Customer Reviews

Web Rules: How the Internet is Changing the Way Consumers Make Choices

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

 

 

this book can easily be read in one sitting. the writing style is quite entertaining probably owing to the fact that the author is a seasoned journalist. as the book imparts time and time again, the customer returns with a vengance as he sets the web rules of the net. with information readily available, the customer now holds the power. the book tells of how the merger mania has put the mom and pop stores out of business. how these stores really knew the meaning of individualized customer service. but times are changing and the forces of the new economy are upon us. now we have virtual malls and the customer is once again treated like a king. the book has also other interesting insights on the effect of the network economy such as its chapters on gadgets(mobile phones, bots), interactivity, finance,and medicine. it ends with interviews which read like a whos who in the e-conomy such as jerry yang, andy grove and mike bloomberg. although its a good read,for those who are more interested in making it easier for the customer to do business with you(customer focused strategies) you may be more inclined to pick up the customer.com book of patricia b.seybold.

Finally, a book about the Internet for the rest of us!

Web Rules explains in clear language what the Web really means to consumers and small businesses without a lot of jargon and condescending attitude found in most of what we see and hear about the Internet.

Let's face it, most of us aren't part of the vaunted digerati. Murphy's book provides the big picture that can help anyone catch up with the latest trends from the biggest thinkers in the field -- people like Andy Grove and Paul Erdman and Barry Diller.

It was great to see someone recognize that the Web is about something more than just another way to sell things. It's about millions of people interacting. This book is all about how companies and their customers will relate on the Internet. And about education, entertainment, information, democracy, choice and more.

Most Internet books only deal with the corporate point of view. This deals with the power of their customers (What a refreshing viewpoint!)

His conversations with the "Big Players" show that even they don't always agree on what's happening on the Internet. Their comments support the author's conclusions: that despite everything else you read about the World Wide Web, it's the consumers who will ultimately decide which companies succeed and which fail. In other words: it's up to us.

Not only do I recommend this book to any consumer (or business!), but I encourage readers to take that advice to heart. The customer IS always right!

Tom Murphy does a great job of identifying ways in which consumers are being empowered by the internet. It's a refreshing, optimistic look at how business-to-consumer relationships are being transformed by new technology. It's also a good heads-up for businesses targeting a new breed of educated, powerful consumers.

Finally a book has been written for us, the non tech trained population, which explains how the internet came about and the broad scope of it's reach. I have brought a copy of the book into my office - a major brokerage firm - to share with clients . The interviewed founders of some of our major new companies gave depth and humor relating to their ideas, focus and future plans. All this impacts every one of us and our economy. Good writing and great reading. Thank you Tom!

As part of a small web development company, I was looking for insight to help me make better web sites. The title sounded perfect.

This book was absolutely NOT what I was looking for. It is much more a collection of articles than a book. The content would have been somewhat interesting as a series of articles on a website, but as a book it was very disappointing.

An example of the problem is that of the 294 pages of content, 161 of them were simply basic interviews, questions and answers with no addtional insight or analysis. Again, mildly interesting as articles, but insufficient for a book.

I personally have no use for this book. I can't figure out who would.

As a web entrepreneur myself, I have found Tom Murphy's book to be insightful and realistic. Instead of "techie" jargon and useless acronyms, this book paints a picture of the Internet like nothing else I have come across. I would highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the Internet and would say it's a "Must Read" for those who make the Internet their career.

Web Rules does a great job of focusing on the importance of understanding consumer's expectations in running an online business. I've worked at a number of e-commerce and consumer web services over the past few years, and the biggest mistake I've seen is either not understanding what the consumer wants or not listening to consumer feedback after launch. Especially since the web really has changed what consumers want and expect from a business. Competition is brutal and consumers can find the best prices instantly through shopping engines, so businesses must understand their customers in order to compete. This book did a really nice job helping me step back and get a big picture view of how customers interact with businesses online.

This book is easy and entertaining to read , really informative without being over-techno or relying on business jargon like "visioning" and "mission statement." The author's insights are refreshing, explaining in concrete terms that companies need to compete and keep their customers, not just put something on the Web and hope it floats. The insights on customer expectations of the Web are particularly relevant, and particularly so right now as people in the Web business are learning sobering truths about business realities. Much of what Murphy writes about, and his interviewees talk about, is coming to pass.

This survey of how the Internet is changing how customers make choices provides interviews with a range of modern thinkers and social workers; from Paul Erdman and Mike Bloomberg to Trip Hawkins and Jerry Brown. Web Rules is a fascinating survey of market forces and Internet operation impacts upon them.

Wow! It's great to find a book that takes such an intelligent, long-term view of the Internet. As we know now, it wasn't all about the dot.com's that have now gone bust. And what is happening now is only that -- what is happening now. In "Web Rules," the author looks at what the Internet is likely to become as it matures a decade from now -- and it's something very different from what we've seen to this point. So far, he looks like he's on target. His insights, and those of the luminaries he interviews, show a very deep understanding of media and, most especially, how the Internet is likely to change the rules of business. We're already seeing some of this, but as the book points out, there's lots more to come in the next decade. This book is a roadmap for the curvy superhighway ahead.