Book Review: The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing
The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing: Violate Them at Your Own Risk!
Al Ries, Jack Trout
I’d heard this book was a staple for PR & Marketing professionals, but then when one of my favourite authors Tim Ferris recommended it as one of his top 5 must-have books, I finally decided to grab myself a copy.
What’s to like about it:
- Easily digestible chapters
- Tonnes of real world examples
- Doesn’t rely on extensive previous knowledge of Marketing, Branding, or Public Relations
What’s not to like about it:
- While the examples are great they are very US-centric and many desperately out of date as to sometimes even counter-illustrate how the rules work
- Some people get put off by the first two rules.. I don’t, I’m just saying *some* people do
Tim Ferriss says that he uses these rules as a sanity check before launching and marketing any new business and I can see why – Sensible, reliable and easy-to-understand advice makes this a great reference book I often refer to before I start planning.
For a sneak peak of the content there is a free summary here.
The Cool Curve
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=19411479855870500&hl=en]
I’ve been a bit of a dweeb this year reading books about Lifestyle (like Tim Ferriss’ 4 Hour Work Week), Business (like The Beermat Entrepreneur), and Design (like John Maeda’s The Laws of Simplicity).
Now I’ve found a concept which plays to my need to obsess on theories *AND* teaches me about my inability to be even remotely cool – The Cool Curve.
The Cool Curve is a presentation honed at Tuttle, introduced to me by one of my favourite web people (sizemore), and created by Creative Coffee Club guru Toby Moore AKA sleepydog.
Enjoy.
Digital Health Service launching at 2gether08
I’m sad I won’t be able to attend 2gether08 this week, but, I’ve been working with Gavin O’Carroll to promote The Digital Health Service workshop he’s running there tomorrow.
I met Gavin a few months ago when Katie and I were stalking Tim Ferriss round London and became really interested in the work he’s doing with organisations like The Learning & Skills Council, Channel 4 and uber-agency McCann Erikson.
The Digital Health Service usually kicks off with productivity workshops which help workers get a handle on how digital technology helps and hinders us in our everyday lives. Then, there’s a host of tips, tricks and techniques to improve your digital health. I’ve just signed up for his own creation, Rememble, which works as a virtual washing line for all your digital bits and pieces. (Still getting a handle on that)
If you’re down at the festival stop by ‘The Staff Room’ at 2.15pm to hear what it’s all about.
Meeting Tim Ferriss, author of The Four Hour Work Week
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfzD25qDXZM&hl=en]
I was lucky enough to meet up with Tim Ferriss the author of The 4-Hour Workweek while he was here on a flying visit to launch the book in the UK. I loved the book and would recommend reading it.
Katie Lee from Shiny Media was my partner in crime stalking Tim round London and put some of the tough questions to him in this exclusive interview. (I take no responsibility for the slightly blurry camera work…)
[Thanks to London Girl Geek Dinners for the intro]
About:
I'm Darika Ahrens and I help brands develop marketing strategies for Social Media.
My background is in Public Relations for companies like Orange, Microsoft, Philips, HTC, Yell.com, and Estee Lauder. I've worked with and trained some of the UK's top agencies.
In 2009 the Financial Times referred to me as "a new breed of business matchmaker" due to my network of contacts and way I work creating bespoke teams to deliver projects.