How? By learning how to effectively introduce your business into a social conversation with an easy, rejection-free sequence of just a few words. Prospects want what you have to offer, but they are afraid of someone selling them. However, prospects love to buy and join. So why not use socially acceptable word sequences that compel any prospect to literally beg you for a presentation? This book contains several effective formulas with many examples of each formula that you can use or modify. Once we know how the formulas work, we can create unlimited Ice Breakers on-demand to use and pass on to our downline. Your distributors will no longer be afraid of prospecting; instead, they will love prospecting. It is much more fun when we are in control. Distributors want to work hard, but just don't know what to say. Their opening random remarks ruin their chances and they suffer bad experiences. That experience trains them to avoid prospecting. But with trained words and phrases, everything changes. Quick and positive results. Prospecting is fun again. Enjoy learning how to prospect negative people, positive people, relatives, co-workers, strangers, leads, cold prospects ... anyone, by using fun Ice Breakers that even the prospects enjoy. Spend the entire week giving presentations, instead of spending the entire week looking for someone to talk to. And never again will you have to hear one of your distributors complain, "I just don't have anyone to talk to." Ice Breakers are the best way to energize your MLM and network marketing business. Order your copy now!

    And best of all, these crystal-clear, bite-sized lessons can be put to work in your business immediately! Discover how to: Generate hundreds of promising new leads Increase your conversion rate of leads to sales Maximize the value of your average sale Measure your results and fine-tune your best strategies Get real results right now when you discover all that Instant Success has to offer! Instant Advertising * Instant Leads * Instant Profit * Instant Promotions * Instant Referrals * Instant Repeat Business * Instant Sales * Instant Systems * Instant Team Building * The Business Coach * The Real Estate Coach * Successful Franchising * Billionaire in TrainingDDC: 658.8

    Invested time in something that, with hindsight, just wasn't worth it? Overpaid in an Ebay auction? Continued doing something you knew was bad for you? Sold stocks too late, or too early? Taken credit for success, but blamed failure on external circumstances? Backed the wrong horse? These are examples of cognitive biases, simple errors we all make in our day-to-day thinking. But by knowing what they are and how to spot them, we can avoid them and make better choices - whether dealing with a personal problem or a business negotiation; trying to save money or make money; working out what we do or don't want in life, and how best to get it. Already an international bestseller, THE ART OF THINKING CLEARLY is essential reading for anyone with important decisions to make. It reveals, in 100 short chapters, the most common errors of judgement, and how to avoid them. Simple, clear and always surprising, this indispensable book will change the way you think and transform your decision-making - at work, at home, every day. Review “A fireworks show of insights into how our minds work. If you want to avoid tripping on cognitive errors, read this book.” (Iris Bohnet, Professor and Academic Dean, Harvard Kennedy School, Director of the Harvard Decision Science Laboratory) “Dobelli examines our most common decision-making failings with engaging eloquence and describes how to counter them with instructive good sense.” (Robert Cialdini, author of Influence) “…a serious examination of the faulty reasoning that leads to repeated mistakes by individuals, businesses, and nations…In this fascinating book, Dobelli does not offer a recipe for happiness but a well-considered treatise on avoiding ‘self-induced unhappiness.’” (Booklist (starred review)) “…easy-going prose…what [Dobelli] does is pinpoint exactly the assumptions, bias and illusions that shape our thinking and decision-making processes in both business and personal relationships that can cost us dearly as individuals and as a society.” (Financial Times) Book Description Already a huge bestseller in Europe, this is essential reading for anyone with important decisions to make, in the vein of THINKING, FAST AND SLOW and THE DECISION BOOK.

    But twenty years into this movement, breakthrough innovations are still rare, and most companies find that 50 to 90 percent of their innovation initiatives flop. The cost of these failures to U.S. companies alone is estimated to be well over $100 billion annually.In a book that challenges everything you have learned about being customer driven, internationally acclaimed innovation leader Anthony Ulwick reveals the secret weapon behind some of the most successful companies of recent years. Known as outcome-driven innovation, this revolutionary approach to new product and service creation transforms innovation from a nebulous art into a rigorous science from which randomness and uncertainty are eliminated.Based on more than 200 studies spanning more than seventy companies and twenty-five industries, Ulwick contends that, when it comes to innovation, the traditional methods companies use to communicate with customers are the root cause of chronic waste and missed opportunity. In What Customers Want, Ulwick demonstrates that all popular qualitative research methods yield well-intentioned but unfitting and dreadfully misleading information that serves to derail the innovation process. Rather than accepting customer inputs such as needs, benefits, specifications, and solutions, Ulwick argues that researchers should silence the literal voice of the customer and focus on the metrics that customers use to measure success when executing the jobs, tasks or activities they are trying to get done. Using these customer desired outcomes as inputs into the innovation process eliminates much of the chaos and variability that typically derails innovation initiatives.With the same profound insight, simplicity, and uncommon sense that propelled The Innovator's Solution to worldwide acclaim, this paradigm-changing book details an eight-step approach that uses outcome-driven thinking to dramatically improve every aspect of the innovation process--from segmenting markets and identifying opportunities to creating, evaluating, and positioning breakthrough concepts. Using case studies from Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, AIG, Pfizer, and other leading companies, What Customers Want shows companies how to:Obtain unique customer inputs that make predictable innovation possibleRecognize opportunities for disruption, new market creation, and core market growth--well before competitors doIdentify which ideas, technologies, and acquisitions have the greatest potential for creating customer valueSystematically define breakthrough products and services conceptsInnovation is fundamental to success and business growth. Offering a proven alternative to failed customer-driven thinking, this landmark book arms you with the tools to unleash innovation, lower costs, and reduce failure rates--and create the products and services customers really want.

