Book Description
"Clients At The Core is an essential blueprint to helping us all take the next steps. The authors, battle scarred by the evolution of professional firm management and marketing from then to now, have captured the changing needs of the firms in this turbulent new economic era. This is a well-written book that uses plain language to convey practical, well thought-out ideas."
-
Patrick J. McKenna, a leading international consultant to professional service firms
"The authors have captured the changing role of professional services marketing and firm management. There is valuable insight [in this] down-to-earth guide to competing successfully in the new environment."
-
David Maister, author and consultant
"The book is a masterpiece! Aquila and Marcus have produced the essential guide for managing a professional services firm. They've marshaled their considerable real-life experiences and far-reaching vision into a veritable operating manual for the successful firm."
-
Rick Telberg, Editor at Large, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
"At its heart, this book is the running shoe for legal and accounting professionals who want to put the client first. Following the evolution of the industry over the past twenty-five years, this must-have for every professional services firm is the key to leading in the turbulent and highly competitive waters ahead."
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Richard S. Levick, Esq., President, Levick Strategic Communications, LLC coauthor, Stop the Presses: The Litigation PR Desk Reference
"Client selection and retention is one of the critical success factors for a professional services firm, and Aquila and Marcus do a masterful job at educating us on the necessary ingredients of each. The chapters on firm governance and paying for performance are thought provoking and certainly challenging to the conventional wisdom. If you want a better understanding of marketing and leading a professional firm in these turbulent times, this book is essential."
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Ronald J. Baker, author, Professional's Guide to Value Pricing and The Firm of the Future
"Client at the Core is a commonsense approach to keeping your professional services firm relevant in the twenty-first century's client-driven economy. Aquila and Marcus have hit a home run with their insightful analysis and poignant prose."
-
Jeffrey S. Pawlow, Managing Shareholder, The Growth Partnership, Inc.
Download Description
"August Aquila and Bruce Marcus reward readers of Client at the Core with an imaginative map for the perilous journey through the twists and turns of marketing and managing today's professional services firm. It is creative and thorough."
-Gerry Riskin, Partner, Edge International
"The authors have captured the changing role of professional services marketing and firm management. There is valuable insight [in this] down-to-earth guide to competing successfully in the new environment."
-David Maister, author and consultant
"The book is a masterpiece! Aquila and Marcus have produced the essential guide for managing a professional services firm. They've marshaled their considerable real-life experiences and far-reaching vision into a veritable operating manual for the successful firm."
-Rick Telberg, Editor at Large, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
"At its heart, this book is the running shoe for legal and accounting professionals who want to put the client first. Following the evolution of the industry over the past twenty-five years, this must-have for every professional services firm is the key to leading in the turbulent and highly competitive waters ahead."
-Richard S. Levick, Esq., President, Levick Strategic Communications, LLC
coauthor, Stop the Presses: The Litigation PR Desk Reference
"Client selection and retention is one of the critical success factors for a professional services firm, and Aquila and Marcus do a masterful job at educating us on the necessary ingredients of each. The chapters on firm governance and paying for performance are thought provoking and certainly challenging to the conventional wisdom. If you want a better understanding of marketing and leading a professional firm in these turbulent times, this book is essential."
-Ronald J. Baker, author, Professional's Guide to Value Pricing and The Firm of the Future
"Client at the Core is a commonsense approach to keeping your professional services firm relevant in the twenty-first century's client-driven economy. Aquila and Marcus have hit a home run with their insightful analysis and poignant prose."
-Jeffrey S. Pawlow, Managing Shareholder, The Growth Partnership, Inc.
Customer Reviews:
Marketing 101, 201, & 301 for Professional Services.......2005-08-31
This book should burnish the authors' already high reputations for having cogent, jargon-free, and street-smart things to say about what it's really like to try to market professional services. An unusual blend of (clear and lucidly stated) theory about marketing, and real-world insights into obstacles clients can throw up--not to mention the high barrier of internal resistance that "professionals" instinctively erect when asked to be marketers--this should be your starting point if you're facing the complexities of marketing in this environment.
