totally refreshing and very effective approach to hugely profitable sales and marketing!" -Winston Marsh, veteran Australian marketer

Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors


Michael E. Porter - 1980
    Porter's Competitive Strategy has transformed the theory, practice, and teaching of business strategy throughout the world. Electrifying in its simplicity -- like all great breakthroughs -- Porter's analysis of industries captures the complexity of industry competition in five underlying forces. Porter introduces one of the most powerful competitive tools yet developed: his three generic strategies -- lowest cost, differentiation, and focus -- which bring structure to the task of strategic positioning. He shows how competitive advantage can be defined in terms of relative cost and relative prices, thus linking it directly to profitability, and presents a whole new perspective on how profit is created and divided. In the almost two decades since publication, Porter's framework for predicting competitor behavior has transformed the way in which companies look at their rivals and has given rise to the new discipline of competitor assessment. More than a million managers in both large and small companies, investment analysts, consultants, students, and scholars throughout the world have internalized Porter's ideas and applied them to assess industries, understand competitors,, and choose competitive positions. The ideas in the book address the underlying fundamentals of competition in a way that is independent of the specifics of the ways companies go about competing. Competitive Strategy has filled a void in management thinking. It provides an enduring foundation and grounding point on which all subsequent work can be built. By bringing a disciplined structure to the question of how firms achieve superior profitability, Porter's rich frameworks and deep insights comprise a sophisticated view of competition unsurpassed in the last quarter-century.

Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love


Marty Cagan - 2008
    The goal of the book is to share the techniques of the best companies. This book is aimed primarily at Product Managers working on technology-powered products. That includes the hundreds of "tech companies" like Google, Facebook, Amazon, Twitter and the like, as well as the thousands of companies moving to leverage technology (financial companies, media companies, retailers, manufacturers, nearly every industry). Inspired covers companies from early stage start-ups to large, established companies. The products might be consumer products or devices, business services for small businesses to enterprises, internal tools, and developer platforms.Inspired is secondarily aimed at the designers, engineers, user researchers and data scientists that work closely with the product managers on product teams at these same companies.

Ca$hvertising: How to Use More Than 100 Secrets of Ad-Agency Psychology to Make BIG MONEY Selling Anything to Anyone


Drew Eric Whitman - 2008
    Do You?FACT! Sixty percent of people read only headlines. Your headline must stop them or your advertising will likely fail.FACT! Captions under photos get 200 percent greater readership than non-headline copy.FACT! Ads with sale prices draw 20 percent more attention.FACT! Half-page ads pull about 70 percent of full-page ads; quarter-page ads pull about 50 percent of full-page ads.FACT! Four-color ads are up to 45 percent more effective than black and white.New York's biggest ad agencies use dozens of these little-known secrets every day to influence people to buy. And now--thanks to Cashvertising--you can, too. And it won't matter one bit whether you're a corporate giant or a mom-and-pop pizza shop. These techniques are based on human psychology. They work no matter where you're located, no matter what kind of product or service you sell, and no matter where you advertise. In fact, most don't cost a penny to use.Like a wild roller-coaster ride through the streets of Madison Avenue, Cashvertising teaches you the tips, tricks, and strategies that New York's top gun copywriters and designers use to persuade people to buy like crazy. No matter what you sell--or how you sell it, this practical, fast-paced book will teach you:How to create powerful ads, brochures, sales letters, Websites, and moreHow to make people believe what you say"Sneaky" ways to persuade people to respondEffective tricks for writing "magnetic" headlinesWhat mistakes to avoid...at all costs!What you should always/never do in your adsExpert formulas, guidance, tips and strategies

Rise of the Youpreneur: The Definitive Guide to Becoming the Go-To Leader in Your Industry and Building a Future-Proof Business


