5 Best Professional Business Books
Posted by jonpape | Filed under Business
I’ve been thinking recently about the five books that have helped me the most professionally. These books are sort of hard to classify under a single category but all of these books will broaden your outlook and breakdown operational silos that abstract the connections that exist between different business units.
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The best analogy I can think of would be a description of Pixar University I read about. At Pixar University, accountants, chefs, and any one who works at Pixar are encouraged to take drawing classes. When questioned about the appropriateness of teaching accountants to draw, the head of Pixar University answered, “Why teach drawing to accountants? Because drawing class doesn’t just teach people to draw. It teaches them to be more observant. There’s no company on earth that wouldn’t benefit from having people become more observant.”
Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions
by Dan Ariely
This behavioral economics book offers a wide variety of experiments and explanations about why people act the way they do and more importantly, how to recognize subtle marketing tactics in everyday life.
Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
by David Allen
The simple premise of this amazing book is that if you can close the endless thought loops in your mind then you will get more done by not over thinking (or maybe better put, redundant thinking).
Three simple steps:
- One “inbox” with all the tasks/emails/projects that you need to analyze or want to remember.
- Categorize the information, determine what you need to do to complete it, schedule it.
- Forget about it.
A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future
by Daniel H. Pink
A broad base of ideas to help people become better problem solvers and thinkers. Encourages better communication and better ways to communicate. Explains why creativity can be beneficial to all professionals.
Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die
by Chip Heath & Dan Heath
If you have to give a speech, give a presentation, write a paper, write ad copy, COMMUNICATE, read this book. The principles and conclusions in this book make presenting ideas (that will be remembered) straight-forward and easy.
Permission Marketing : Turning Strangers Into Friends And Friends Into Customers
by Seth Godin
Seth Godin is a marketing genius. This book is widely accepted as how marketing should be done in the 20th century. People don’t want to be sold to. But people want information about products and companies they are already interested in. This book tells businesses, step-by-step, how to build relationships with customers online, as well as, in real life.
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Tags: Books, Business, Marketing
Top Retailers Using a Rotating Billboard Banner
Posted by jonpape | Filed under Internet Marketing
- Image by Getty Images via Daylife
Rotating banners on the homepage of top retailer websites is becoming more and more common. Out of the top 15 websites survayed, 7 had rotating billboard banners, approximately 47%. Most of the retailers who used rotating banners used Flash to display them. Sears used a JavaScript method probably jQuery.
| Retailer | Status (1-26-2009) | Method |
| Amazon | No Rotating Billboard | |
| Bestbuy | 4 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause | Flash |
| Costco | No Rotating Billboard | |
| Ebay | No Rotating Billboard | |
| Home Depot | 4 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause | Flash |
| JCPenneys | No Rotating Billboard | |
| Kmart | No Rotating Billboard | |
| Kohls | No Rotating Billboard | |
| Macys | Rotating Billboard | Flash |
| Meijer | 3 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause | Flash |
| Overstock | No Rotating Billboard | |
| QVC | No Rotating Billboard | |
| Sears | 3 Button Rotating Billboard with No Pause | JavaScript |
| Target | 3 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause | Flash |
| Walmart | 3 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause | Flash |
4 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause
4 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause
Rotating Billboard
3 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause
3 Button Rotating Billboard with No Pause
3 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause
3 Button Rotating Billboard with Pause
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Tags: Business
Circuit City Posts “Out of Business” Sign on Website
Posted by jonpape | Filed under Business
- Image by F33 via Flickr
Circuit City effectively posted an “out of business” sign on their web site ceasing US operations. Siting challenges to business and a “bleak” business enviornment, the company will be liquidating assets to pay off creditors.
567 stores in 153 media markets will close and approximately 34,000 people will lose their jobs.
Liquidation sales started at stores Jan 17, 2009 and are expected to continue through March 2009.
Click the link below to see an archived version of the Circuit City home page.
Circuit City Website 1/19/2007
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Tags: Business, Circuit City, Retailing
