9 Business Books Recommended as Last-Minute Gifts

9 business books as last minute giftsSince writing my book How to Protect (Or Destroy) Your Reputation Online, I have met many interesting authors and interviewed a number of them for my blog.  Here are nine books I can wholeheartedly recommend as last-minute gifts.  All are available on Amazon.com and can be shipped in time for the holidays if you, as they say, act now.

In alphabetical order:

 

All About Them
all about themBranding expert Bruce Turkel’s latest book, All About Them, represents an ode to change.  After speaking and consulting with executives from companies like Nike and Bacardi as well as professors at Harvard and MIT, Turkel learned we need to focus on our customer and explain why our product/service/offering will be better for them.  We can’t stand out anymore talking about how great we are, how durable our products are, or how technologically advanced our services are.  We need to turn the camera around and make the discussion all about our customer.  My full review: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/marketing-made-easy-when-its-all-about-them_us_57cd9c11e4b0b9c5b739b755

It’s Never Too Late
It's Never Too LateFinancier Scott Page takes-on one of the bigger elephants in the room: retirement.  His book discusses how very few of us are ready for retirement, but we can catch up and live our golden years more comfortably if we follow some of his wise advice.

The New Rules of Marketing and PR
newrules If I’m being honest, I have never had much use for books about public relations.  When I was studying marketing and PR in college, much of the information in textbooks was dated and offered in a rote, dull manner.  Yet there’s one book which caught and kept my attention; it also happens to have been recently released in its fifth edition.  The New Rules of Marketing and PR by David Meerman Scott, first published in 2007, remains one of the top books about the industry.  My full review: https://www.davidpr.com/davidprblog/preeminent-book-on-marketing-and-pr-gets-an-update/

The Practice
The PracticeFor the young, old or aspiring lawyers in your life, I recommend The Practice by attorney Brian Tannebaum.  Brian is one of the most outspoken people that I know, and his take on the law and running a legal practice is blunt, brutally honest and funny.  Even for a non-lawyer, I found his book interesting and worthwhile with many keen insights and important take-aways.

Think Big, Act Bigger
thinkbigJeffrey Hayzlett’s book could vie for shelf space somewhere in between self-help and autobiography, but it belongs in the business section.  He offers a glimpse into the blueprint that led him from growing up in South Dakota, to Kodak and to hosting a show on Bloomberg TV, which he then moved to an online platform as the C-Suite Network.  He’s built a little empire and isn’t shy about telling us how he did it – not because he’s bragging, but because he believes the rest of us can do it too. My full review: https://www.davidpr.com/davidprblog/your-challenge-think-big-act-bigger/

Think Like an Entrepreneur, Act Like a CEO
thnklikeentre think4Author Beverly Jones successfully leveraged her career-advice-filled blog and newsletter, turning it into a great book that includes 50 tips on how to stay afloat, bounce back and get ahead at work.  During her legal, business and coaching career, she has learned that the same characteristics that enable people to start and run successful businesses are also common in resilient professionals who are adept at making changes and adapting. In her opinion, many successful executives are thinking like entrepreneurs.  It turns out that many of the characteristics of successful entrepreneurs and CEOs translate well to salaried workers who have never made a payroll and don’t aspired to the C-suite — yet they want to have fruitful and meaningful careers.  My full review: https://www.davidpr.com/davidprblog/think-like-an-entrepreneur/

Visibility Marketing
visible3Here’s a news flash from well-known speaker and author David Avrin: Your marketing probably sucks. Ouch, right? Avrin pulls no punches after years of consulting with companies about messaging and marketing. He concludes that most companies are using the same, competency-based messages – which may have worked in the past but don’t work now. According to Avrin, the new normal is that everyone is good, and offering a quality product or service is table stakes. And the marketplace is rejecting competency based messages.  My full review: https://www.davidpr.com/davidprblog/visibility-marketing-book/

X: The Experience When Business Meets Design
xsolisAccording to Brian Solis, not only are most businesses failing at the customer experience, but they are failing by design. As an analyst and anthropologist, he has researched the problem and offers an interesting and credible perspective. His book, X: The Experience When Business Meets Design, not only details why some companies kick ass in the experience department but also explains how the key to their success is understanding their customers on multiple levels.  He outlines how customer experience is the new differentiator and how every business can make meaningful changes.  My full review: https://www.davidpr.com/davidprblog/is-customer-experience-the-next-killer-app/

How to Protect (Or Destroy) Your Reputation Online
How to Protect (Or Destroy) Your Reputation OnlineAnd, of course, How to Protect (Or Destroy) Your Reputation Online.  Here’s an excerpt from a review of my book, originally published in Associations Now:

In How to Protect (or Destroy) Your Reputation Online: The Essential Guide to Avoid Digital Damage, Lock Down Your Brand, and Defend Your Business, David notes that 18 percent of companies have fired employees for a social media post. And 40 percent of employers will make a job offer only after checking a candidate’s online presence.

Your organization also is at risk. The anecdotes David shares are the stuff of any association executive’s nightmares—unfair reviews or accusations that never seem to die, stubborn first-page Google rankings that showcase online complaints, and more.

Fortunately, David has created this guide to regaining control in the Wild West of the internet…

I hope this list helps you check a few folks off your last-minute list.  Happy holidays.

–John