Customer Reviews

Bungee Jumping & Cocoons: The Dual Nature of the Industrial Marketplace

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"Bungee Jumping & Cocoons" is an apt title for a book on marketing-it gets you thinking about what it could mean. It describes two types of behavior and extrapolates to industrial marketing. Bungee jumping is taken as the example of the need for "extreme." Cocooning is another lifestyle metaphor. I think he forces the cocooning metaphor, but it does provide an alternative to bungee jumpers.

Bungee jumping describes the behavior of industrial companies to develop partnerships, cost reduction programs, outsourcing, and other cost slashing/productivity boosting activities usually grouped under Lean Manufacturing or Six Sigma.

Cocooning, on the other hand, is used to describe how engineers and other professionals can get almost all the information and education right at their desks, so they don't get out much. Kenworthy uses this metaphor to describe the demise of traditional trade shows. This is a trend that must be addressed by manufacturers.

The book is a light read, and I would have preferred more industrial examples. If you are involved in industrial marketing, this book will make you think about how you're approaching today's engineering buyer. That's a good thing.

This is not a technical book; it's an entertaining and instructive review of markets - primarily the industrial market which is where the author has experience.

"Bungee jumping" is a marketing orientated narrative, with wonderful examples and verbal illustrations, told in an amusing narrative style. It seperates people (and companies) that hide in "cocoons" waiting for a return to "the good old days", from the bold and daring that are willing to do some "bungee jumping" to succeed.

This is a good read. The author has a good knowledge of the subject, and has evidently thought about it a lot. He writes well, in an excellent personal narrative style, with examples which are clear and accurate, and yet amusing, to make several very insightful markeing points. His colloquialisms will confuse anyone's spell-checker, but he gives good marketing advice in an industry that sorely needs it. The suggestions are broad and are provided without bias against any specific products, systems or companies.

Good book - read it!