    cities. Once a year in each city, it funds about ten Internet startups with a small amount of capital and surrounds them with around fifty top Internet entrepreneurs and investors. Historically, about seventy-five percent of the companies that go through TechStars raise a meaningful amount of angel or venture capital. Do More Faster: TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup is a collection of advice that comes from individuals who have passed through, or are part of, this proven program. Each vignette is an exploration of information often heard during the TechStars program and provides practical insights into early stage entrepreneurship.Contains seven sections, each focusing on a major theme within the TechStars program, including idea and vision, fundraising, legal and structure, and work/life balance Created by two highly regarded experts in the world of early stage investing Essays in each section come from the experienced author team as well as TechStar mentors, entrepreneurs, and founders of companies While you'll ultimately have to make your own decisions about what's right for your business, Do More Faster: TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup can get your entrepreneurial endeavor headed in the right direction.

     Inspirational technologist Shaku Atre, who rose from second-class citizen in an Indian village to prominence as one of the first women in technology AND, the legendary Hal Elrod creator of the bestselling Miracle Morning series of books. Exclusively for you at: http://nichedownbook.com/thankyou “Be known for a niche that you own. This is a powerful idea. One that transforms how people think about their lives, careers and business ventures.” — Hal Elrod, author of the best-seller, The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life Do you have the courage to stand out? From the inventor of cubism Pablo Picasso to Spanx founder Sarah Blakely, the people we admire most in the world are original, unique, different. They take risks, claim new ground. They do not fit in, they stand out. And they do not compete for attention in the traditional sense. Most of us are tricked into believing that achieving personal and professional success means fitting in. What it really takes is the courage to stand out. Are you ready? In this dynamic, direct and succinct book, Lochhead and Clancy describe a research-based approach to thinking about your life and business called “category design.” Through a narrative stuffed with inspiring stories, they examine how legendary people — especially legendary entrepreneurs — introduce the world to new ways of thinking and solving problems. They reveal how to exploit the exponential value of what makes you different vs. the incremental value of what makes you better. And they show how to conquer a market category that you design, becoming its de facto queen or king. After reading this ground-taking book, you’ll gain the insights required to become known for a niche that you own.

    . . business executives in many industries are currently being inundated with a confusingly and exhaustingly broad range of technological developments that enable new business models.There is, however, a common thread among all of these developments: firms are fundamentally changing how they connect with their customers. Rather than having occasional, episodic interactions--where customers realize they have an unmet need and then look for ways to fill it--firms are striving to be continuously connected to their customers, providing services and products as the needs arise, even before customers become aware of them.Firms such as Nike, Disney, Progressive Insurance, McGraw-Hill Higher Education, Medtronic, Hewlett-Packard, and Tesco are developing and competing on connected strategies: creating superior customer experiences through connectivity while simultaneously driving dramatic improvements in operational efficiencies and reshaping their industries.Strategy and operations experts Nicolaj Siggelkow and Christian Terwiesch reveal the emergence of connected strategies across a broad array of industries and show how these strategies work, how they eliminate the trade-off between superior customer experience and low cost, and how companies can formulate, design, and implement them. In showing how to create a connected strategy, the authors reveal the four pathways--respond-to-desire, curated offerings, coaching, and automatic execution--for turning occasional, episodic interactions into continuous relationships. Siggelkow and Terwiesch show you how to: Reshape the connections between customers, suppliers, and your firm Create the right revenue model Make the best technology choices to support your strategy Integrating rich examples, how-to advice, and tools in the form of "workshop chapters" throughout, this book is the ultimate resource for creating connected relationships with your customers and redefining the connections in your industry.

