But in a world obsessed with the new, where cool added features often trump actual customer needs, it’s the consumer who suffers. In our quest to be more agile, we end up creating products that underwhelm.So how does a company like Nest, creator of the mundane thermostat, earn accolades like “beautiful” and “revolutionary” and a $3.2 billion Google buyout? What did Nest do differently to create a household product that people speak of with love?Nest, and companies like it, understand that emotional connection is critical to product development. And they use a clear, repeatable design process that focuses squarely on consumer engagement rather than piling on features for features’ sake.In this refreshingly jargon-free and practical book, product design expert Jon Kolko maps out this process, demonstrating how it will help you and your team conceive and build successful, emotionally resonant products again and again.The key, says Kolko, is empathy. You need to deeply understand customer needs and feelings, and this understanding must be reflected in the product. In successive chapters of the book, we see how leading companies use a design process of storytelling and iteration that evokes positive emotions, changes behavior, and creates deep engagement. Here are the four key steps:1. Determine a product-market fit by seeking signals from communities of users.2. Identify behavioral insights by conducting ethnographic research.3. Sketch a product strategy by synthesizing complex research data into simple insights.4. Polish the product details using visual representations to simplify complex ideas.Kolko walks the reader through each step, sharing eye-opening insights from his fifteen-year career in product design along the way.Whether you’re a designer, a product developer, or a marketer thinking about your company’s next offering, this book will forever change the way you think about—and create—successful products.

    Logolounge features the work of superstar artists and firms such as Michael Vanderbyl and Sibley Peteet Design and includes both new campaigns and never-before-seen projects. With 2,000 logos from a variety of sources, this visually compelling volume will become the go-to resource for inspiration from the best in the field.

    At many companies, being first with a concept and first to market are critical just to survive. In The Art of Innovation, Tom Kelley, general manager of the Silicon Valley based design firm IDEO, takes readers behind the scenes of this wildly imaginative and energized company to reveal the strategies and secrets it uses to turn out hit after hit.IDEO doesn't buy into the myth of the lone genius working away in isolation, waiting for great ideas to strike. Kelley believes everyone can be creative, and the goal at his firm is to tap into that wellspring of creativity in order to make innovation a way of life. How does it do that? IDEO fosters an atmosphere conducive to freely expressing ideas, breaking the rules, and freeing people to design their own work environments. IDEO's focus on teamwork generates countless breakthroughs, fueled by the constant give-and-take among people ready to share ideas and reap the benefits of the group process. IDEO has created an intense, quick-turnaround, brainstorm-and-build process dubbed "the Deep Dive."In entertaining anecdotes, Kelley illustrates some of his firm's own successes (and joyful failures), as well as pioneering efforts at other leading companies. The book reveals how teams research and immerse themselves in every possible aspect of a new product or service, examining it from the perspective of clients, consumers, and other critical audiences.Kelley takes the reader through the IDEO problem-solving method:> Carefully observing the behavior or "anthropology" of the people who will be using a product or service> Brainstorming with high-energy sessions focused on tangible results> Quickly prototyping ideas and designs at every step of the way> Cross-pollinating to find solutions from other fields> Taking risks, and failing your way to success> Building a "Greenhouse" for innovationIDEO has won more awards in the last ten years than any other firm of its kind, and a full half-hour Nightline presentation of its creative process received one of the show's highest ratings. The Art of Innovation will provide business leaders with the insights and tools they need to make their companies the leading-edge, top-rated stars of their industries.From the Hardcover edition.

    Yet, today, his content has over 350 million views and industry masters universally agree that Aashish has cracked the viral code.In Fast, Cheap and Viral, the ace marketer shares the secrets behind his success - all of them learnt and honed on his journey. This one-stop super-guide to viral video marketing gives you the low-down on:HOW TO GRAB EYEBALLS in a sea of content;HOW TO DRIVE ENGAGEMENT (because views can be bought, but engagement is earned);WHY STORYTELLING BEATS PRODUCTION VALUE and behind-the-scenes tips and tricks;HOW TO BUILD YOUR PERSONAL BRAND and kill job insecurity.For every student, entrepreneur, blogger, marketing manager or leader who dreams of reaching millions on a shoestring budget, this book is the definitive manual on sustainable viral success.

