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Best Business Book Reviews By Paul Simister

All Business is Show Business by Scott McKain

The full title of this book by Scott McKain is

All Business is Show Business: Strategies for Earning Standing Ovations from Your Customers“.

In my review posted to Amazon.co.uk, I rated it as Four Stars. This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

Capture attention and keep customers interested through “entertainment”

I enjoyed reading this book and it covers three important concepts:

  1. A high concept – a short, powerful summary of what your business is all about.
  2. A powerful story – expand on the core concept through a powerful, emotional packed, memorable story which creates a real connection with customers – I wrote about this in my blog on the Core Myth.
  3. The ultimate customer experience – a similar concept to what I call the perfect customer experience and the ideal customer experience.

[continue reading…]

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Managing Customer Value by Bradley T Gale

The full title of this book by Bradley Gale is

Managing Customer Value: Creating Quality and Service That Customers Can See“.

In my review posted on Amazon.co.uk, I rated this book as Four Stars. This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

Puts “value” numbers to the idea of differentiation but it has a big company bias

This is a landmark in the development of the concept of customer value as a way to make decisions about differentiation strategies.

While Michael Porter argued that the only ways to gain a competitive advantage were a cost advantage (in effect coming from the supply side) and differentiation advantage (from the demand side), he didn’t provide many practical tools for understanding the customer purchase decision and how companies could differentiate themselves in ways that matter. [continue reading…]

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In my review of

The 22 Immutable Laws Of Branding by Al Ries and Laura Ries

posted on Amazon.co.uk, I gave the book a rating of Four Stars.

This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

Branding in terms of what the brand stands for

This is a no nonsense guide explaining how to build a brand for your business which attracts customers and increases sales and profits.

There is a big business branding issue that small companies shouldn’t copy. I hate much of the advertising done by big businesses and the way that encourage small businesses to waste their money doing stuff which doesn’t have a chance of working. [continue reading…]

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Meet and Grow Rich by Joe Vitale and Bill Hibbler

The full title of this book by Joe Vitale and Bill Hibbler is

Meet and Grow Rich: How to Easily Create and Operate Your Own Mastermind Group for Health, Wealth, and More“.

In my review posted on Amazon.co.uk, I rated this at the Four Stars level. This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

Learn to share problems and solutions from other business owners

It’s only in the last ten years that I have become aware of how powerful mastermind groups can be and this book is a raving endorsement for masterminds. The mastermind concept isn’t that well known in the UK and “Think And Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill doesn’t have the great reputation it does in the USA.

The authors want you to understand that a mastermind group can help you to achieve whatever you want to achieve. [continue reading…]

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The Decisive Moment by Jonah Lehrer

The full title of this book by Jonah Lehrer is

The Decisive Moment: How The Brain Makes Up Its Mind“.

In my review posted to Amazon.co.uk, I rated the book at the Four Stars level. This means that I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

A fascinating look at how we make decisions but it’s focus is on “why decisions are made” rather than “how to use” these ideas

This is a fascinating book which looks at how the emotional and the logical brains work individually or together to help you to make decisions at work and in your personal life. It also helps to explain how the people around you also make decisions and why those decisions may not be quite so strange.

The emotions versus logic debate which has challenged man since the times of Ancient Greece and the philosophers like Plato. The emotions were seen as something that needed to be controlled and to be made subservient to the rational mind and cold hard logic. These days the emotional brain is seen as the dominant force although both logic and emotion have flaws which can lead to the wrong decisions. [continue reading…]

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In my review of

Finance on a Beermat by Mike Southan, Chris West, Stephen King and Jeff Macklin

on Amazon.co.uk, I rated the book at the Four Stars level. This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

For those who want to understand more about finance and even have a finance cornerstone

The Beermat series of books provide simple and clear explanations of how to build and grow a successful entrepreneurial business. Finance On A Beermat continues with the traditional and regular authors Mike Southon and Chris West receive help from Stephen King and Jeff Macklin, two of the main people behind a franchise for part time finance directors. [continue reading…]

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The Irresistible Offer by Mark Joyner

The full title of this book by Mark Joyner is

The Irresistible Offer: How to Sell Your Product or Service in 3 Seconds or Less“.

In my review posted on Amazon.co.uk, I gave the book a rating of Four Stars. This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

A great way to simplify a complex idea but it’s expensive for what’s there

The premise is simple…

Your customers are going to give you a few seconds to make the sale. What are you going to say? [continue reading…]

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Successful Project Management in a Week by Mark Brown

In my review at Amazon.co.uk of

Successful Project Management in a Week,

I gave the book a rating of Four Stars. This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

Explains the basics to anyone who has to manage a project for the first time

This is a short guide which explains the basics to anyone who has to manage a project for the first time or forms a very nice refresher for someone who is experienced in project management but hasn’t managed a project for some time. [continue reading…]

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Just Ask Leadership by Gary B Cohen

The full title of this book by Gary Cohen is

Just Ask Leadership: Why Great Managers Always Ask the Right Questions“.

In my review posted to Amazon.co.uk, I gave the book a rating of Four Stars. This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

A good book to dip into when you come up against a new management problem

The book is written on the premise that leaders are much more successful if they ask their team questions to focus attention and action rather than if they issue commands on the basis of “I’m the boss. I know best and you must do what I say.”

The book is based on interviews with nearly 100 highly effective leaders as well as the author’s own knowledge and experience. [continue reading…]

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Quality Pocketbook by Anthony Mitchell

I my review posted on Amazon.co.uk, I gave this small book called

Quality Pocketbook” by Anthony Mitchell

a Four Star rating. This means I think it is Good and Well Worth Reading.

Here is my book review.

An easy to read overview of what used to be known as Total Quality Management

The Pocketbook series of books are small books presented in a note form and with plenty of diagrams and white space. They are designed to present the key ideas quickly and simply. [continue reading…]

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