10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
THIS is a useful book!!, January 15, 2005
This review is from: Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days (Roughcut)
I've read several guerrilla marketing books because I found Jay Conrad Levinson's "Guerrilla Marketing - 3rd Edition" to be so significant in the marketing success of Novacon Internet Services and several other organizations that I have been associated with. Other marketing and sales books and seminars have been useful to a great extent, but I really resonate with guerrilla marketing techniqes for our company, one of the largest independant ISPs in Chicago. I use my guerrilla marketing library of books for reference and problem solving. A great resource for ideas and real-world insights.
Now comes "Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days" with a unique twist. Your whole marketing plan laid out in 30 days, and a process that accomodates even the most time-challenged manager. The book distills proven marketing techniques that are found in dozens of other guerrilla marketing books and lays out an effective action plan that can be implemented quickly, leading to client acquisition and improved profits. The chapters are clearly written, easy to understand and the techniques should be easy for all small & medium sized businesses to execute. Guerrilla marketing is all about inspiration, perspiration, a battle plan and an expenditure of little or no money on weapons (guerrilla marketing techniques).
Chapter 1 - The Guerrilla Marketing Mindset begins by showing the reader how to approach business development as a guerrilla. Everything you say and do as a person or organization can affect your brand, revenues and profits. Levinson and Lautenslager encourage readers to ask themselves the same question every day; "How am I building awareness with my prospects and clients through our marketing?" Everyone, especially people with multiple responsibilites in an organization, should ask that question daily and work to improve their efforts. Keep your eye on the prize. Sales solves alot of other problems!
The message is clear. While "Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days" leads you though the develoment and execution of your marketing plan in 30 days (or 35, or even 40), The guerrilla mindset is a permanent benefit that you can benefit from for years to come. "Just Do It" every day, no doubt, is what Al Lautenslager preaches to his customers as a Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach.
What follows are chapters on goal-setting, competitive research, targeting and positioning your SMB. By Day 7, the reader is developing their 7-Sentence Marketing Plan, a unique component and exercise that Levinson has promoted since his first guerrilla marketing book. Going through that exercise while reading his first book was exilerating, but it has also been a great way to concisely communicate our overall plan to my staff and strategic partners.
Specific chapters cover an array of guerrilla marketing weapons, including advertising, business networking, strategic alliances and fusion marketing, direct selling, telemarketing, promotional literature, direct mail, broadcast ads, public relations techniques and online marketing. By Day 21, the reader is developing a focused, well thought-out Marketing Calendar that may ultimately include other guerrilla marketing opportunities like trade shows and newsletters. This book has brought new ideas and techniques to the table and reminded me of things that need to be moved up to the front burner. (For "continuing education" on all of the techniques laid out in this book, there are dozens of other books in the guerrilla marketing series that can be consulted.)
As you wrap up the 30 day exercise, you'll have chosen the weapons you'll take into battle and finalize your plan and budget. Chapter 29 focuses on developing new revenue streams and expansion. The final chapter focuses on the New Plan - what a new guerrilla should focus on in the NEXT 30 days.
"Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days" is a terriffic primer on getting organized and motivated to take control of your business development with an effective, easy to implement plan. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. "Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days" will help plan to thrive in '05 and beyond!
Since we're already using guerrilla marketing at Novacon, we're going to use this book to re-evaluate our master plan for the new year. I've decided to order extra copies for our staff and am recommending "Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days" by Levinson & Lautenslager to others in my personal and professional networks. I think it's just great!
-- Kurt Scholle, Managing Partner
Novacon Holdings LLC
www.novacon.net
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good Info but a Little Too Old School, March 15, 2005
This review is from: Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days (Roughcut)
There are several challenges to reaching an audience in the world of marketing, advertising, and public relations. A marketing plan has to meet the needs of the business. Budgeting must be done with finesse and pinpoint accuracy. Above all, the message has to reach an organization's target audience. In "Guerilla Marketing in 30 Days," authors Jay Conrad Levinson and Al Lautenslager provide the instructions on just how to achieve the aforementioned goals and then some.
"Guerilla Marketing in 30 Days" is packed with an enormous amount of information, including how to create a marketing plan, what to do when planning a direct mail campaign, and when to use PR instead of traditional marketing. The book is a comprehensive guide to almost everything that marketing encompasses. For example, the authors give expert advice and a dose of reality in regards to creating a marketing plan with the following:
"`Build it and they will come' is not an effective marketing plan or strategy. A successful plan boils down to two essentials:
1. Knowing the market inside and out, including what customers want and expect.
2. Knowing the way to satisfy customers by knowing competitors, barriers to entry, costs, outside influences, budgets, knowledge, etc."
Though the book is filled with useful information, it does have a few problems. For one thing, the writing is sort of plain and reads more like a college textbook than a "guerilla" marketing guide. Secondly, it leaves out a lot of some of the latest trends in marketing such as when to use pop-up ads, weblogs, and viral marketing. And finally, lots of the material seems to be outdated and at least five years late.
This book would make an ideal book for a college student in Marketing 101. It gives a thorough strategic and tactical marketing foundation for anyone looking to explore the topic. But those who are a bit more experienced in the marketing world may find the information in this guide a little too old school.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent 5 Star Marketing Text for Beginner to Expert Alike, January 15, 2005
This review is from: Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days (Roughcut)
Al Lautenslager really knows his stuff, and also has consulted widely in compiling this jointly authored work with Jay Conrad Levinson - the father of Guerrilla Marketing.
This Book provides the reader with information on a full working armoury of marketing weapons in only 30 days.
The marketing weapons discussed are also referenced to other Guerrilla Marketing books in this very successful series, so that the reader can explore further if they want to.
But, the information in this book alone should easily help the ambitious business owner to build or multiply their Sales Turnover.
That gives the reader a potentially huge return for the small investment in the price of this book.
I rate it as a "must have" in any serious business person's library.
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