Book Description

Now, the world's most famous marketer, Sergio Zyman, and his partner, Scott Miller, present a brilliant and irascible take on e-marketing as it really is, and how it's supposed to be.

Too many Internet start-ups are betting on irreverent advertising and in-jokes to do magic -- tocreate instant brand awareness, build traffic, develop commerce, create buzz, and rise to the top. But irreverent too often means irrelevant. And meanwhile, sales stagnate -- or nosedive. And, since the Internet bubble has now burst, Web companies live by the law-of-the-jungle rules of ALL companies.

Building Brandwidth is the user's manual for anyone doing business on the Internet. This indispensable guide to making money and coming out on top will help you close the sale online in these fast-moving, make-or-break times when every e-commerce venture is desperately fighting to stay afloat.

Read by Scott Miller with an
introduction by Sergio Zyman ... Read more

Reviews (7)

They should have followed their own advice
When writing this book the authors should have followed their own advice, "If you don't build benefits and customer value into your brandwidth, your days are numbered." (pg 12) and "Every detail is either adding value or subtracting it..." (pg 40). If they had I would have loved this book. Instead the authors trumpet old ideas (e.g. Be customer focused not product focused) and don't add their own take on what that means. They don't even offer much in the way of supporting evidence.

Throughout the book I was asking myself, "How? You're the marketing gurus, tell me how your customers did it." They talk about viral marketing, how did the successful companies do it? What are the pitfalls? They talk about the importance of fostering a conversation with your customers. Again, no examples. No "how". The authors make grand statements, but never back them up with evidence of their truth nor examples of how the sucessful used the idea for success.

If you want to find out about being market driven read "The Market Driven Organization" by George S. Day., "Inside the Tornado" or "Crossing the Chasm" by Geoffrey A. Moore.

But save yourself some money and time, don't bother with this book.

Count Online Success in Sales Dollars--Nothing Else
I'm glad I listened to the three-hour abridged tape set while driving in the car, rather then spend even more time focused on reading the book.

There's not much new material here, but the main point of Brandwidth: Closing the Sale Online is earthshaking! When counting online success, only dollars count--not hits, visits, looky-lous--just sales revenue.

For that point alone and all the supporting information, listening to this abridgement was worth my time.

What a disappointment!
I loved Zyman's earlier book, so I expected more of the same. But not until page 82 did I encounter a single fresh idea or interesting example. This reads like the outline for a book that was slapped together. It's not that the advice is wrong. It's good advice, but there is no depth and no originality to it, and very little worthwhile content.

Read his first book
Reads like a sequel to a blockbuster movie. Does not quite live up to expectations.

Good, but there are better
Brandwith is a cute name for Internet marketing, and the author's lay out the case for pushing sales pretty well. But speaking from a small business/entrepreneurial viewpoint, I found not very much practical information that I could put to good use. If you want a better alternative, try "The Anatomy of Buzz" by Emanuel Rosen. Some very practical stuff that the upstart e-marketer can really use. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Great starter stuff
Kind of a dying field but where else can a person get the starting details to help them produce their own inexpensive audio cassettes? Great starter stuff...

Great old stuff
Audio cassettes are a dying art, and here Burgett gives the best one-two-three synopsis of how to do it well and inexpensively that I've found anywhere. Some of his advice is a bit dated and a computerphobe will know a few shortcuts, but for the average person wanting to create a quick product, he gives it all here.

Disappointing. Low Quality. Low Value.
Very Diappointed. Tape was obviously recorded at home (can hear doors opening and closing, papers shuffling, and a host of other sounds which can't be identified). Would have easily forgiven the made-at-home quality if the information was useful/valuable. Unfortunately, it wasn't. Instead, invest your money in a copy of "Words on Tape." Grade: D-/F+ ... Read more

Book Description

Learn four fundamental patterns of successful influencers. Including the venerable Yes-Set, the Grand Falloon, Self-Sell and Positive Psychological Context. Lynda demonstrates how-to with real-life examples and offers strategies for situations in which someone may be influencing you.1 Audio Cassette ... Read more

Book Description

Selling is the second oldest profession, often confused with the first.

The notion of selling carries a lot of baggage. As it has developed, sales has often become a fear-based relationship. Customers are afraid that they will be "sold" a bill of goods, or that a salesperson will talk them into something that doesn't help them succeed.

On the other hand, salespeople fear they won't make the sale. If they "lose" enough sales, they won't make quota, and they won't personally succeed. In their quest to "close the deal," even some of the world's largest, quota-crazed organizations have, at times, developed a reputation for salespeople who are illusive, ignorant, and arrogant.