Think that "marketing is just common sense?" Think again; it's both a discipline and an art. Aquila and Marcus will guide your hand at both.
Gerry Riskin (co-author Herding Cats and Beyond Knowing.......2005-06-12
August Aquila and Bruce Marcus reward readers of Client at the Core with an imaginative map for the perilous journey through the twists and turns of marketing and managing today's professional services firm. It is creative and thorough.
Required reading for my marketing leaders.......2004-09-25
August Aquila and Bruce Marcus have written a clear and comprehensive view of what every accounting or law marketer needs to know about this new, unprecedented professional services environment. Their book not only explains the new environment, but it's also a rich primer of practical "how-to" advice on all the marketing tools available to the professional services marketer. Strategy is fine, but I find that few books get down to the step-by-step implementation tactics involved in winning new business like this book does - that's one of its best points of differentiation. After reading it, I bought copies for every one of my regional, industry, service line and national marketing leaders.
Aquila and Marcus Deliver Practice Advice for Success.......2004-09-07
In "Client at the Core: Marketing and Managing Today's Professional Services Firm," (Wiley, 2004) August J. Aquila, based in Minnetonka, Minn., and Bruce W. Marcus, in Easton, Conn., a pair of veteran consultants, combine their considerable experience, skill and insight into a veritable strategic planning operator's manual for today's consulting firm.
From the outset, they acknowledge "the professional world doesn't need another book on how to write a press release or write a brochure or run a seminar."
Instead, they provide a new perspective on the crucial subject of how to keep firms relevant to the needs of the marketplace -- mainly, creating clients and building a marketing culture.
They don't get tied up in ideas like "vision," or "mission."
Instead they talk about the new realities of the 21st Century and professions in turmoil: dot-coms gone bust, a stock market meltdown, and a rash of frauds, defalcations, misuse of corporate funds; and then a reformist reaction, still unfolding, that the authors term "a helter-skelter regulatory rush that was at least as punitive as it was appropriate. It would seem that the regulatory garment was cut to fit all, when all don't wear the same size."
"The time is past when just the presence of the professional was its own comfort factor. It's long been believed that the concept of the professional was so exalted, and so trusting, that people accepted advice unquestioningly. No more. The scandals of 2002 and 2003 seem to have bred a diminished - if unwarranted -- respect for professionals," they say.
"Traditionally, professional services have been a seller's market," according to Aquila and Marcus. But now the tables are turned. "It is now a buyer's market."
For today's professionals, here are six lessons you can take to the bank according to the authors:
1. Clients are more sophisticated. They no longer accept advice without questioning, challenging, demanding more reasoning and detail.
2. Because of the complexity of business today, clients demand that their professionals know more about the client's business and industry than ever before.
3. Professional services always function best when trust is at the heart of the relationship, but the corporate scandals of recent years have eroded that trust. That trust must now be regenerated. And the workings of trust are more important in the new economy than in the old.
4. Once the narrow structures of a profession were sufficient to serve clients. But clients now demand a broader spectrum of capabilities. The more broadly educated and well-rounded professional is the one with the greater advantage in meeting the needs of today's client. Clients demand that accountants know more than the basic skills of accounting.
5. Competition is now a fact of life. Clients know they have a choice.
Clients know the difference between marketing promises and professional services delivery. Today's client demands more real service and solutions -- not just a warm personal relationship.
To Aquila and Marcus, the new paradigm of professional services requires a new demand for partnership with the client and new participatory skills.
As they say: It's a buyers' market. Get used to it.
(...)
Focus on Application.......2004-08-22
"Meaty and rich with texture. The authors understand the application of marketing concepts to the CPA profession at a very deep level, and communicate clearly and concisely."
"Every page was another 'Yes!' when reading about the application of marketing principles to the CPA world. The authors nailed it."
Book Description
Manage sales, service, and marketing processes all together
Find out how to manage customer information to make your business more productive
Whether you're completely new to customer relationship management (CRM) software or you just want the scoop on the newest version, this handy guide will get you going. Discover how to set up CRM 3, navigate and customize the system, use it to work with your accounts and contacts, collect leads, forecast sales, run reports, and much more.
