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22 Immutable Laws of marketing

22 Immutable Laws of Marketing:  Violate Them at Your Own Risk by Al Ries and Jack Trout

Library Journal describes this book as…

“Ries and Trout, authors of some of the most popular titles in marketing published during the last decade continue the same breezy style, with lots of anecdotes and insider views of contemporary marketing strategy. The premise behind this book is that in order for marketing strategies to work, they must be in tune with some quintessential force in the marketplace. Just as the laws of physics define the workings of the universe, so do successful marketing programs conform to the “22 Laws.” Each law is presented with illustrations of how it works based on actual companies and their marketing strategies… The book is fun to read, contains solid information, and should be acquired by all public and business school libraries. ”

My notes on what I found to be of particular interest…

The 22 “immutable” laws of marketing:

1. The law of leadership: you want to be first in a category rather than “best” in a category.
2. The law of the category: if you can’t be first in a category, set up a new category you can be first in.
3. The law of the mind: even more important than being first in the marketplace is being first in the mind.
4. The law of perception: perceptions count for more than products.
5. The law of focus: owning a word in the prospect’s mind is the most powerful thing there is in marketing. For instance, “kleenex” with paper tissues, “google” with search on the internet, or “xerox” with copiers.
6. The law of exclusivity: two companies cannot both own the same word in the prospect’s mind.
7. The law of the ladder: your strategy depends on where you are on the ladder. On top? One rung down? Your product’s location on the ladder determines what strategic options are available to you.
8. The law of duality: with time, all markets become two-horse races.
9. The law of the opposite: if you are aiming for second place, your strategy is determined by the market leader.
10. The law of division: with time, a given category will split, and become two, or more categories.
11. The law of perspective: the effects of marketing are not immediate and need time to be effective.
12. The law of line extension: the pressure to extend a brand is irresistible, causing what was once a tightly focused product to be a thinly spread line of many products.
13. The law of sacrifice: in order to get something, you must be willing to give up something else.
14. The law of attributes: for every attribute, there is an opposite effective attribute
15. The law of candor: when you admit a negative, the prospect will give you a positive. The example given is of Avis admitting that they are number 2 in rental cars.
16. The law of singularity: for every situation, only one move will produce substantial results.
17. The law of unpredictability: “unless you write your competitor’s plans, you can’t predict the future.”
18. The law of success: “success often leads to arrogance, and arrogance to failure.” Never stray too far from your customers.
19. The law of failure: failure is to be expected and accepted, so don’t be afraid to take risks. You must also be ready to cut your losses when confronted with failure, however.
20. the law of hype: your situation is often the opposite of the way it appears in the press: “When things are going well, a company doesn’t need the hype. When you need the hype, it usually means you’re in trouble.”
21. The law of acceleration: “successful programs are not built on fads, they’re built on trends.”
22. The law of resources: “without adequate funding, an idea won’t get off the ground.”

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Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell

Publishers Weekly describes the book as…

‘The premise of this facile piece of pop sociology has built-in appeal: little changes can have big effects; when small numbers of people start behaving differently, that behavior can ripple outward until a critical mass or “tipping point” is reached, changing the world. Gladwell’s thesis that ideas, products, messages and behaviors “spread just like viruses do” remains a metaphor as he follows the growth of “word-of-mouth epidemics” triggered with the help of three pivotal types. While it offers a smorgasbord of intriguing snippets summarizing research on topics such as conversational patterns, infants’ crib talk, judging other people’s character, cheating habits in schoolchildren, memory sharing among families or couples, and the dehumanizing effects of prisons, this volume betrays its roots as a series of articles for the New Yorker, where Gladwell is a staff writer: his trendy material feels bloated and insubstantial in book form.’

My notes on what I found to be of particular interest…

Our modern culture means that new ideas are being introduced constantly.
Gladwell asserts that most trends, styles, and phenomena are born and spread according to routes of transmission and conveyance that are strikingly similar.
The tipping point is where isolated incidents become a trend.
The Law of the Few contends that before widespread popularity can be attained, a few key types of people must champion an idea, concept, or product before it can reach the tipping point. There are 3 key types:  Connectors -sociable personalities who bring people together; mavens – who like to pass along knowledge; and Salesmen – adept at persuading the unenlightened. If individuals representing all three of these groups endorse and advocate a new idea, it is much more likely that it will tip into exponential success.
Mavens are people who have a strong compulsion to help other consumers by helping them make informed decisions.
Salesmen are people whose unusual charisma allows them to be extremely persuasive in inducing others’ buying decisions and behaviors.
Connectors are individuals who have ties in many different realms and act as conduits between them, helping to engender connections, relationships, and “cross-fertilization” that otherwise might not have ever occurred.
The Stickiness Factor as the quality that compels people to pay close, sustained attention to a product, concept, or idea. Stickiness is a unique quality that compels the phenomenon to “stick” in the minds of the public and influence their future behavior. Often, the way that the Stickiness Factor is generated is unconventional, unexpected, and contrary to received wisdom.
The Power of Context is enormously important in determining whether a particular phenomenon will tip into widespread popularity. Even minute changes in the environment can play a major factor.
There are unusual properties tied to the size of social groups. Groups of less than 150 members usually display a level of intimacy, interdependency, and efficiency that begins to dissipate markedly as soon as the group’s size increases over 150.
Focus, Test, Believe.

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Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt

This book is an interesting read and provides some good food for thought in terms of honing our abilities to identify and capitalize on trends.

Publisher’s Weekly describes this book as…

“Forget your image of an economist as a crusty professor worried about fluctuating interest rates: Levitt focuses his attention on more intimate real-world issues, like whether reading to your baby will make her a better student. Recognition by fellow economists as one of the best young minds in his field led to a profile in the New York Times, written by Dubner, and that original article serves as a broad outline for an expanded look at Levitt’s search for the hidden incentives behind all sorts of behavior. There isn’t really a grand theory of everything here, except perhaps the suggestion that self-styled experts have a vested interest in promoting conventional wisdom even when it’s wrong. Instead, Dubner and Levitt deconstruct everything from the organizational structure of drug-dealing gangs to baby-naming patterns. While some chapters might seem frivolous, others touch on more serious issues, including a detailed look at Levitt’s controversial linkage between the legalization of abortion and a reduced crime rate two decades later. Underlying all these research subjects is a belief that complex phenomena can be understood if we find the right perspective. Levitt has a knack for making that principle relevant to our daily lives, which could make this book a hit. Malcolm Gladwell blurbs that Levitt “has the most interesting mind in America,” an invitation Gladwell’s own substantial fan base will find hard to resist.”

My personal notes on what I found to be of particular interest…
The book defines Economics as the study of incentives and how they are pursued – how do we profit by the things we do?
After analyzing street level drug dealers the author determined they actually make less than minimum wage.
The socioeconomic status of a parent is the biggest determiner of a child’s academic outcomes in school.
“Who you are” matters much more than what you do as a parent.
The book is based on four fundamental ideas:
* 1) Incentives are the cornerstone of modern life.
* 2) Conventional wisdom is often wrong.
* 3) Dramatic effects often have distant, even subtle, causes.
* 4) “Experts” use their informational advantage to serve their own interests.
The flow of information can have profound impact on outcomes.

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