Customer Reviews

Becoming a Category of One: How Extraordinary Companies Transcend Commodity and Defy Comparison

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

If you take only two (of many) things away from this book, it is 1) your brand belongs to your customers and 2)once you've achieved Category One status, the price of your product is (almost)immaterial.

Joe makes a very simple point that ends up being one of those "slap your forehead" moments: Do all the corporate-like things, such as have a mission and vision, build an ace culture, walk the talk, etc. but ultimately it is your customer who decides whether you deliver on your brand promise. And that customer is a doozy: intelligent, educated, demanding and able to look through a smoke and mirror tactic in a second.

Speaking of Mirrors...Joe unashamedly plugs his restaurant "Mirror" in Nashville - not because he needs the advertising (although being a bit of a gourmet and a lot of a gourmand, I was about to relocate at the mention of "blue cheese polenta fries") but because the restaurant is a Category of One enterprise. Everybody in that place and all the other case studies Joe talks about have one thing in common: a laser focus on the customer and what she wants - and then delivering it, every time, flawlessly and with a big smile. That customer will come back time and again. Not because you have the best prices - in fact - your products may be significantly more expensive, but because she likes doing business with your people.

Reading Joe's book is like having a conversation with him. I found myself nodding and agreeing out loud (in the privacy of my home, of course). Overall, it re-emphasized the importance of strong leadership, a value system that is constantly talked about, and all employees knowing why they get up in the morning.
Needless to say, but I will anyway: Read it!

Joe Calloway practices what he preaches. The author is not content to rehash what others have written about the topic of branding. He offers innovative suggestions that can give you and your business top-of-the-mind awareness in your industry. Packed with fascinating, real-life examples and results-producing suggestions, this book should be required reading for entrepreneurs and CEO's because their success depends on their ability to distinguish themselves from competitors. Read it and reap.

This book is terrific, a must read for any organization looking for a solid, no nonsense way to diffentiate themselves from the competition without focusing on product or price. Sure, there are alot of customer service books out there, but this one hits it on the head! It's PEOPLE and the experience they create for the customer that are your brand.

The book in clear fashion outlines the easy to grasp ways a company can truly diffentiate themselves from the competition without placing the major focus on product or price.

The author writes in plain, fun, and easy to understand english with many real life examples to illustrate the message. While the book is a quick read, it is packed with very good material. One of the most important business books I have ever read. The book itself is in a Category of One! (Sorry, pun intended).

Any CEO would love to run a company that is regarded as truly in a class by itself. After all that's about as close to a monopoly as you can get without running afoul of the regulators. Some companies - such as Starbucks, Volkswagen, Southwest Airlines and Apple Computers - do come close to being in a class by themselves. Here, consultant and author Joe Calloway suggests that all "Category of One" companies share a common trait that explains how they achieved success. More than just a book of theory, this volume also offers practical case studies, information and interviews. Strong on concepts, it needs to provide a bit more guidance about how to push your company into its own category. That said, we very strongly recommends this book to business leaders and students of management who find marketplace excellence a never-ending pursuit.

In today's intensely competitive world, being unique has value. Being positively unique has even more value. Leading your category in the marketplace builds business through the image of that coveted Number One status. Being so unique and so powerful that you're in a category all by yourself is the ultimate achievement. That positioning sets you apart from all would-be competitors because you're something pretty special...and people like to do business with suppliers that are something pretty special. If you want to achieve superlative success, your goal should be to become a Category of One.

First step: Read Joe Calloway's book. Second step: Read it again. Why? You'll be so entranced on the first reading that you'll miss a significant amount of valuable advice. Step Three: Start applying what you've learned from this book. Step Four: Read the book again, going back to all those passages you highlighted. Oh, along the way, better buy copies for all your key people so they can also get the message. [Snicker. After reading this book, you may have difficulty limiting who fits in that vital category of "key people."