Discover how to
- Develop and manage customer relationships
- Implement a sales process
- Set up security and access rights
- Generate quotes, orders, and invoices
- Manage leads and opportunities
- Create and use product catalogs
Customer Reviews:
Definitely for Beginners.......2007-09-21
This book is not for the IT Professional but is perfect to get a beginner up to speed on CRM quickly. I have used this to successfully train some of my staff when Microsofts training became to confusing.
Excelent for understanding our CRM Users.......2007-04-10
Im a specialist trainer who needed to explain IT tasks about Dynamics CRM 3.0 to my students, so I started purchasing this book "for dummies". This book is an excelent reference because you learn about user's point of view (none technical issues as installation or customization only day to day operations). Learning about Office Outlook allows better undestanding of MS Exchange Server, right?
The book is full of excelents tips and some technical recommendations.
I recommend to read this book before reading another excellent book as is "Working with Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0".
Good book with few faults.......2007-01-06
This book is well written and illustrated. The author's style is comfortable and demonstrates a real familiarity with his subject. Especially helpful are the Tips as CRM has a few "gotchas" that can frustrate and mislead the unwary.
Because CRM technology is very flexible, it is difficult to write a definitive book that encompasses all the possibilites; but the authors have probably come as close as possible. Several colleagues have also indicated they liked my copy of this book far better than the "official" documentation.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who is venturing into uncharted CRM waters for the first time.
Great for putting under a table leg. Not good for anything else.......2006-12-08
I've been meaning to write this review since I bought the book just after it came out. It is so bad, that it deserves some comments.
In a nutshell, it's a waste of money. It's clearly the first book on the subject that works through the drop down menu choices and tells you what to do.
If you're a beginner in CRM you may find it useful, but if you're expecting much substance try elsewhere. You can click through the program for a few hours and know as much about the product as reading this book.
Not recommended, unless your table needs some support.
Helpful for new Microsoft CRM user.......2006-11-08
This book is really for the new Microsoft CRM user and want to acguire the basic knowledge to use Microsoft CRM 3.0., like myself (with some background of CRM concepts, plus Microsoft Office outlook skills, it'll be so simple.) It is comprehensive and helpful to follow the step-by-step instruction of how to use the microsoft CRM 3.0 that describes in the book.
Book Description
In today's increasingly competitive financial world, successful risk management, portfolio management, and financial structuring demand more than up-to-date financial know-how. They also call for quantitative expertise, including the ability to effectively apply mathematical modeling tools and techniques. An Introduction to Credit Risk Modeling supplies both the bricks and the mortar of risk management. In a gentle and concise lecture-note style, it introduces the fundamentals of credit risk management, provides a broad treatment of the related modeling theory and methods, and explores their application to credit portfolio securitization, credit risk in a trading portfolio, and credit derivatives risk. The presentation is thorough but refreshingly accessible, foregoing unnecessary technical details yet remaining mathematically precise. Whether you are a risk manager looking for a more quantitative approach to credit risk or you are planning a move from the academic arena to a career in professional credit risk management, An Introduction to Credit Risk Modeling is the book you've been looking for. It will bring you quickly up to speed with information needed to resolve the questions and quandaries encountered in practice.
Customer Reviews:
read this before going for it.......2007-04-23
Well first off I would like to tell anyone who doesn't have a solid working knowledge of calculus (including multivariate) to avoid this book as it requires multiple integrals and infinite series and sequences. Now onto the good and the bad:
THE GOOD:
This text explains concepts very well and is FULL of examples. I mean literally 3/4 of the book, maybe more, is examples. Every chapter also has a section of problems that have partial solutions, which can come in very handy. This is pretty much all that is good about this text, but keep in mind that explaination is the most important part of any textbook.
