I have loved the Marketing profession from the start.
I began my Marketing career in the early ‘80s in Pittsburgh. And, I realized early on that if I was going to excel I needed to immerse myself in the discipline and knowledge of all of the marketing greats before me.
Pittsburgh is a great town, but it’s a few hundred miles from Madison Avenue so I began a long journey of reading marketing masters such as , Bill Bernbach, Leo Burnett, John Caples, David Ogilvy and so many others.
My journey is still going strong and I love it still. In fact, to stay ahead of the curve, I read at least one new marketing book every 2-3 weeks, along with a non-marketing text (to keep myself slightly sane and retain/gain friendships and relationships) per month.
In addition, to reading daily/weekly internet feeds of marketing missives, I make at least a once a month trek to Barnes & Noble, Border’s or the “wow-ful” Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Pittsburgh’s South Side to review marketing related magazines. Magazines are great resources to review new trends and ideas that may take time to reach books, plus for me there are too many I review that I can’t afford to buy and more importantly lack the space in my home.
Why am I telling you all of this?
Well, it’s been my experience that you never “arrive” in marketing. It’s constantly changing and staying the same too. Every book I read either confirms an opinion of mine or adds at least one new thing, so it’s always a winning experience.
One book I’ve found myself referring to for some time and enjoying has been “What Sticks.”
The authors Rex Briggs and Greg Stuart offer insightful views about the relationship of “Motivations, Messaging, Media and Maximizing” toward Marketing Campaign effectiveness. It’s a fascinating read and they provide excellent case studies.
In addition, their suggestion about how to allocate your marketing budget is worth consideration and follows my client recommendations over the years.
Briggs and Stuart suggest your Marketing Budget follow a 70:20:10 rule such as allocating:
- 70% to what you know works best for your brand
- 20% to innovating or testing within the 70% of what’s been working for you
- 10% for new ideas (e.g., Web 2.0 etc.,) to stay ahead of the curve and your competition
Give their 70:20:10 recommendation a shot this year and pick up their book – it’s worth your time and money.