    In 2009, a year ahead of schedule, TCS made good on that promise: in fourteen years, the company had transformed itself from the $400 million operation that S. Ramadorai inherited as CEO in 1996, to one of the world's largest IT software and services companies with more than 160,000 people working in forty-two countries, and with annual revenues of over $6 billion.The TCS story is one of modern India's great success stories. In this fascinating book, S. Ramadorai, one of the country's most respected business leaders, recounts the steps to that extraordinary success. The inside story of one of India's premier corporate institutions, this is also in part a history of the rapidly developing IT software and services industry in India, told from the perspective of an industry leader.Behind the phenomenon called TCS lies a quest for excellence and an attention to detail-captured in the company's motto 'Experience Certainty'-that can benefit any organization. There is a great deal to be learnt from the TCS example, and Ramadorai outlines a vision for the future where the quality initiatives he undertook can be applied to a larger national framework. This is a book that every Indian who is committed to building a better and more productive future must read.About the AuthorRamadorai retired as CEO& MD of Tata Consultancy Services in 2009, after serving the company for thirty-nine years; he continues to work with TCS in the capacity of Vice-Chairman, and is actively involved as Chairman/Director of various Tata and non-Tata companies and educational institutions. Recently he has been appointed as the Advisor to the Prime Minister in the National Skill Development Council with the rank of a Cabinet minister. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2006 and the CBE in 2009.

    They're correct. The Membership Economy is here and it's here to stay--and if you want to compete for the long run, you need to join it.Strategy consultant Robbie Kellman Baxter has been helping companies excel in this business environment for more than a decade. Now, in The Forever Transaction, she reveals all her secrets. Whatever industry you're in, Baxter provides the inspiration, tools, and insight you need to build and execute a business model that will leave your competition in the dust.You'll find out how industry leaders like Under Armour, Microsoft, and Netflix have created an ever-expanding customer base of loyal subscribers―and are keeping them coming back. You'll learn how to lead your organization through every step of the process―from initial start-up to new product testing, scaling for long-term growth and sustainability to revamping your culture so everyone works together to optimize customer lifetime value. You'll also master all the essentials of succeeding in the Membership Economy, like subscription pricing, Software-as-a-Service, digital community engagement, and freemium incentives as a way to turn casual browsers into cash-paying super-users.With The Forever Transaction, you have everything you need to build durable, long-term relationships with every customer, and leverage them for ultimate business success―today, tomorrow, and forever.

    In this companion guide, also suitable as a stand-alone project workbook, the authors provide a step-by-step framework for applying the D4G toolkit and process to a particular project, systematically explaining how to address the four key questions of their design thinking approach.The field book maps the flow of the design process within the context of a specific project and reminds readers of key D4G takeaways as they work. The text helps readers identify an opportunity, draft a design brief, conduct research, establish design criteria, brainstorm, develop concepts, create napkin pitches, make prototypes, solicit feedback from stakeholders, and run learning launches. The workbook demystifies tools that have traditionally been the domain of designers--from direct observation to journey mapping, storytelling, and storyboarding--that power the design thinking process and help businesses align around a project to realize its full potential.

    Today's massively scaling startups - which rapidly grow to millions of users and billions in valuation - do not sell a product or service. Instead, they build a platform on which others can create and exchange value.The many manifestations of the platform business model - social media, the peer economy, cryptocurrencies, APIs and developer ecosystems, the Internet of things, crowdsourcing models, and many others - are becoming increasingly relevant.Yet, most new platform ideas fail because the business design and growth strategies involved in building platforms are not well understood.Platform Scale lays out a structured approach to designing and growing a platform business model and addresses the key factors leading to the success and failure of these businesses.Six core concepts for successful platform business model design1. Re-imagine your business for platform scaleThe mechanism by which these new business models scale so rapidly. Understand the shift in thinking needed to manage businesses with platform scale and the impact of network effects, virality, behavior design and data."We are not in the business of building software. We are in the business of enabling interactions."2. Leverage interaction-first designHow detailed consideration around designing the producer-consumer core interaction is critical for building business models that leverage platform scale."The design of the platform business model involves the design of a core interaction followed by the design of an open infrastructure that will enable and govern this interaction."3. Build cumulative value and minimize interaction failureKnow the key managerial decisions to focus on while managing platform scale businesses, all geared towards maximizing the ability of these businesses to enable interactions by scaling producer participation and minimizing interaction failure."Platform scale is achieved by maximizing the repeatability and efficiency of the platform's core interaction."4. Solve chicken and egg problemsPlatform business models face an all too familiar catch-22 chicken and egg problem on the way to scaling. This can be overcome by designing the conditions for sparking interactions."The solution to the chicken-and-egg problem requires a bait that can break the vicious cycle of no activity."5. Design viral enginesUnderstand the drivers of viral growth in a world of networks and apply the viral canvas design-first approach to viral growth."Virality is a business design problem, not a marketing or engineering effort. It requires design before optimization."6. Account for reverse network effectsConsider the counter view on platform scale and be on the lookout for conditions where scale can be detrimental to platform businesses."The goal of platform scale is to ensure the simultaneous scaling of quantity and quality, of interactions."Platform Scale is a maker's guide for entrepreneurs, innovators and educators looking to understand and implement the inner workings of highly scalable platform business models.