Buyers don't trust sellers. Because they aren't trusted, sellers have to guess, and often guess wrong. Buyers prove themselves right and create higher hurdles. And so it goes, with neither client nor consultant achieving success.

Helping Clients Succeed™ is fundamental to the success of any business. This program teaches you to become totally client-focused, break down the barriers of dysfunctional business development, and find rewarding, productive business relationships. With honesty, clarity, and authenticity, Mahan Khalsa cuts through the nonsense and focuses on getting results and helping clients succeed. ... Read more

Reviews (17)

A great book for selling large deals
There are literally thousands of books on selling and most leave you with the feeling that you need to shower after you have read them. This one does not. Lets get real has a reality about it and a discussion of a simple process that reenforces all the things you knew about selling. The book hits the right blend of anedotal stories -- so you can see how it would apply to you and discussion of the process elements -- so you can figure out how to apply it yourself. This is no Zig Ziglar book -- this is something I want to conciously try to use every time.

The book is very clearly written and highly usable, breaking each aspect of the approach into small digestable chunks. Its something you can read and more importantly re-read/refresh yourself easily.

There is one limitation of the book. It seems to be geared more toward longer multiple call sales cycles, rather than transaction selling. At least that is the way I read it. I could not see my local car dealer selling this way -- although I wish they would.

This book is one that is going into my frequently read shelf. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who is looking to build commercial relationship with a client.

A way to do "this" and not be sleazy, slick or cheesy
It wasn't until I read this book that I felt anything positive about being in "sales". I had done it in my past and I was about to do it again and thank god for this book or I'd still be uncomfortable and tossing and turning in my sleep.

We need a new word, "sales", as this book so aptly puts it, is something you do to someone else. You "sell" them on something. Nobody wants to be sold, we all avoid salespeople and we all feel stupid selling other people on something. And those who do enjoy "selling" someone are almost always in pursuit of their own "victory", oif beating the other person into buying from them, overcoming obstacles, leaping hurdles and getting the BIG CLOSE.

They aren't really focused on the other person, an urge I sometimes fall prey to myself. Our culture makes competition and personal victories very seductive, it is what we talk about, sports teams are rarely congratulated on their effort or fine play unless they win. We view so many things as black and white, which is not natural, throughout human history you can see cooperation as a dominant and prudent way to survive and thrive, not competition (see a dense, but brilliant book on this "Nonzero : The Logic of Human Destiny" by Robert Wright). Sales is a no-win game for everyone.

Maybe there isn't any word, the "trick", the "gimmick" that this book extols is genuiness, simply being real, if you will. You meet someone, you listen, you ask some good questions so that you understand them well and what they are trying to accomplish, if you think there might be a way that you or your company can help them you offer it to them, if not, you wish them well and part graciously.

What is that? Being human? Being real? "being real" has a vaguely cheesy sound to it too, my only complaint about this book is it's title which can turn people off before they even open it. Again maybe there is no word. Many of us will simply go out and meet people and listen well and feel good about what we are doing and be personally successful as well...or are those the same thing anyway :-)

The real value of this book is some excellent exercises you can do in a meeting with someone, things to really challenge you to break out of old patterns, very, very deeply ingrained patterns.

A great no holds bar book
Mahan Kalsa is the master of knowing when to walk away and when to go for the jugular in sales. This no holds bar book will teach you to recognize that your customers and your prospects are no more important than you. His strategies and techniques ensure you will be treated as a consultant, and not just another salesperson. Why is it that salespeople often would rather have a "maybe" than a "no?" Mahan teaches us that to be the best of the best means knowing when to walk away and focus on other priorities. His system will increase your sales immensely, by speeding up your process. 5 stars all the way!

Good Book; Could have been a GREAT book
This book is one of the most accessible, erudite and informative books on consulting I've ever read. The conversational writing style makes the complex topic understandable. Having said that, the book has more spelling errors than any published book I've ever read. Some of them are GLARING errors too. I'm not sure if they rushed this book to press in 1999 to capitalize on the tech (read: consulting) boom that was happening at the time, but the book is very poorly edited in that regard. These are rookie mistakes. That speaks -- at some level -- to the overall credibility of the book. One of the assertions made in the book is to make sure your written proposal is well-written. If your resume (proposal) has spelling errors, that's just one more reason to disqualify you -- even if you're qualified for the job.

But that shouldn't be enough to keep you from buying this book. Khalsa lays out an easy-to-follow (if not complex) framework for getting to the bottom of a client's problem and finding the right solution for them.