Calloway is a management consultant who specializes in branding and competitive positioning. Through his client interactions over the years, and his own personal experiences, he's accumulated a wealth of information and insight. He knows how to be so good that your would-be competitors can't even touch you. In a surprising self-effacing gesture, rarely seen from consultants, Calloway shares in the preface that he's not the expert; he's merely a reporter. I have difficulty believing that he doesn't have expertise, but he sure does a fine job of reporting what winning companies are doing.

Each chapter is filled with advice, anecdotes, and inspiration. Very quickly, readers will "get" the difference between organizations that are so good that they create their own category...whether they intend to or not. As you learn why, you'll become motivated to make some changes in the way you do business. You'll discover what branding really means. You'll appreciate the power of being close to the customer. And you'll gain a deep understanding of how people can make the difference-if their leaders inculcate the values and drive for consistency that must be energized to be a Category of One employer.

Note: while this book is intended for employers-owners, executives, manager, and everyone else on the team, there is also value for the individual who wants to make himself/herself highly attractive. Looking for the perfect job for you? Looking for the perfect mate? This book is not the end-all, but the principles Calloway teaches have wide application. Open your mind and open your wallet. This is a book worth buying, reading, absorbing, and applying.

Becoming a Category of One is primarily about branding, creating a strong corporate culture (but this often overused strategy doesn't smack you in the face 1,000 times in this book the way some crazy HR people do), and finding points of genuine differentiation for a business.

I liked the book. It isn't rocket science, but it has simple, valuable ideas that might get you thinking. It talks about how you can't differentiate on the basis of factors that are already generally common to your marketplace or are "entry-level" in nature and how, if you want to "become a category of one," you should:

1. Know more about the customer than anyone else does.
2. Get closer to the customer than anyone else.
3. Emotionally conenct with the customer better than anyone else.

Calloway goes on to describe how he feels you can accomplish this. You should study the marketplace thoroughly, go into a transaction with more knowledge than anyone else about your product and your customer's needs, and use corporate culture as a method of creating consistency of performance in your suborindates.

Calloway ends with a study of The Tractor Supply Company and discusses how management has taught each employee the importance of corporate values and of "doing the right thing."

If you're looking for a detailed study of branding or positioning, this book isn't for you (although it's still possibly worth reading for ideas). If you're looking for a nice collection of anecdotes, stories, and examples about branding, serving customers, and winning in a commoditized industry (which the author believes every industry to be to some extent), here it is!

If you're going to do business in nearly any field of endeavor you'll invariably run head-on into at least one inescapable reality - that reality is competition. That is of course, unless you read Joe Calloway's book titled - "Becoming a Category of One." The author accurately states that the greater the level of competition, the greater the pressure on profits. What to do? According to Calloway the secret is customer service and that's why Soundview likes this book. The author's premise is that any company can differentiate itself - significantly - by offering service that delights its customer base. Calloway offers some interesting ideas and approaches to maximizing customer engagement as a strategic competitive advantage. Focusing on the customer is the surest way to put your business in a class - or category - by itself.

Joe Calloway writes a very readable book. It is written in plain english for the "everyday Joe". He provides a very sound business model, and backs it up with case studies, which also help to explain the model.

This book kept me thinking all the way through and provided the impetus for the ideas that came to me for adoption to my own work and business.

Whether you are in business or not, this book may help you in your work or maybe engender the entrepreneurial spirit within.

If you think you've read branding/marketing and/or customer service books and they're all alike, don't give up: read Becoming a Category of One. Calloway is one of the best and brightest thinkers on the subject of competitive advantage and he provides you with provocations and insights you can apply in your business. This is a terrific book.

Too much jargon - too many buzz words - too much same ol' same ol'. BUT, (and it's a big BUT) I like Joe's book. I like it for the very reasons that the few bad reviews didn't like it. I don't want a bunch of graphs and statistics or even too much analysis. I want a handful of good stories that exemplify the point. I want them to be engaging, real, and conversational. I want to know that ANYONE can do what the people in the stories have done and can then be more successful. This book does that. Yep, Joe is a buddy - a buddy who also wrote a review for my book. But that doesn't take away from the fact that this is a good book. One that every business owner AND every employee can benefit from.