THE BAD:
The proofs skip plenty of steps. And I mean plenty, so much that a proof in the book would take 5 lines but when my professor proved it in class it would take him nearly 15. Also while there are tonnes of examples, too many are theoretical and very hard. The book costs a hefty amount of change and is suprisingly small, Author couldl have given few more examples to make it interesting. However the worst thing about this book is how the author leaves important things in with the text often. However most these things are small, and overall the text is a good intro to probability theory.
a very good book.......2006-10-31
The authors wanted to write the book that they themselves would have liked to read before starting a profession in risk management. I am working for a treasury consultancy firm. This book was the best of the five I bought. The text is very clear yet does not assume too much prior knowledge. It covers theory as well as industry practice. The book contains much advanced statistics and readers must have some background in order to handle this. The authors keep it simple but not too simple. Their approach is pragmatic throughout. I am really happy to have read this book when I started doing work in credit risk management.
good combination of math and finance.......2006-02-22
As indicated on the back of the book, the authors are aiming at audience who have some knowledge in both math and finance but may be weak in one and strong in another. Either way, this is a good book to read on credit risk.
Clear and comprehensive.......2005-10-27
This book clearly articulates basic concepts of credit risk modeling. At the same time it is mathematically rigorous. This book enables non mathematician with some (basic) knowledge in probability statistic to better understand and develop his risk management skills.
A good read!.......2004-08-19
Easy to understand with not a tremendous amount of complicated math to dicipher. Just what the doctor ordered.
Book Description
So you have something to sell or you work for a business using salesforce.com, but you’re not quite sure how to maximize your profits with it? Never fear! Salesforce.com for Dummies shows you the quick-and-easy way to start selling your product or service online without the confusion or fuss.
With an emphasis on customer relationship management, this hands-on guide helps you manage accounts, market your products, and improve service. Whether you’re a salesperson, channel manager, marketing mogul, customer rep, or executive, you’ll find secrets here for making your job easier, your day more productive, and your business more successful. This second edition has been revised to include Salesforce.com’s latest product and feature offerings as of the Summer 2006 release, giving you the tools you need to:
- Build a product catalog
- Manage price books
- Calculating and customizing forecasts
- Drive demand up with campaigns
- Stimulate sales effectiveness with documents
- Deliver excellent service
- Analyze data with reports
- Verify your company profile
- Add users to salesforce
- Customize your page and search layout
- Extend your usage of Salesforce beyond CRM
This guide makes suggestions on how to dive more productivity and improve communication with standard templates from the Dummies Web site. With this book you’ll get up to speed fast and manage your business information more effectively with Salesforce.com today!
Customer Reviews:
Great help for the new user........2005-09-22
I purchased several copies of the book for my sales team whose technical proficiency was across the board. While all of the material is covered in the online help available from Salesforce.com, several team members felt much more comfortable with a book that they could hold. It is a great help in getting all of the team members to use the same nomenclature which is the first step in any sales "methodology" becoming effective.
Those wishing a deeper dive, should look at the author's other books targeted towards a more advanced and technical audience.
Dumming it down for an admitted dummy.......2005-02-07
As a new user to the CRM program, Salesforce.com, I was overwhelmed by the amount of information presented on the website. My first thought was, "I wish somebody would writed a "Dummy" book for the program. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it was being released and ordered my copy immediately. I received my copy shortly and began reading and applying the data presented in the book.
While I will continue to avail myself of the training presented on the Salesforce.com site, the presentation of the data in Salesforce.com for Dummies has given my use of the program a real kick-start.
The writer (Mr. Wong), has written this book for users of the program, not for computer programmers. The data is laid out in concise, easy-to-understand terms which even "sales-types" like myself can understand. Applying the suggestions in the chapter on customization has saved me hours of "hair-pulling" work.
I will continue to reference this book and will make it required reading for all those in my company using Salesforce.com. It makes a great CRM program even better, because we will now be able to use all of the features, rather than a few basic one.
You'd be a dummy not to buy this book!.......2005-02-06
"Salesforce.com for Dummies" is, hands down, the best reference guide for salesforce.com users and administrators alike. Tom Wong has done an excellent job with this book. It is packed with useful tips that will help even the most experienced users and/or administrators get more from Salesforce.com. If you are ready to maximize your investment in Salesforce.com, pick up "Salesforce.com for Dummies." You'd be a dummy not to buy this book!