It's a must-read if you're a consultant or if you purchase consulting services.

The guru in salesmanship
I first picked up the auditio tapes from one of Franklin Covey stores as recommend by the store manager. I listened to the tape. I think the book concept is very applicable and great. I really like his part on issue, evidence, and impact when it comes to analyzing issues. I use it in my consulting work now. I would recommend this to everyone who loves to learn the art of salemanship or marketing. I later went back to the USA and bought CD and the book. I bought more than 200 books in 3 years. This is the only title I bought 3 sets of the same title. Mahan is the man. If you want a book on marketing a consulting service. LETS GET REAL with Mahan Book and LETS NOT PLAY WITH OTHER BOOKS TOO MUCH. Go right into the sfuff in the book Mahan has to offer. ... Read more

Book Description

This is the audio version of "Selling Above The Crowd: 365 Strategies For Sales Excellence." The initial eight short chapters lay out a foundation the 365 strategies build on. The 365 strategies focus on skills, habits and attitudes, apply to anyone selling any product or service and can be applied immediately for fast results. The set is a comes with five audios and includes a free bonus cassette, "Six Points To Peak Perfornance." This bonus tape is instructional and motivational. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Outstanding tool for professional salespeople
This book in my opinion is a very effective tool for the professional salesperson of today. The ideas in the book, when followed are a sure fire way to succeed in the ever changing highly competitive sales industry oftoday. Anyone interested in advancing their career or the career of otherfellow sales professionals will see this book needs to be in their libraryfor personal growth. I have and will continue to spread this book around inmy circle of influence, to further the career's of my peer's.

Selling above the crowd
After reading Dave Andersons' Column in "Dealer" magazine, I ordered 25 copies of his book, one for each salesperson.We listen to his tapes in weekly salesmeetings.Finally, I invited him to speak to ourstaff about Leadership. His books have changed our entire outlook.Weare now a dealership with a vision.I just asked him to return for another3 day session.He definitely gets us going!

365 strategies for sales exellence
i thought selling above the crowd is an excellentbook.the reason i like this book is because it provide you a daily focus year round.it is bold and to the point . it is not something you read once or twice and put up on a shelf somewhere., it is a daily trainer.

Dave Anderson's Selling Above the Crowd
Great insight on selling written in a non-traditional format. 365 Daily affirmations with an action plan that helps any sales staff. Looking for next book by Dave.

It works the world over
As one of the United Kingdoms most controversial speakers on profit improvement in the Motor Industry, and author of Customer Care In the Motor Industry I thought I had everything covered. But Dave Andersons Book hasinspired me to change direction, in my own personal approach to my businessand I have to admit that I have pinched a lot of his ideas,to use in my ownworkshops with clients. A compelling read especially if used with histapes. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Sales help for accountant nerds like me
As a tax practitioner, securing clients at critical times is the mainstay of my business. Sales have always been my weakest skill, but these tapes have DEFINITELY made a difference. Now, I recommend them to all of my clients as well.

Skills for more than sales professionals
Karl Walinskas employs a pleasant, confident speaking voice to deliver a blend of solid theory and practical techniques that are easy to remember and helpful to use.

The 12 talks in this excellent package of six cassette tapes are intended to help business professionals improve their effectiveness in making sales presentations. They certainly accomplish their purpose, but they could well serve a broader audience as well.

Since Walinskas devotes considerable time to the twin arts of asking questions and listening to responses, these tapes would be useful to anyone who needs to acquire or sharpen skills in interviewing other people. Journalists, human relations specialists and anyone else whose livelihood depends on interviewing others would find "Selling Solutions" a worthwhile tool.

An enthusiastic, common sense approach to success.
Mr. Walinskas' approach will be of benefit to everyone, regardless of profession. We are all selling something--if not a product, then ideas, knowledge or skills. Mr. Walsinsaks provides a fresh, modern approach that renders obsolete the overused techniques of the past. The program provides an enthusiastic intermingling of ideas, techniques and examples, with an added touch of wit, that holds your interest, and moves you eagerly to the next cassette. The presentation is extremely well organized, easy to follow and packed with ideas for success. The techniques described by Mr. Walinskas can be applied to all aspects of the business world. As I listened to each tape in the program, I found my mind rapidly relating every concept to a specific situation in my professional life where it could be of benefit. I learned many new techniques, as well as gained some solid reminders of tools I had been forgetting to use. I would highly recommend this program to not only individuals in sales, but to anyone desirous of improving their performance to the level of excellence. It is an investment in your future that you will readily use again and again.

