Free Prize Inside by Seth Godin

Sometimes a book doesn't need to teach you something new for it to be worth reading. Sometimes it just needs to remind you of what you already know. This is one of those books. If you'd like to learn everything that you already know about Marketing, this book is for you. However, it's hard to be critical of a book that I pulled out of the dollar bin at Borders. I mean, what could I possibly expect for a dollar?

So here's the advice that this book gives:

1. Don't develop something new, rather develop a marketable improvement to something that's already a viable product (a "soft innovation" as he calls it). Developing something new costs a lot of money and the return on investment is often watered down by the fact that you've invested a bunch of money into it. If you remember getting the "free prize inside" in boxes of cereal, that's exactly what he's talking about. The cereal companies didn't fundamentally change the product they were selling, they just gave their consumers a free prize that made the whole package more marketable.

2. Godin also preaches how throwing large sums of advertising dollars into advertising campaigns is no longer a viable marketing scheme. "Interruptions" happen far too frequently today for it to create a lasting impression, or any impression at all. So instead of paying for advertising, give the customer a "free prize." Example: Amazon.com, stopped advertising and put it's advertising budget into their free shipping program. Result: 37% increase in sales. Add value to your customer and you get returns. If your addition does not add value to the customer, it will not give you returns. If you've done your job right, your customer will sell your product for you.

3. Lastly, he gives some ideas on how to champion an idea through the company. In essence, it's an internal marketing scheme that creates a buzz about the soft innovation that you've created. You need to create support for your ideas if you're going to get them implemented. Turns out, the easiest way to do that is to talk to people about it. Go figure.

So as you can see, nothing mind-blowing. Interesting in some respect. A quick read. Well worth the $1 I paid for it. Not worth the $19.99 that it originally listed for.