Customer Reviews

The Leaky Funnel

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have to admit that I'd had the Leaky Funnel for 3 months and hadnt read it because I assumed it was going to be a boring read. Sure it would have good points to make, but in my busy life it was going to be another text book on sales & marketing that would send me to sleep.

I was wrong. I really enjoyed the way it was written as a "novel" in context. I read it in two days (on my annual leave), made heaps of notes and have done some things as a result of reading the book.

A well written book that made me think about what I am doing.

This book is a very easy read, quite unexpected for this genre. It takes the reader into a company where Sales and Marketing are pulling in different directions - a problem for so many companies. What Hugh presents is a simple, straightforward yet powerful way to get Sales and Marketing, and the rest of the business, pulling in the same direction.

I recommend this book to everyone working in a revenue focused role, Sales, Marketing, CEO - even the CFO!

Excellent read! This book delivers an epiphany to marketing and sales managers alike. This book is easy to read as it uses a story (and causes a few laughs as you recognise your colleagues and yourself) to convey a simple but striking message. By the end it delivers a practical framework for aligning sales and marketing efforts.

I wish I had this book on my bookshelf over a decade ago, when I started my first business to business marketing role! I think I would have been far more effective in engaging my sales peers. I have given copies to my marketing team and even better... to the sales team. Everyone has found the time to read it and I can already see results!

More useful, more practical than an academic, theorised work, The Leaky Funnel shows both the need and methodology for an aligned customer-supplier buying-selling journey. An easy read, and capable of simple, effective implementation into an organisation which has consultative or enterprise selling requirements.

One of my favorite business books! There is no better solution for aligning sales and marketing than around the customer funnel. The novel format makes it easy to relate to the issues and envision a realistic application of the critical lessons presented. It's the foundation for becoming more customer centric, putting better marketing ROI measures in place, and breaking down organizational barriers. Make this required reading for your sales managers and marketing managers and the right dialogue and actions will follow.

Macfarlane is one of the few sales writers to truly look at the issue of selling from the customer's perspective. His discussion of the 'customer's journey' is both enlightening and practical. Through The Leaky Funnel Macfarlane clearly states his argument, and backs it with a series of practical examples.

Hugh Macfarlane, who has declared his 20 year goal to be the leading global authority on B2B Marketing, shares his experience and thinking through the vehicle of a riveting story of a board who seeks higher performance and the leadership team who designs and delivers.

Written from a refreshing Australian viewpoint (Christmas is in the summertime) this easy to read story contains both quantitative and soft skill insights to measuring and improving the Sales and Marketing Value Stream.

If you liked the Lean books The Gold Mine: A Novel of Lean Turnaround or The Lean Manager you will enjoy this story as well!

If you are looking for ways to dramatically increase your sales and marketing effectiveness, this work is definitely worth a read.

Entertaining, grounded and revelatory. A must read for B2B sales and marketing professional.

A great book thanks to the author as you can visualize all the characters in this real life drama. The story line is so real; having worked in professional sales for many years I have seen all the situations framed in this book.
Recommended as a light hearted way to bring sales within the marketing umbrella and to complete the closed loop process between sales and marketing functions, i.e. marketing drive the sales strategy, sales test the strategy on clients-to-be and provide feedback to confirm the strategy, works or does not work, to marketing.
Chris Jordan. January 2007

After reading both this book and the other reviews, I have to say I agree with everyone to some extent. However, some of the principles espoused by Macfarlane do not translate well to consumer businesses, though I can see their application in B2B marketing and sales. My primary complaint is how slowly it moved, through seemingly endless fictitious business meetings of the Hardbits management team. These "workshops" were nearly as tedious as real-life meetings would have been. I frequently found myself thinking - as I do in actual, interminable meetings - "cut to the chase so we can all get out of here and get some work done!" Also, I found the many cute Aussie colloquialisms distracting. For me, they definitely took away from the real meat of the message, which was useful overall, just too long and boring.