andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing

Crushing YouTube: How to Make Money on YouTube and Grow a Channel Fast

Crushing YouTube: How to Make Money on YouTube and Grow a Channel Fast

by Joseph Hogue

This book is full of insights and advice from an experienced YouTube creator, whose channel reached 75,000 subscribers in 18 months, and now has 181,000 subscribers. Joseph Hogue is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) who produces videos on personal finance topics. “These ideas work and they’re the reason 3% of my viewers turn into subscribers versus a ratio of closer to 1.4% or less for most channels.”  Continue reading “Crushing YouTube: How to Make Money on YouTube and Grow a Channel Fast” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing

How Not to Plan: 66 Ways to Screw it Up

How Not to Plan: 66 Ways to Screw it Up

by Les Binet and Sarah Carter

Packed with insights, this book is a compendium of 66 articles originally published in Admap, “all loosely based on a myth-busting theme.” The word “not” in the book title and each article title is in strikethrough type. The articles are grouped into 9 chapters: Setting Objectives; Product, Price, and Place; Brand and Communication; Research and Analysis; Talking and Thinking Strategy; Who Are You Talking To?; Media and Budgets; Creative Work; and Effectiveness and Evaluation.  Continue reading “How Not to Plan: 66 Ways to Screw it Up” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing, Writing

Copywriting Made Simple

Copywriting Made Simple: How to Write Powerful and Persuasive Copy that Sells

by Tom Albrighton

This is an excellent introduction to copywriting, offering general advice on the process as well as specific tips for print advertisements, audio and video scripts, sales letters, emails, brochures, and social media posts. The book is divided into three parts: plan your copy, write your copy, and improve your copy. Continue reading “Copywriting Made Simple” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing

Eat Your Greens: Fact-Based Thinking to Improve Your Brand’s Health

Eat Your Greens: Fact-Based Thinking to Improve Your Brand’s Health

Edited by Wiemer Snijders

This book is a compilation of 42 chapters written by 37 practitioners and scholars of branding, advertising, and marketing. “The brief to all of the contributors was simple: tell us how you apply or find inspiration from marketing science in a short, easy-to-digest paper… I did not ask them to write about a particular topic; this was intended as a bag of nutritious ‘mixed greens.’” There is no chapter on spinach or basil, but somehow cauliflower scored a cameo role in chapter 26. Continue reading “Eat Your Greens: Fact-Based Thinking to Improve Your Brand’s Health” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing

Effectiveness in Context: A Manual for Brand Building

Effectiveness in Context: A Manual for Brand Building

by Les Binet and Peter Field

Binet and Field have analyzed 18 years of data (1998-2016) from the London-based Institute of Practitioners in Advertising’s IPA Databank, “the confidential data submitted alongside entries to the biennial IPA Effectiveness Awards competition.” This book presents their findings on what works best—in general and in various contexts.

Topics include market penetration, brand-building vs. sales activation, emotional vs. rational consideration, share of voice, pricing, and innovation.  Continue reading “Effectiveness in Context: A Manual for Brand Building” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing

How Brands Grow

How Brands Grow

by Byron Sharp

This excellent, clearly-written book is based on empirical research covering market share, brand equity, price promotions, and advertising. It includes some counter-intuitive conclusions regarding customer retention, loyalty programs, segmentation, and competitor differentiation. Byron Sharp is the director of the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketing Science at the University of South Australia. Continue reading “How Brands Grow” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Creativity, Marketing

Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life

Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life

by Rory Sutherland

In Alchemy—published simultaneously in the U.K. with a punchier subtitle: The Surprising Power of Ideas that Don’t Make Sense—Sutherland writes with a humorous style filled with wisdom about consumer behavior, innovation, branding, hiring, the weakness of market research, and more. Continue reading “Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing

The Rouser Manifesto 2019

The Rouser Manifesto 2019

Rather than featuring a book in this post, I have selected a paper written by the team at the Swedish marketing firm Rouser.  The Rouser Manifesto takes a big-picture perspective on marketing effectiveness, calling out the problematic trend of focusing solely on short-term return on marketing investment (ROMI) while eroding brand equity.

Continue reading “The Rouser Manifesto 2019” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing

Restaurant & Bar Marketing

Restaurant & Bar Marketing: The No Bullshit Guide to Improving Guest Counts

by Erik Shellenberger

Erik Shellenberger cuts through the hype and tells you what really works—and what doesn’t—to bring more customers into restaurants and bars. Before getting into the tactics, he presents his ocean versus fishbowl concept.

The fishbowl includes people who follow you on social media, who subscribe to your email list, etc. “The ocean—NOT the fishbowl—is where you improve guest counts… People who have no idea you exist. People who are looking to branch out and try new places to eat and drink in their home city… The tourist economy is almost exclusively an ocean environment. It includes the person using Google or online reviews to find a business like yours.”

Continue reading “Restaurant & Bar Marketing” →

andreweverett360 Book Review, Marketing

Story Mythos: A Movie Guide to Better Business Stories

Story Mythos: A Movie Guide to Better Business Stories

by Shane Meeker

“People are inspired and moved by stories…Story is about human emotions… Stories de-commodify your brand/product.” The premise of this book is that the same principles used by Hollywood filmmakers can be used to develop powerful brand stories. The author is the company historian and corporate storyteller at Procter & Gamble.

“What are your most powerful company stories, and how are you using them to inspire your people? How do you explain your purpose through different stories? What stories best demonstrate your company beliefs? How are you documenting and protecting the stories that matter? … How can you use a story to demonstrate a company’s culture?”

Continue reading “Story Mythos: A Movie Guide to Better Business Stories” →