Best salesforce.com Reference Material Available!!!.......2005-02-06
Tom Wong's book "Salesforce.com For Dummies" provides a fantastic overview of salesforce.com, whether you are an end user or a system administrator. The book clearly outlines the functionality of the product and it includes a great deal of information that will help users leverage the full power of salesforce.com. Salesforce.com users of all experience levels will find relevant information in this book. I have been using salesforce.com for more than three years, and I found several helpful tips that are going to allow me to use salesforce.com more productively in the future.
My company has been using salesforce.com since October 2001, and we use it throughout several functional areas of the company (e.g. Sales, Customer Service, Product Management, Project Management, Executive Management, etc..) I have requested that our Human Resources department make "Salesforce.com For Dummies" available to all current users as an ongoing reference material and to all future users as part of their orientation and training.
I would strongly recommend "Salesforce.com For Dummies" to anyone who uses salesforce.com on a regular basis. In my opinion, this is the best reference material available for salesforce.com.
Drivers, Start Your Engines!!.......2005-02-05
As a salesforce.com system adminstrator, I found this book to be invaluable. As intuitive as the system is, the topics covered are on point to the needs of users, managers and administrators alike. I found that tasks I learned to do in 15 minutes using the online help features included with the salesforce.com tool, can be done and learned in less than 2 minutes following the clear and concise instructions.
Throughout the book are examples of how customers use the tool as well as best practices and are a terrific addition to this handy guide.
With this book, I was not only ready to roll on with salesforce.com, but to accelerate quickly to leverage the tool to my sales team and across the enterprise.
Average customer rating:
- Good book, better than anything on Sage help page
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Similar Items:
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Act! By Sage 2007
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Act! By Sage 2007 Quick Study Guide
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The ACT For Dummies
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Managing Contacts with Act! 2006
ASIN: 0470055146 |
Book Description
Find out how to get the most from your ACT!
Manage your contacts, communicate, synchronize ACT! with Outlook, and more
You have a business or organization to run.
ACT! is designed to make that easier, and this book helps you get your
ACT! together. Here's how to set up
ACT! 2007, enter and organize contact information, use
ACT! to track activities, prioritize leads, and produce reports, and make it act exactly as you need it to.
Discover how to
- View details on a particular contact
- Generate faxes, e-mail, or snail mail to a list
- Add fields to customize ACT!
- Handle backups and eliminate duplications
- Group and sort contacts
Customer Reviews:
Good book, better than anything on Sage help page.......2007-04-16
This really does answer questions for me, a novice, on how to navigate, and does so as expected in a user friendly format, although I am no dummy (so I hope). It is well laid out, and organized.Like I indicate above in the review title, it exceeds the help from the Sage site itself.
Book Description
"Unquestionably the most comprehensive treatment available on the subject. I found this book unique in its capacity to benefit executives, planning staff, and students of strategy alike."
-- Robert L. Joss, Dean of the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University
Create successful strategies for today's dynamic business environment
It isn't your Dad's (or Mom's) marketplace any more. Business environments once seemed quite stable and simple. Today, every market can be described as dynamic, and you need to adapt your strategies in order to counter the threats and maximize your opportunities.
The Eighth Edition of Strategic Market Management is designed to give you the strategic management tools you need to meet the challenges created by the dynamic nature of markets. Using a variety of concepts and methods such as strategic questions, portfolio models, and scenario analysis, the book outlines the five competencies that spark successful, ongoing strategizing:
Strategic analysis--With an emphasis on external market analysis, this new edition illustrates a structured approach to understanding the customer, the competitor, and important trends that you can apply to your strategic decision making
Stimulating and managing innovation--Understand different types of innovation and deal with the organizational challenges involved in bringing innovations to market
Managing multiple businesses--Know how to allocate resources towards businesses of the future and away from businesses that lack growth potential
Creating advantage--Take a long-term perspective to develop truly sustainable competitive advantages (SCAs)
Developing growth strategies--Gain the skills to energize, leverage, globalize the business, or create new businesses
Significantly revised, with a wealth of new and updated material, Strategic Market Management, 8th Edition remains the most authoritative guide to creating business strategies that will be relevant and compelling to customers, sustainable even in face of competitive attack, and maximize the assets and competencies of your organization.
