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Motorcycle Book Store > Motorcycle books beginning with P
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Personality Not Included: Why Companies Lose Their Authenticity And How Great Brands Get it Back, Foreword by Guy Kawasaki |
Author: Rohit Bhargava
Published: 2008-03-31 |
List price: $22.95
Our price: $15.61
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As of: August 21st, 2008 08:45:41 PM
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Customer comments on this selection.
 Marketing Book of 2008
"The moment that organisations lose their personality is when their employees become "people" rather than individuals...".
As many of my readers and friends know. I'm very much in touch with the "human side of business", especially forming a connection with people. Revealing, the honest, sincere and human side of your business to your customers has repeatedly proved to be a good thing. It's the key to delighting them and making sure they stay with us for a very long time.
Rohit Bhargava as an author is right up there with the likes of Seth Godin and Guy Kawasaki. Why? Because he tells it like it is. Jargon is left at the door and the book uses great worldwide examples of excellent personality branding. It's nice to see an American author who shows a refreshing awareness that we all don't live in America!
Wow. I must admit, Rohit actually had me at "hello" with this book. The book brings together, my own personal experiences of business differentiation. Learning, from companies such as Moo and Innocent Drinks (Also mentioned in the book). Rohit did an excellent job of drawing me in with his great writing style and a clear passion for the subject.
Throughout the book he provides many examples of businesses which are successfully using the techniques within the book. The case studies were almost enough to sell me the book alone. However, learning about each technique and then being given an interesting and detailed example of how each idea can be implemented in real life was fantastic. It was was great to see Steve, Hugh and the Blue Monster also getting a mention - Rock On!
Personality Not Included successfully leads the reader through the process of building a company personality. Rohit's approach impressed me in a number of ways. Firstly he outlined all the key elements. I especially liked his "UAT Filter"- the three core qualities of a company personality:
1. Unique
2. Authentic
3. Talkable
Spot on. Secondly, he presented great examples from several companies for each element.
As I finished reading Part 1, Rohit did something that many marketing writers do not usually do. He wrote a "Part 2?. The second part of the book focuses on how to put the discussion in Part 1 into action. To further guide the reader through the process, Rohit provides a number of tools and frameworks to help. The book is broken down into the following chapters:
Part One
Chapter 1 - Faceless used to work because big meant credible. This is no longer true
Chapter 2 - Accidental spokespeople are speaking for your brand - Embrace them
Chapter 3 - Uniqueness plus Authenticity plus Talkability equals personality. Use the UAT Filter
Chapter 4 - Backstories establish a foundation of credibility. You need onq.
Chapter 5 - Fear of change leads to barriers. Finding your authority overcomes them
Chapter 6 - Personality moments are everywhere and unexpected, but you must spot them
Part Two - (Putting Personality into Action)
* New Styles of Marketing (Ten Techniques are Described in Detail)
* Taking Theory Further (Tools and Guides to Accompany Chapters 1 - 6)
The key theme from the first half of the book is that personality matters, because it is the element of your brand that inspires loyalty more than any product feature or element of your service ever can.
Rohit reminds the reader, that consumers aren't just buying a product or service from you. They are buying "into" a whole experience. If they find the experience positive, they are very likely to purchase again, and/or recommend your business to others. As a text book, Personality not Included could also be used to boost your own "Personal Branding".
If you love Seth Godin, or Guy Kawasaki then you'll love Rohit Bhargava. If you are looking for a refreshing and up-to-the-minute business read, then you could do no better.
To conclude, Bhargava's marketing experiences with the world's leading companies has produced the definitive book that explains "Personality Branding", in a practical, understandable and actionable way. I can't recommend this book highly enough for any entrepreneur, business person, or anyone who wants to better understand how `personality' can impact a business.
Terrific guide for CEOs and CMOs
This is an easy, but inspiring read. How to use your personality and the personality of your product and company to engage customers and build brand in the marketplace. As an unconscious competant (today a CEO and formerly a CMO)I found it incredibly helpful as a way to structure my thinking about this new marketing world. Rohit blends theory with examples in a way that makes the information easy to absorb and retain.