    According to Kaiser, successful arts organizations pursue strong programmatic marketing campaigns that compel people to buy tickets, enroll in classes, and so on—in short, to participate in the organization’s programs. Additionally, they create exciting activities that draw people to the organization as a whole. This institutional marketing creates a sense of enthusiasm that attracts donors, board members, and volunteers. Kaiser calls this group of external supporters the family. When this hidden engine is humming, staff, board, and audience members, artists, and donors feel confidence in the future. Resources are reinvested in more and better art, which is marketed aggressively; as a result, the “family” continues to grow, providing even more resources. This self-reinforcing cycle underlies the activities of all healthy arts organizations, and the theory behind it can be used as a diagnostic tool to reveal—and remedy—the problems of troubled ones. This book addresses each element of the cycle in the hope that more arts organizations around the globe—from orchestras, theaters, museums, opera companies, and classical and modern dance organizations to service organizations and other not-for-profit cultural institutions—will be able to sustain remarkable creativity, pay the bills, and have fun doing so!

    The applicable tactics and techniques can be studied in advance, helping you avoid the most common pitfalls.This is what this book is about. It's a handbook for anyone building an online marketplace. The same methods will apply whether your organization is a startup, a cooperative, a non-profit, or a big brand. Not every marketplace will be as big as Airbnb and Uber, but we believe there are thousands of marketplace ideas out there that can make for great, sustainable businesses. With the help of this book, you're one step closer to building the next one. Critical acclaim "Juho and Cristóbal have written a practical in-the-weeds guide on marketplace execution that will prove invaluable for all entrepreneurs looking to start a marketplace. No fluff, just actionable ideas." – Sangeet Paul Choudary, best-selling author of Platform Revolution and Platform Scale "Building marketplaces can be hard. The Lean Marketplace is a very useful step-by-step guide to help entrepreneurs think through the challenges and solutions to create the next Uber or Airbnb." – Boris Wertz, Founder and General Partner, Version One Ventures "Must read for every marketplace entrepreneur. I'm going to ask everyone in our team to read this book." – Bram de Zwart, Co-founder and CEO, 3D Hubs "As I'm friends with both authors, I know first hand that the information in their book is hard won from long experience helping dozens of marketplaces succeed and consulting the top experts from around the world. However, the quality and comprehensiveness of the content speaks for itself. It covers all the essentials of growing an online marketplace, and in the most straightforward way possible. It is an impressively practical, must read resource for any current or aspiring marketplace entrepreneur. I can't recommend it highly enough, but please see for yourself." – Neal Gorenflo, Co-founder of Shareable "The essential guide to building an essential marketplace." – Tristan Pollock, Co-founder, Storefront, Partner, 500 Startups "Reading Juho's and Cristobal's advice online before launching our platform helped us save so much time and avoid the most common mistakes. If you're considering building a marketplace business, read this book first. Seriously." – Agne Milukaite, Co-founder and CEO, Cycle.land "Envisioning, validating, building and growing a marketplace is no small challenge: the most important aspect to nailing this challenge down is all about avoiding losing time and energy in the myriad of wrong directions that can come up your way. This book is an essential guide, the lifeboat for the marketplace founder that faces the ocean of bootstrapping.

    We are on the threshold, say authors Pine and Gilmore, of the Experience Economy, a new economic era in which all businesses must orchestrate memorable events for their customers. The Experience Economy offers a creative, highly original, and yet eminently practical strategy for companies to script and stage the experiences that will transform the value of what they produce. From America Online to Walt Disney, the authors draw from a rich and varied mix of examples that showcase businesses in the midst of creating personal experiences for both consumers and businesses. The authors urge managers to look beyond traditional pricing factors like time and cost, and consider charging for the value of the transformation that an experience offers. Goods and services, say Pine and Gilmore, are no longer enough. Experiences and transformations are the basis for future economic growth, and The Experience Economy is the script from which managers can begin to direct their own transformations.

    This highly accessible book is aimed at anyone who wants to improve their financial situation, from the financial novice who needs clear basic guidelines on how to deal with money to those who are more financially savvy but want to supplement their knowledge. Covering a range of topics, from saving, investing, debt management, buying a house to blunders to avoid, Become Your Own Financial Advisor provides people of all ages and levels of wealth with practical information on how to improve their finances. And, in the process, proves that financial freedom is possible for everyone.