Customer Reviews:
Leveraging Secondary Brand Knowledge to Build Brand Equity.......2007-05-16
In my opinion the most clever chapter in the book discusses how brand equity can be built through secondary brand associations.
Strategic Market Management - 5th Ed - Aaker.......2004-02-19
The 5th edition is, in my view, disorganised, unnecessarily complicated and seems to have been hurriedly finished. This text book was required reading for my MBA (Warwick Business School)
Exceptional book!.......2003-07-22
This book was part of the required reading for my MBA program at UCI and so far it is the best strategic marketing text I have read. Prof. Aaker's writing style is both concise and eloquent, very well organized and easy to read. I will keep this book on my bookshelf for a long time, it is very "reusable" and goes way beyond the class room. A must-have for both corporate executives and enterpreneurs.
Simpe, Concise, Precise and Easy to Understand.......1999-07-29
I used this book when I took a strategic marketing class in my MBA program. The author of this book did an excellent job in explaining strategic marketing concepts in a simple but practical way. The main strength of this book is it is very well-organized and easy to follow. The author also used many real-world samples to explain and support marketing concepts presented in the text. I recommend that any business student who has to take business policy class use this book as his or her reference.
An excellent book for marketing strategy.......1999-07-23
I was first exposed to Aakers Strategic Market Management during a marketing strategy course at National University of Singapore. I really appriciated the disposition of the books. It is relatively thin, not many words are useless (which is uncommmon in the case of marketing text books).
Later, still a student, I got the opportunity to develop a marketing strategy for a smaller firm. During this time Aakers book was of the outmost value, being used for reference throughout the analysis. Highly recommendable.
Book Description
Marketing is now being asked to be measurably accountable for not only the top-line of their income statement, but also for the bottom-line as well. They're being asked to account for the total marketing program in addition to its component product programs, its advertising, sales promotion, sales and distribution, and pricing programs. This is the first book that addresses the clamor and demand from marketing’s many stakeholders to be accountable for its strategies and activities.
Customer Reviews:
This is like 103 lively marketing discussions. Damned useful text. Buy it........2007-09-02
There's a disjuncture between market research information as supplied by those of us in the MR industry, and the hard sales information supplied to marketers via their own companies. Those who join the two sources together gain a tremendous synergy. By measuring the things that matter, regardless of information source, the marketer gains a lot more control over their decision-making.
This book offers 103 very chunky measures that are each clearly explained and for most marketers quite easily obtainable. You may not want a dashboard of all these measures, but if you scan through the list you'll see - I guarantee - at least 10 metrics that you'll wish you had during the last planning round. As such this book offers a powerful diagnostic of the things you need to get your job done.
Davis splits his measures into three broad categories.
1. Marketing Planning and Customers - Forecasts, Markets, Segments & Customers
2. The Offering - Products, Prices, Promotion and Retail
3. Sales Force.
Within each section he offers a host of measures, setting out for each one the purpose, the solution (or formula) as well as a summary of the impact and importance of the measure in question. The effect of the book is to deliver lively 103 marketing discussions, and while some are somewhat generalised in nature, the overall value of the book is immense.
This book suits marketing managers, brand managers and assistant brand managers, and will be of equal power in the hands of good market researchers. this is a really practical worthwhile volume for people who want to do their job better.
Excellent Read and Very Useful List of Metrics.......2007-02-12
Everywhere you look these days, professional communicators seem to be talking about measurement. From marketing and PR to advertising specifically, the question of how we measure a range of marketing and communication activities--the question of how we the right numbers and make decisions--seems to be perplexing companies around the globe.
Perhaps part of the reason measurement is such a challenging problem is that subject is not inherently interesting. Who wants to sit down and actually read a book about marketing metrics? Measuring Marketing: 103 Key Measures Every Marketer Needs is a book that, in my opinion, does a great job of addressing both problems. The book succinctly explains what each metric is, why the metric is important, and how that metric impacts decision making. In addition to helping us better understand measurement, the book is very well written and in plain English. This was actually enjoyable reading.