Great Book Great Author
I don't have a long review to post. I do want to say that I hope to be able to help business owners. I currently do not work in the Marketing realm. However, I believe that talking with business owners and sharing good ideas doesn't have to be restricted to their marketing staff. I have been in marketing in the past and I believe that this book has value to the person that is inside the marketing world or outside the marketing world. Lets hope that your "Accidental Spokesperson" took time to read this book and helps your business. For that matter, you should buy this book and read it so you can bring authenticity back to your business.
A Great Resource For Business People Who Understand Faceless Companies Are A Thing of the Past
Personality is defined as "the unique, authentic, and talkable soul of your brand that people can get passionate about. Personality is not just about what you stand for, but how you choose to communicate it. It is also the way to reconnect your customers, partners, employees, and influencers to the soul of your brand in the new social media era."
Have you ever thought about the fact that your business should have a personality? You might not have thought about creating or developing a personality for your business - but in the twenty first century, your business needs a personality. The time for faceless businesses is gone. We have all been told to develop a brand for our business. But, creating a personality that reflects and deepens that brand is taking the idea to a higher level.
Think about your favorite coffee shop or your favorite restaurant. What do you like about that business? Is it the service, the products, the atmosphere, the location, or something else? The personality includes things that set that business apart from other similar businesses.
This book contains six chapters in Part One. Part Two contains learning guides which expand on the content in Part One and other resources.
Throughout the book Rohit Bhargava provides ample examples of businesses which are using the techniques that he discusses. The case studies were almost enough to sell me on this book, but learning about each technique and then being given an interesting and detailed example of how each idea can be implemented in real life was invaluable. For example, we all know that Starbucks is very popular. In Personality Not Included we are given details on what they did right and how the personality slipped away.
Another fascinating section is chapter two when we learn about the many types of accidental spokesmen that can represent a business. In addition, he tells us how each type of spokesmen is effective and how to make the most of their enthusiasm and appeal. I love to highlight the valuable information in books and my copy has plenty of information marked for future use for me and my clients.
Backstory is critical when writing a novel, but have you ever thought about sharing the story behind your business? This chapter explains why you should have a backstory and how to use that backstory. The strangest thing happened as I read this chapter. I usually share my business and promotional background with people when I give my experience, but chapter four helped me begin to develop a new approach. What story do you have behind your business that would attract the public and help them to see you in a more favorable light?
In the opening chapter and introduction of the book I was patting myself on the back because I've used many of the ideas that are presented. Then Rohit Bhargava said something that really got my attention. He mentioned that just learning to create a personality isn't enough. You need to learn the best way to implement that personality plan in your business and learn to identify even more ways to find opportunities to develop this personality even further.
When you read the book, definitely take the time to read the learning guides in Part Two. There are many "guides" in the book which give you additional information on how to get the most out of the ideas and techniques in the book.
I highly recommend this book for any entrepreneur and business person who wants to understand the need for a business personality. Business managers can also learn so much from the content in this book. It is also for the person who wants to find the different ways to develop this personality. Your business can stand out from the competition in amazing ways - it just needs more personality. When you read the book, keep your eyes open for the interesting ways the author has woven a unique personality into the pages of the book.
PNI promotes prolific pulling power
I would love to share a beer with Rohit! The information in this book, I am sure, is just the tip of the knowledge he has inside of his head. Not only does it cover personalities of companies but the book itself has its own personality.
1. It has an incredibly easy layout which is SO SO important for business books.
2. It isn't a single concept that is reiterated differently over 250 pages ... unlike most other books in its class it has 250 pages of things to say.
3. It has been written through experience and trial/error not conjecture of what could work.
4. The companion website (and GREAT list of reference books available through his Amazon store) offers useful tools to help the readers.
While I do think it is a standout book in its category, a few things that would make it a more useful tool (as opposed to just a book) would include:
- Add a section that consolidates the 100+ examples so they are easy to pull out in the future.
- A perforated "reference card" that sums up all of the key points of PNI so people could stick up on their office wall, use it for meetings, etc. Think IDEO method cards in a single card that you can rip out of the book.
- Make the tests & tools in a template form that we can download from the website to use on a per project basis.
If I were given space for a comment on the back cover of this book it would be:
"Personalities... we all have them; our companies often don't. Rohit shows through experience what will give you the 'make it or break it' advantage simply by sharing your personality with customers. It is a new business world out there and PNI will help show who you really are."
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