Mr. Walinskas explains selling like no one else.
Karl Walinskas explains the "new" selling environment and the new methods of selling perfectly. Being in sales, I have read many books about selling and closing, but none have explained selling as lucidly or understandably as Mr. Walinskas. With his methods, I have increased my sales because the methods Mr. Walinskas espouses go far beyond the standard "pitch and close" techniques. I enjoyed listening to the tapes and will continue to do so as I gain more techniques with each listening. ... Read more

Book Description

Learn how to protect yourself and your family from the very real threat of deceptive recruitment tactics and destructive mind control techniques used by thousands of organizations. ... Read more

Reviews (31)

This book helped me
When I learned that L. Ron Hubbard had officially "erased" his 2nd wife, Sara, and even recreated her as the Russian communist spy Sara Komkosadamanov, and then I saw the huge stack of abandoned dianetics books at a used book store, I knew something was seriously wrong. Since then I've been reading and reading. Now I've just finished a really nice and concise over-view of whole messy subject: 'Combatting Cult Mind Control' by Steven Hassan. If you're tempted to wander into the world of cults, read this book first.

I was in a cult
This book is one of those books that one can read and relate their experiece - whether or not you were in one of the listed cults Hassan describes.How freeing to realize that the same tactics used by those Hassan listed are the same tactics the cults I was involved with used.There is nothing new under the sun, that's for certain.

With tremendous sincerity and helpfulness, Hassan lists out the destructive portions of the cults while at the same time not minimizing those of us who have been in a cult.ANYONE could be recruited or involved.I admire his compassion for all involved as well as a direct no-nonsense approach to those who premediate cult practises to harm and abuse others.

I recommend this book to anyone who is seeking validation regarding the possibility of being in a cult and to those who may work with those coming out of an abusive church/religious experience!

A thoughtful and thorough look at mind-control techniques
First of all, in response to those reviewers who argue that "all religions practice mind control" and "Hassan is against freedom of religion," I would like to point out that Hassan states very plainly that just because a group is not mainstream does not make it a cult. He provides very detailed, specific criteria as to what makes a cult (including deception, attempts to isolate people from their friends and family, refusal to let members leave, and pronounced control of information), and also includes a handy checklist of questions to ask potential cult recruiters, including "Does your group practice deception?" "Is your group considered controversial and if so, why?" and "Tell me three things you don't like about your group and your leader." As Hassan states, legitimate organizations will be honest about their motives, and members of legitimate organizations should be able to discuss their group's failings as well as its strengths. Hassan is not out to demonize religion in general, nor (as he states) are all cults necessarily religious in nature.

Hassan provides an excellent breakdown of the dynamics of cults, beginning with his own experience being recruited by the Moonies. Dissatisfied with his own experience of being "kidnapped" and deprogrammed (though he readily concedes that it was, overall, a beneficial experience), he has developed a less-drastic approach to counseling members out of cults, based around attempts to reactivate the original personality underneath the cult one (his own mention of how the sight of his father's tears provided the first step on his road to leaving the Moonies is touching and convincing). As previously mentioned, he offers warning signs that a group might be cultish, provides detailed, common-sense advice for how to deal with family members who might have been indoctrinated, and offers advice for former cult members who are attempting to readjust to life in normal society.

While Hassan mentions that not all cults are religious in nature, he spends most of his time dealing with religious ones, except for brief mentions of psychotherapeutic cults. I was a little disappointed by this, since I found the notion of non-religious cults fascinating and would have liked to see more of an exploration of the differences, if any, between religious and non-religious cults. This is an area I wish he had explored in more depth. Hassan's discussions of Satanic cults, while brief, also clearly date the book to the late '80s/early '90s, during which the "Satanic Panic" was at its height.

Overall, however, this is an excellent introduction to the phenomenon of cults and mind control, and I would recommend this to anyone interested in the subject, for whatever reason.

Reviews that speak
Isn't it interesting. Reviews of this book either seem to get one star or lots. One might be forgiven for wondering whether the one-stars are in cults...

Personally, I'm just interesting in persuasion (my site is at changeminds.org) and found the book a surprisingly even-handed and mature text. Given that Hassan has been through the mill himself, he might be forgiven for being hateful towards cults. All I saw was compassion to those who have been harmed.

For the cults (strange word, anyway), he does take pains to point out that they are very varied and that many people are not harmed by many groups that could be called cultish in at least some way.The most harm happens, it seems, is when the vulerable meet the Machiavellian.

The book is also very interesting when used in the context of normal society and organizational groups.

