Marketing creeps into all areas of our lives. We market everything: our homes, our ideas, our work, our children, our lifestyles, and even ourselves. Yet, sometimes in any one area, the most successful and deserving people do not reap the fruits of their efforts, even when they hold PhDs in marketing. This shows that there has to exist more diverse avenues of marketing than those conventionally esteemed ones. When I started reading the first few pages of "Buzzmarketing: get people to talk about your stuff" by Mark Hughes, I knew, as a reader, this was a book I shouldn't miss, since the premise of the book and its entertainment value defied convention. The book was letting its readers peak into those other avenues of marketing that worked better and possibly faster. The aim of this book is to teach its readers buzz marketing so they can "grow faster, expand further, and do it for one-tenth of what it costs by more traditional means." No one likes to be pushed into things. Yet, most conventional public relations efforts, advertising methods, and other well-known and overused marketing tactics push the customers into something whether they want it or not. Buzz marketing advertises without pushing and without spending an excess amount of money and effort. Using buzz marketing, businesses can make themselves known: through word of mouth, buzzwords, slogans, and using what is readily available; through creative thinking and exploration; and through the goodwill, support, and friendliness of people and communities. Buzz marketing needs people to use their gray matter and steer away from conventional, pushy business tactics. Traditional advertising spends more, gains less. Buzz marketing spends much less, yet gains more cash and people's trust, because buzz marketing is creative in seeking and employing opportunities. In this author's words, buzz marketing pulls instead of pushing. Although the style of buzz marketers may be deemed as being underground, it is the preferred alternative to pushiness. Yet, buzz marketers do push buttons for they have six buttons to push and six major secrets to tap into, as they make use of human psychology, people's need for entertainment, and the latest technology. Smarts and guts, therefore, win over the money and power of any big business employing conventional advertising techniques. The author of the book, Mark Hughes, is the host of Buzz Factor, a radio talk show, and the CEO of Buzzmarketing, a consulting firm. He has also been an executive in Half.com and Pepsi. "Buzzmarketing: get people to talk about your stuff" by Mark Hughes with ISBN: 1591840929 has 256 pages and is in hardcover. The book is divided into sixteen chapters with an introduction and an afterword. Inside it are anecdotes and accounts of how some big brands and not-yet big brands have used buzz marketing, making readers feel like gossip-mongers peeping into the practices of big companies. This approach and the writer's easy-going style turn this business book into a fun-to-read but very informative and serious work. |
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