I just posted this review of a new book on Amazon. No, I didn’t get paid for it… Not one fucking penny, and I’m not a friend, or even an acquaintance of Bob Galbreath. It’s just that I share my “best bud,” Alex’s point of view that most business books are way to long and mostly talk shit. This one is too long, but it doesn’t talk shit. Anyway, only buy this book after you’ve bought The Ubiquitous Persuader, or I’ll have to kill you…
The Next Evolution of Marketing,
By Bob Gilbreath.
A review by George “AdScam” Parker.
I must say that when asked to review Bob Gilbreath’s book, The Next Evolution of Marketing, I was somewhat reluctant. Probably because I expected it to be yet another of those marketing potboilers lining the shelves of America’s bookstores, either sporting such esoteric titles as The Twelve Immutable Marketing Secrets of the Kalahari Nomads, or words of wisdom from some gnarly old retired captain of industry, probably ghost written by his latest trophy wife.
Fortunately, Bob’s book is neither. For a start, he isn’t gnarly, he isn’t even retired. He’s still working at a large global digital ad agency, which he does rather obviously promote the crap out of at every opportunity. Remember Bob, push is passé. However, to his credit, when he does do this, he ties it in to a specific, provable benefit his company has brought to both client and consumer.
Described by other reviewers as the next step beyond “Permission Marketing,” Bob’s central thesis is that because customers are increasingly being bombarded with advertising messages which they are choosing to ignore, we now have to create “Marketing with Meaning.” I wholeheartedly agree, but with one caveat… There is nothing new about this situation, customers have always been bombarded with marketing messages, it’s just that now, the volume has exponentially increased and potential customers have many more ways to tune you out. Therefore, Bob’s words acquire even more relevancy.
In the first half of the book, Bob gives many, many (way too many), examples and case studies of companies who have taken a different tack in marketing their products and services to existing and potential customers. All good worthwhile stuff, particularly as he shows the concrete results of their efforts rather than the usual BDA (Big Dumb Agency) soporific… “We increased brand awareness.” Personally, I think the number of examples is overkill, but I am sure all the MBA’s out there will lap it up and create hundreds and hundreds of Power Point slides from the information.
The second half is a guide to implementing Bob’s “Marketing with Meaning” premise into a company’s marketing program. As with all good ideas, this is in reality, simple and logical. Something most large organizations seem to have a problem grasping. Think Cisco with its 47 “Action Committees” each with dozens of middle managers. Then compare it Rockefeller’s Standard Oil at the height of its power. He had nine managers. Bob does an excellent job of boiling everything you need to know down into four succinct and meaningful steps. Bravo Bob, but you’ll never get a job at Cisco.
If you are pressed for time, take Bob’s advice in Chapter six… “Start at the end.”
The final five chapters are solid gold. The whole book reminds me of famous dead ad man Howard Gossage, who said forty years ago… “People don’t read advertising, they read what interests them. Sometimes, that’s advertising.”
The Next Evolution of Marketing, Has lots of good stuff, I highly recommend it.
But don’t forget to buy The Ubiquitous Persuaders first… Or I’ll fucking kill you!
Both books will be "hand" delivered by my literary assistants.