Horrible "book" written by an angered 2yr old.
If your going to by this book I suggest first paying a friend $12 to have him sit there and lie & complain to you for 4 hours. You'll receive the same entertainment, Steven Hassan is a child, this book should have included finger paints and connect-the-dots chapter. ... Read more

Book Description

Named "the" world's greatest salesman" by The Guiness Book Of Records, Joe Girard is one of America's most sought after speakers and a best-selling author. Now he shares the secrets of his success on tape.Joe Girard wasn't always a success. He grew up in the ghettos of Detroit, never finished high school and lost his own contracting business and his home before starting over as a salesman. During his 15 year career, her sold 13,001 cars -- averaging six per day. And each sale was an individual retail sale, no fleets. He's been in the trenches and he knows what works. On this recording Joe shares his own story, and addresses such topics as:

• How to Dress For Your Customers
• How to Motivate Yourself -- An Essential Part of Selling
• How to Communicate With Customers -- And Avoid Turning Them Off
• How to Find Customers During Slow Times
• How To Avoid Being Dragged Down By Pessimists At The Office
• How to Deal With Unethical Co-Workers Or Supervisors

Whether you're just starting out in sales, or you're a seasoned pro, let Joe Girard do for you what he's done for millions of others -- inspire you and help improve your sales. ... Read more

Book Description

Selling Success (again)

Updated edition with TWO NEW TAPES for 2002

A Seminar On Tape

Using hypnosis, NLP, $ubliminal communication and The Principles of Influence to $ELL MORE and MAKE MORE MONEY!

TWO VOLUMES TWELVE TAPES

Based upon my Two day seminar in Hypnotic $elling and Persuasion. This Twelve AUDIO CASSETTE TAPE ALBUM contains all the material from my live class and MORE.

$uccessful $ales people, who know how to MAKE MONEY and persuade people to make the APPROPRIATE purchase for their needs KNOW THESE SKILLS! $uccessful $ales people know how to create WIn WIn situations where their clients are PLEASED, and will refer NEW clients with JOY. $uccessful $ales people KNOW the skills from THIS TAPE SET and use them to MAKE LOTS OF MONEY! Now YOU CAN TOO.

In this Twelve tape set, you will learn about ALL this and MORE!

Make Money through the Influence Principle$

Make Money by doing what you do well, BETTER. and by doing what OTHER$ DO WELL YOURSELF!

Make what you say practically IRRE$I$TIBLE to your customers!

Build Rapport that makes your CU$TOMER into your BE$T FRIEND... and make more CASH!

Set effective $elling goals on an UNCONSCIOU$ level.

Learn $imple $elf hypno$i$ techniques to help YOU remove your own INTERNAL obstacles.

Communicate in $ubliminal and Unconscious ways to persuade Customers to find reasons to BUY NOW and be HAPPY with their purchase.

$peak the customer's language and win their $ale!

Built credibility and learn ways to PRACTICE hypnotic selling technique$ that work to make you more MONEY!

Learn ways to make their objections VANISH into a $ale!

Learn principles of NLP that let you know WHAT they are thinking, HOW they are thinking, and if they are telling the TRUTH!

Learn about Yes $ets in an UNCONSCIOUS WAY!

Experience EXERCISES meant to change YOUR attitude, and to LEARN these $kills in $afe and useful ways!

Enjoy hidden hypnotic messages and $uggestions throughout this ENTIRE $eminar to help you learn consciously and Unconsciously and MAKE MORE MONEY!

Learn the WAYS people think so you can talk in THEIR LANGUAGE!

Create AMNE$IA to allow customers to forget negative experiences in the past and focus on their pleasant buying experience in the future.

Insure they REALLY REMEMBER what you want them to remember and make your client happy!

Eliminate resistance and prevent returns BEFORE they happen.

Conversational Hypno$i$! The secrets of influence as you speak!

Turning a loss or liability into an a$$et through REFRAMING!

Using your voice as a POWERFUL selling weapon to communicate $ubliminally.

Using hypnotic $tories to make a $ale

Presuppose a $ALE and presuppose $ucce$$!

Develop hypnotic $ales $cripts for phone sales and pitches-also useful for written sales material.

Use Hypnotic QUESTION$ to communicate and make a Sale!

Learn about UNIVERSAL programs that people follow that you can USE and create MORE MONEY in your pocket!

Learn the procedures that you can use or adapt to your situation in appropriate ways to get your client to like you, and to make that sale.

And MUCH MUCH MORE including Free Bonuses not taught at Live seminars!

Two New tapes added for 2002 feature Exercises to help you LEARN this dynamic material in your every day life FEARLESSLY! ... Read more