Best start-up book for multiple options
This book is pre-internet. The internet is mentioned briefly, so it's a `bricks-and-mortar' kind of book. This is why I highly recommend it. You will not get cluttered by internet-speak and come on, we want to become our own boss or already did and we don't know everything and we have limited time to learn fast. This book gives you options on everything. If you are choosing between A or B, this book gives you the C, D & E - and it covers almost everything an entrepreneur needs to know during those first 12-36 months. This book changed my thinking when I first ventured out in mid-2006. It was life/business changing and I have recommended it to budding entrepreneurs and have bought it for close friends.
A Colossal Collection of So-So Ideas
This is one of the few books that I would not only like my money back for, But I wish I could get my TIME back as well! The authord obviously DID put a LOT of effort into this work. But it's just a giant collection of every piece of advice one has ever received from Uncle Ed, Grandma, The Crazy Neighbor Down The Street, etc.
This book seems to have been compiled from a giant box of post-it notes of "good marketing ideas" that the author picked up EVERYWHERE. NONE, or at least few have actually been tested and proven in real life. Here's an example of how I guess the author came up with some ideas. Have you ever gone to the mailbox and found a flyer taped to the side with a picture of a dog and a "please call if you see Rover" note? Well, if the authors ever did, I'm sure it will get put on a post-it note for the next book as a GREAT marketing strategy! I'm not saying it's not already in this current edition, it's just that there are literally hundreds and hundreds... and hundreds of suggestions like this through out this book.
It's really quite annoying to read to be very honest! I honestly do not recommend it. Just about ANY OTHER book on the subject has got to be superior to this mixed up collection of mostly unproven ideas.
After reading this book and another by these authors, I get the distince impression that they are willing to do and sell ANYTHING to make a living not actually working. They are among the "self help experts" crowd that aren't really experts. They just decided to be experts by calling themselves experts and like magic, they became experts... Not in my book.
I honestly felt ripped off by this book.
Great for its broad based coverage, but becoming dated in some ways
This is an old book published in 1998. As could be expected, many of the references are outdated. For example, of the four presentation applications listed, only one - Powerpoint - remains.
Its 678 pages of text try to cover every conceivable aspect of small business imaginable. As a result, much of the coverage is not only thin, but essentially useless, especially given the passage of time.
Despite these apparent drawbacks, I have no hesitation in recommending this book. Why? Because it is a great thought starter. While many of the ideas here are not novel in any way, they are techniques that might be overlooked or even forgotten in the press of business.
Treating the book as an encyclopedia or checklist of small business marketing techniques can be rewarding. Curl up in a spare moment with your favorite beverage at hand and browse. I suspect you'll end your session with a new idea or two.
There is, in my opinion, to heavy an emphasis on doing it yourself. Do it yourself brochures and web sites often look exactly that way - as if they were done by someone with little experience.
For its modest price, this is a good thought starter for the owner of a small business.
Jerry
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