    When it collapsed in February 2014, lawyers across Canada and the business community were stunned. What went wrong? Why did so many lawyers run for the exit? How did it implode? What is it that holds professional partnerships together?This is the story of the rise and fall of a great company by the ultimate insider, Norman Bacal, who served as managing partner until a year before the firm's demise. Breakdown takes readers into the boardroom offices during the heady growth of a legal empire built from the ground up over 40 years. We see how after a change of leadership tensions erupted between the Toronto and Montreal offices, and between the hard-driving lawyers themselves. It is a story about the extraordinary fragility of the legal partnership, but it's also a classic business story, a cautionary tale of the perils of ignoring a firm's culture and vision.Normal0falsefalsefalseEN-USJAX-NONE<!--StartFragment--><!--EndFragment--><!--EndFragment-->

    Why you should be a commercial investor, where the biggest pitfalls are, which types of properties are best for those just getting started, how to analyze any commercial deal quickly, how to speak the language of commercial real estate, the 4 guiding principles of commercial investment and much, much more. Let the author of Commercial Real Estate Investing for Dummies walk you through how to get started in Commercial Real Estate in this incredibly informative book.

    Suspended for a few seconds, they float in their own space and time with their own hidden prospects. For want of a better term, we call these moments “magical” and when we remember them they are cloaked in a halo of special meaning.’For 14-year-old Johnny Clegg, hearing Zulu street music as plucked on the strings of a guitar by Charlie Mzila one evening outside a corner café in Bellevue, Johannesburg, was one such ‘magical’ moment. The success story of Juluka and later Savuka, and the cross-cultural celebration of music, language, story, dance and song that stirred the hearts of millions across the world, is well documented. Their music was the soundtrack to many South Africans’ lives during the turbulent 70s and 80s as the country moved from legislated oppression to democratic freedom. It crossed borders, boundaries and generations, resonating around the world and back again. Less known is the story of how it all began and developed. Scatterling of Africa is that origin story, as Johnny Clegg wrote it and wanted it told. It is the story of how the son of an unconventional mother, grandson of Jewish immigrants, came to realise that identity can be a choice, and home is a place you leave and return to as surely as the seasons change.

    From working with and managing multiple layers to using layers to enhance and retouch photos, this Photoshop guru covers it all.

    Providing strategies and solutions for the managers of today, this book offers answers for improving employee commitment and profitability by strategically acknowledging employee effort. How is it done? The deceptively simply answer: with carrots.

    and without chasing after clients!In The Rookie Copywriter’s Survival Guide, master copywriter and serial entrepreneur Doberman Dan, shows how anybody with just mediocre... or even NO copywriting skills... can make a LOT of money in a very short period of time.This isn’t the typical “pay your dues and work for peanuts” advice often given to rookie copywriters or people who are thinking of getting into the business of copywriting. It’s a unique way you can get paid... and paid very well... while you learn the craft of direct response copywriting.Dan reveals the exact plan he used to break free from a low paying dead-end job and went on to make MILLIONS while becoming one of the most in-demand copywriters in the country. Dan has used his copywriting skills to “bootstrap” numerous businesses over the past 20 years... with nothing but a yellow notepad, pen and the gray matter between his ears. Time and time again... in a plethora of markets and niches.You’ll discover the highly profitable secrets from a battle-hardened grizzled veteran entrepreneur, marketer and copywriter that can only be gained from decades of hard-won “in the trenches” experience.Who is Doberman Dan?After twelve years as a full-time inner city police officer and 9 years of part-time consecutive entrepreneurial failures, Dan finally discovered the secrets of the most successful copywriters and direct marketers in the world. After his 9 years of “trial by fire” business failures, he finally “hit a home run” in the mail order business. He went on to apply his successful marketing and copywriting experience to online marketing... for his own businesses and also as a consultant to some of the most successful businesses in the country.