Chris C. Ducker - 2018
    Since then, the Youpreneur has risen to the top across sectors. A Youpreneur transcends the old rules of business and builds a sustainable business from the foundation of their experience, interests, and personality—their personal brand. Youpreneurs draw an engaged, loyal audience even as they pursue varying, changing interests. They play by their own rules, and they reap the benefits. Ready to pivot for the last time, guarantee the success of your business, and become the go-to leader in your industry? Chris Ducker will show you how to develop the Business of You and build a future-proof business model. * * * Chris Ducker is the bestselling author of Virtual Freedom and founder of Youpreneur.com—the entrepreneurial mastermind community that helps experts become the go-to leader in their market. A true entrepreneur at heart, he has built several businesses since venturing into the world of entrepreneurship in 2004, which today collectively house over 450 full-time employees and generate a multi-seven-figure annual revenue. A highly sought-after keynote speaker, trusted international business mentor, blogger, and podcaster, Chris is featured regularly in Entrepreneur, Inc., Success, Forbes, The Huffington Post, and several other key media outlets. Relishing the opportunity to help build strategies for other passionate entrepreneurs that want to grow their businesses in productive and effective ways, Chris hosts several live events each year, including the annual Youpreneur Summit in London. Chris recently relocated back to the UK after many years based in the Philippines, and now lives with his wife and four children in Cambridgeshire. You can reach out to him directly on Twitter @ChrisDucker, or visit his personal website at ChrisDucker.com. * * * Advance praise for Rise of the Youpreneur: “In six years, I’ve built an eight-figure, personal brand business. If I had read Rise of the Youpreneur before I started I could have done it in half the time.” —Michael Hyatt, New York Times bestselling author of Your Best Year Ever “Timely, relevant, and powerful . . . Recommended!” —Jay Baer, Founder of Convince & Convert and author of Hug Your Haters “I’ll be recommending this resource to my community many times over.” —Amy Schmittauer Landino, Founder of Savvy Sexy Social and bestselling author of Vlog Like a Boss “The ultimate guide for personal business success.” —Pat Flynn, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Will It Fly?

Lovemarks


Kevin Roberts - 2004
    Lovemarks is the product of the fertile-iconoclast mind of Kevin Roberts, CEO Worldwide of Saatchi & Saatchi. Roberts argues vociferously, and with a ton of data to support him, that traditional branding practices have become stultified. What's needed are customer Love affairs. Roberts lays out his grand scheme for mystery, magic, sensuality, and the like in his gloriously designed book Lovemarks."-Tom PetersTom Peters, one of the most influential business thinkers of all time, described the first edition of Lovemarks: the future beyond brands as "brilliant." He also announced it as the "Best Business Book" published in the first five years of this century. Now translated into fourteen languages, with more than 150,000 copies in print, Lovemarks is back in a revised edition featuring a new chapter on the peculiarly human experience of shopping. The new chapter, "Diamonds in the Mine," is an insightful collection of ideas for producers and consumers, for owners of small stores and operators of superstores. So forget making lists! Shopping, says Kevin Roberts, is an emotional event. With this as a starting point, he looks at the history of shopping and how it has changed so dramatically over the last ten years. Using the Lovemark elements of Mystery, Sensuality, and Intimacy, Roberts delves into the secrets of success that can be used to create the ultimate shopping experience.

Big Brands, Big Trouble: Lessons Learned the Hard Way


Jack Trout - 2001
     It wasn't long ago that Levi-Strauss, Xerox, Crest, AT&T, Firestone, and Digital Equipment dominated their respective markets. What happened to undermine their standings and of those of other superbrands? Are their declines simply the inevitable consequence of change and the birth of new competition? In this important predecessor to the classic Differentiate or Die, "the king of positioning," Jack Trout answers that question with a resounding "No!" Writing in his signature, straight-from-the-hip style he reveals the disastrous marketing and strategy blunders that led to the dissolution of the most recognized superbrands. He clearly shows how those mistakes could have been avoided. With the help of in-depth case studies chronicling the events leading up to the falls from grace of Sears, Miller Brewing, Xerox, Crest, Burger King, and other past market leaders, he identifies the ten most common mistakes that big brands make, and he develops a set of expert guidelines for marketing managers and executives on how to build, protect, manage, and expand their companies' brands and avoid brand-killing blunders.

Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages


Carlota Pérez - 2002
    Carlota Perez draws upon Schumpeter's theories of the clustering of innovations to explain why each technological revolution gives rise to a paradigm shift and a "New Economy" and how these "opportunity explosions", focused on specific industries, also lead to the recurrence of financial bubbles and crises. These findings are illustrated with examples from the past two centuries: the industrial revolution, the age of steam and railways, the age of steel and electricity, the emergence of mass production and automobiles, and the current information revolution/knowledge society. By analyzing the changing relationship between finance capital and production capital during the emergence, diffusion and assimilation of new technologies throughout the global economic system, this book sheds light on some of the most pressing economic problems of today.