The book uses a clear three-part structure for each metric. Each metric is defined, we are then told the importance of each metric, and finally how the metric should impact our decision making. Consequently, the book is as much a reference manual as it is a marketing trade book. I began by reading the book in a cover-to-cover style (as I would any other book), but quickly found myself jumping throughout the book as some measures proved more applicable to my concerns.
My sense is that virtually any company can benefit from this book. The description of each metric is concise, the importance of each metric is clearly explained, and topically the book moves through a wide range of measures which look at revenue, cot per unit, market share, segment and customer profitability, price, share of voice, direct mail profit, cost per click, recall, inventory turnover, retail close ratio, sales force turnover rate, break-even sales volume, and even team selling compensation to name just a few. The range of metrics is amazingly comprehensive.
It is difficult to imagine how a marketing team could look through this book and not come up with a small set of metrics delivering the necessary information for assessing their work. Granted, the book does not go into depth regarding some of the more leading edge issues such as social media (for example, how would you measure the value of Nokia's N90 blog?). Another critique might be that he book looks only at traditional marketing measures and could be slightly less useful if a company is taking a more integrated marketing communication approach. That said, the book gives me so many measures that I remain convinced that almost anybody can improve their measurement by turning to this book.
I am very glad I took the time to read this text.
No Proper Measure, No Appropriate Management.......2007-01-26
John Davis provides an overview of commonly used business metrics that he subdivides in three categories: 1) Marketing Planning and Customers; 2) The Offering; and 3) Sales Force. Davis usually explains clearly each metric that he covers by sequentially examining the measurement need, solution, and impact on decision making. Most of the time, Davis gives a clear example that helps readers put the theory into practice. Some metrics in the third section such as Four Factor Model and Sales Variance Analysis will be somewhat challenging to readers who are not very comfortable with numbers.
To his credit, Davis is straightforward about the difficulties that readers can experience in collecting some of the information needed to use some of the metrics under review. Davis also cautions his audience against the danger of blindly using industry averages because each company has its own DNA. Davis is at his weakest when he presents an overview of key Internet metrics such as gross page impressions, cost per click, and cost per action. The coverage of these metrics is too superficial to be of any use to any reader who is looking for more than the basics. To summarize, "Measuring Marketing 103 Key Metrics Every Marketer Needs" is a good reference book for a quick education about some of the most commonly used business metrics.
A valuable read for any organization.......2007-01-14
The book does a good job of presenting clear, actionable ways of measuring marketing activity. But I think its real value is that it provides a common language for marketers to speak with non-marketers (CEOs, CFOs, other department heads) about what they're planning to do, what they do, and why. By helping to clear away the smoke and mirrors perception that marketing departments tend to have inside most companies, the book provides a path to achieving organizational as well as promotional goals. That's something of value for any size company in any industry.
Book Description
Fill the Empty Suit (or take it off completely!) This is a book of Simple Strategies For Providing Outstanding Service to Advertising Clients.
Account executives, and anyone else who deals with clients, will find themselves flinching, laughing, and committing to memory this sound advice, presented through real-life stories of satisfying success and embarrassing failure along the total spectrum of client service.
Customer Reviews:
Easy read, full of real world examples.......2007-04-23
A lot of these books where each chapter is a career tip or hint are mundane to read and only express the author's opinion on why the theory is applicable for others. This read was quick, easy, and even fun. The author gives anecdotes of things that actually have happened to him throughout his career, and the tone is casual and not overbearing.
Superb business book for anyone .......2006-05-31
This book hits home on so many keys to success in business, it stretches beyond just the agency world and into the essentials of servicing customers (which is what any business is all about right?). It is a fast read supported with loads of examples and stories from the author's decades of experience. To someone not in the agency world, it was great education in a few sittings. To someone who has been in business for a while it is an excellent reminder of some foundations for success. 54 will make you laugh and learn, a rare combination.
It's not just for Suits.......2006-05-21
Here's one of those books that offers information you might never discover -- even after years on the job. So why leave something important, like your career, to chance? Read the book and buy a few copies for your friends in the office. Doesn't matter if you're in account or creative. Robert offers sound advice you'll wish you knew about a few years ago.