    For some, blogging is a pastime, a hobby, something to fulfil a creative need. But some take blogging one step further. Many individuals, with no special training, are using their blog/s as a part-time or even a full-time job. You may already have a blog that could do with a few more visitors. Or maybe you’re thinking of setting up a blog but are not sure where to start. The question most people ask me is ‘How do I get visitors to my blog?’ It’s like setting up a shop on the High Street and facing the challenge of getting people in the door. The good news is – I have answers that will see your visitor count lift substantially. All you need is a computer, an internet connection and a brain (your own preferably). Here’s what you don’t need: money. This book answers your blogging questions in a practical and straightforward way. How My Blog Got 1 Million Visits In 7 Months has been designed to show you how to drive people to your blog – and how to keep them coming back, time after time. It’s designed for bloggers and for those who have websites that could do with more traffic. I’m a multi-award winning blogger and publisher and have been for over eight years. When I first started blogging, I got very excited to see that one person kept visiting my site. That was until I realised that the analytics was, in fact, counting me as a visitor. I’ve learned a lot since. My latest blog broke through the 1,000,000 visit mark after just 7 months. As a result, my blog is now a profitable business. I haven’t spent a penny on advertising and I spend about 30 minutes a day blogging at most. I’ve picked up a large-scale book deal as a direct result of my blog. In this book, I’ll show you the basics of setting up your blog; how to write content that people will just want to click on and share with their friends; how to create viral posts that will see your visitor statistics balloon; how to write content for your website that will sell your services or products; how to optimise your posts for search engines and how to make money from your blog. My promise to you is this - if you use the tips and tricks that I am about to show you, your site will get more traffic and you can start making money from it. These are proven techniques that you can start implementing on your blog straight away. Run the kind of blog that other bloggers envy. Be the kind of blogger that people marvel at. It’ll make you feel pretty good, I guarantee it. Find out how right now. *** “Patric Morgan's How My Blog Got 1 Million Visitors in 7 Months makes me sick! I've got 15,000+ people on my combined social media and I've never gotten even close to a million visits on my site. Screw you, Patric! However – I have read through his book and have found some cool tricks to steal and apply. Shh...don't tell him.” Vicki Abelson, Author of ‘Don't Jump’, published October '15 from Carl Reiner's Random Content. “What an absolutely incredible 'How to Guide'. This book will give you the tools you need to increase your web traffic and create a viral sensation from your blog or website. Follow the common sense approach within these pages and maybe you'll be writing your own success story very soon. A must read for any avid blogger trying to step up into the big leagues. Buy it now!” Nigel Shinner, Author of the critically acclaimed novel ‘From Within’ “It’s good to read something that actually delivers on the title of the book.

    At heart I’m an engineer. I want to encourage people to fix things, not to raise false hopes.' Mteto Nyati knew years ago as a schoolboy in Mthatha, working behind the counter at his mother’s trading store, that he wanted to fix and build things. After completing his studies in Mechanical Engineering at Natal University, he turned down a Rhodes scholarship and headed for Johannesburg to take up a position at Afrox. He was the only black engineer and the sole advice he received from his superiors was ‘don’t mess up’. He didn’t. Today Nyati is one of South Africa’s top CEOs, having steered Microsoft South Africa and MTN South Africa out of troubled times. He is currently guiding the transition of Altron from a family business, started at the height of apartheid, into a high-performing international IT company with a social conscience.

    And how do you do that? By learning to Push in the Orangetheory Fitness workout. By doing so, you also learn to do the same in your life - to take on new challenges, to pursue your biggest goals, and to become the best version of you.What makes Orangetheory different from every workout you’ve tried? Why is it one of the fastest-growing fitness franchises today? And how can it change your life? In Push, you’ll learn the amazing story behind Orangetheory, the journey Ellen Latham took to create it, and how to apply the elements of Base, Push, and All Out from the workout studio to your own life.

    YouTube : I Invented You Tube is the true story of how Eric Skaggs gave Chad Hurley the idea for YouTube from domain name to exit strategy and everything else in between in exchange for a promise of one percent of $1.65 billion.

    It didn't matter that Jeff Gordon hailed from California -- hardly a fountain of stockcar pedigree -- or that they said he was too small to race with the big boys on the dirt tracks and ovals of his youth. It didn't matter that Dale Earnhardt called this upstart "Wonderboy" -- no one raced the legendary Earnhardt harder, and no two drivers had more respect for each other. And it didn't matter that the racing world said Gordon was finished with the breakup of the crew on the #24 car and the departure of Ray Evernham, his crew chief, in 1999 -- he came back two seasons later to win a record-equaling fourth Winston Cup, this time with Robbie Loomis as crew chief. In the end, all that matters is that Jeff Gordon is the greatest living NASCAR champion, and it only remains to be seen just how many championships he can win.But what's it really like to climb into a stockcar every weekend and challenge for a championship? Offering a never-before-seen entry into the thrilling world of NASCAR racing, Jeff Gordon takes us into the cockpit of the #24 DuPont Chevrolet car; right into the garages where his cars are made; and inside the lives and efforts of his extraordinary team, the Rainbow Warriors. Just how does his car get built, tested, and driven, and how do these personalities mesh into a championship team? Along the way we find out what he thinks of life as both a NASCAR champion and a never-left-alone celebrity, where he came from and to whom he owes all his successes, and above all, what it takes to be a champion in one of the most dangerous and thrilling sportsof all."Jeff Gordon: Racing Back to the Front" -- My Memoir is a pit pass all its own, giving passionate NASCAR fans unique access into the life and career of one of the most storied champions in the sport.