THE process for all client service not just Marketing.......2006-05-14
This is the kind of book everyone who is in sales should read and digest. Not only do I believe every word - I have personal experience that validates every word. If you want to sell more (of anything), then improve your client service. When it comes down to it - it's one person selling to another - I don't care which company name is on your business card. This book nails client service.
Do not buy if .........2006-05-04
.. You have tasted client service before. I found this book to be very basic. I have been on client cervicing side before and didn't find anything interesting to note.
I would rather read a book which has all that this book has and much more.
Not a great buy !
Book Description
This book combines thoroughly field-tested knowledge delivered in a carefully developed step-by-step format. Both the manager and student will be able to build understanding and a key account by the end of it.
By analysing how key accounts really work in detail the authors create the tools that the reader will need in the marketplace. Equally it gives a clear picture of why KAM must be an important element of the corporate strategic plan.
Based on best practice from major companies globally there is no more definitive overview of this critical business to business strategy for sales and marketing managers and serious students in business and marketing.
* Written by one of the world's leading research teams into business-to-business marketing and key account management
* A hands-on approach with exercises and real-life case studies from which to draw insight
* Extensively revised to take in the latest empirical data and research developed from working with some of the world's leading companies
Book Description
Global M & A activity continues at a blistering pace. However, a recent study of Fortune 500 executives found that postmerger integration issuessuch as culture clashes, style, ego, and change managementare the most common pitfalls that can derail otherwise successful mergers or acquisitions. M & A Integration meets that trend head-on, providing a practical framework for integrating acquisitions while helping managers direct each step in the volatile postmerger integration process.
Customer Reviews:
M&A Integration : A Framework for Executives and Managers.......2007-08-11
Well written ... a valuable tool for a CEO considering a Merger or Acquisition ... the "cultural integration" is very well done.
A helpful place to start with an important theme.......2003-02-26
Participating as a senior manager in my first large merger (Prudential/Wachovia), I found this book a helpful guide. It is a bit of a primer, so it will probably not appeal to old M&A hands; however, any MBA can tell you about discounted cash flow analysis, but few CEOs have mastered the art and science of integration, which is the focus of this book.
The glamor is in the deal making: late nights with the lawyers and bankers. But most (most!) mergers fail to yield their expected value because the unglamorous job of integration is largely ignored during the deal and often mishandled afterwards.
Schweiger's theme is that integration is paramount to ultimate success and it must begin at or before valuation and due diligence, and it must be integrally woven into every step and every process.
The book is readable, logically organized and helpful.
Clothing the Emperor.......2003-02-24
As David Schweiger is the first to admit, M&A activity often turns out to be a source of value only to shareholders in the acquired company. In other words, it is much easier to put a value on potential synergies, increased market share and cost-savings than it is to capture any of these items. This book, written with both pragmatic bottom-line sense as well as compassion for the millions of employees affected by M&As each year, offers an extremely practical guide to capturing that elusive value. M&A can be a bad case of the Emperor having no clothes - a strategy based upon benefits that simply won't ever materialise, something the individual memebers of the crowd may be able to see perfectly well but which they would never dare to admit. Here is an alternative to the cynicism that often accompanies M&A; following Schweiger's methodology might just end with the Emperor being more than halfway decent... There is also an excellent guide to personal survival in an uncertain corporate world. Every manager should have a copy.
Books:
- Client at the Core: Marketing and Managing Today's Professional Services Firm
- Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning
- Concepts in Enterprise Resource Planning, Second Edition
- Corporate Fraud Handbook: Prevention and Detection
- Cost Accounting (12th Edition) (Charles T Horngren Series in Accounting)
- Cost Accounting (12th Edition) (Charles T Horngren Series in Accounting)
- Cost Accounting (12th Edition) (Charles T Horngren Series in Accounting)
- Cost Accounting (12th Edition) (Charles T Horngren Series in Accounting)
- Cost Accounting (12th Edition) (Charles T Horngren Series in Accounting)
- Cost Accounting Student Guide, 12th Edition
Books Index
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