Book ~ "The Jackass Whisperer" (2019) Scott Stratten and Alison Stratten

From Goodreads ~ A rallying cry for everyone tired of keyboard commandos and people who use speakerphones in open plan offices, "The Jackass Whisperer" is your guide to dealing with the worst people on earth.

Jackasses are those who make our lives needlessly harder. They drive too slowly in the fast lane and too quickly in the slow lane, reply all, heat up fish in the microwave at work and share way too much information about their cleanse on Facebook. They live in our homes, work in our offices and shop at our stores. Jackasses are among us and we have some bad news for you: if you can’t spot the Jackass at the (enter literally any place on the planet), then the Jackass is you.

After a lifetime of research, Scott and Alison Stratten offer the definitive guide to surviving the Jackassery in your life and making the world a better place, one set of noise-cancelling headphones at a time.

The Jackass Whisperer explores the frustrating world of difficult people, who the authors call jackasses. The message is that while we can’t control other people’s behaviour, we can control how we respond to them. 

With 125 different scenarios, they show common types of jackassery encountered in everyday life. Each chapter focuses on a different setting (at work, online, in traffic, in parenting, etc.) offering advice on how to respond with a jackass reaction or a whisperer reaction. At the end, you can tally your reactions and see what you are (I had mostly whisperer reactions).

I've read other books by Scott and have liked them. Like this one, not only is there humour but there are some skills you can take away and put in practice in your life.

Book ~ "The Book of Business Awesome/The Book of Business UnAwesome" (2012) Scott Stratten

From Goodreads ~ UnAwesome is UnAcceptable. "The Book of Business Awesome" is designed as two short books put together - one read from the front and the other read from the back when flipped over. 

Covering key business concepts related to marketing, branding, human resources, public relations, social media, and customer service, "The Book of Business Awesome" includes case studies of successful businesses that gained exposure through being awesome and effective. This book provides actionable tools enabling readers to apply the concepts immediately to their own businesses. 

The flip side of the book, "The Book of Business UnAwesome," shares the train-wreck stories of unsuccessful businesses and showcases what not to do.

Ensure that your business remains awesome, instead of unawesome, and apply these awesomely effective strategies to your business today. 

This is actually two books in one:

1. The Book of Business Awesome - How Engaging Your Customers and Employees Can Make Your Business Thrive
2. The Book of Business UnAwesome - The Cost of Not Listening, Engaging or Being Great at What You Do

The Book of Business Awesome

According to Scott, to be awesome in business, you can't mandate being awesome and you can't demand it.  You have to hire awesome.  You have to inspire awesome in others and you have to be your awesome self.  Loyalty is building through amazing experiences.  It is the front line who have the first and most important contact with customers but they are often the lowest paid and least appreciated.  This book looks at how the impact of a company's brand lies with every area in a business (marketing, HR, PR, etc.) and how to build relationships.  There are many examples of how businesses have gone above and beyond in creating excellent customer experiences regardless of the role of the employee in the company.  As an educator/trainer, I found the tips for speakers interesting and helpful.

The Book of Business UnAwesome

The book focuses on how to be unawesome ... wasting time and money rather than focusing on your employees, ignoring and/or being rude to customers, making things difficult for customers, inappropriate and/or not well-thought out social media messages, etc.  Throughout this book, there are examples of hall of shamers.

I liked the writing style of the two books.  It is conversational, casual and amusing.  I think Scott would be a fun guy to sit down and talk with.  I read this book on my iPad and there are lots of links which I found myself going to as I was reading to learn more about the experiences Scott talked about.

I look forward to reading his other books and hope sometime to see one of his keynotes.

Book ~ "QR Codes Kill Kittens: How to Alienate Customers, Dishearten Employees, and Drive Your Business Into the Ground" (2013) Scott Stratten

From Goodreads ~ Experts are constantly telling us what we need to be doing to improve our businesses. Hundreds of books in the market are filled with advice from these experts. But how can you filter out all of the bad advice, misinformation, and misuse of business tools that is out there? None of us needs another list of what we should be doing. "QR Codes Kill Kittens" tells you what not to do. Easy to digest, easy to avoid. The book is separated into several sections, and each will include a story related to the topic in addition to tips and explanations on what not to do.

Includes real-life examples along with tips and guidance on experts, human resources, marketing/branding, networking (in person and online), public relations, and customer service.

It doesn't do you any good to do a few things right and a lot of things wrong. Find out what not to do. If reading this book saves just one kitten's life, it's worth it. 

I've read a couple books by Scott Stratten and find them interesting.  This book is about QR (quick response) codes, which is a kind of bar code.  To read them, you download a QR code-reading app which will allow you to scan the code.  It is supposed to take you to a website, download a link or take you to a mobile-friendly destination.  I've never downloaded a QR code-reading app so I haven't had the experience of seeing what happens when one does ... so I thought I'd see if I was missing out on anything.  As it turns out, Scott's not a fan of them.

There are four chapters, which are reasons for not using QR codes:

1. They don't work
2. Nobody likes them
3. They are selfish
4. They take up valuable time better spent elsewhere

Within the chapters are lots of examples of why/how not to use QR codes, plus other faux pas and Scott's commentary on them.  There are occasional lists of what causes a kitten to die ... like any time someone asks to have an original faxed over, not a copy, or whenever a company promotes from within without basing it on merit.

I liked the writing style.  It is very conversational, casual and amusing.  He seems like he'd be a fun guy to sit down and talk with.  I look forward to reading his other books and hope sometime to see one of his keynotes.

Book ~ "Unmarketing: Stop Marketing. Start Engaging." (2010) Scott Stratten

From Goodreads ~ From one of the leading experts in viral and social marketing-market your business effectively to today's customers.  For generations, marketing has been hypocritical. We've been taught to market to others in ways we hate being marketed to (cold-calling, flyers, ads, etc.). So why do we still keep trying the same stale marketing moves?

"UnMarketing" shows you how to unlearn the old ways and consistently attract and engage the right customers. You'll stop just pushing out your message and praying that it sticks somewhere. Potential and current customers want to be listened to, validated, and have a platform to be heard - especially online. With "UnMarketing", you'll create such a relationship with your customers, and make yourself the logical choice for their needs.

Shows how to create a mindset and systems to roll out a new, 21st century marketing approach.  Marketing expert Scott Stratten focuses on a Pull & Stay method (pulling your market towards you and staying/engaging with them, leading them to naturally choose you for their needs) rather than Push & Pray.  Redefines marketing as all points of engagement between a company and its customers, not just a single boxed-in activity. Traditional marketing methods are leading to diminishing returns and disaffected customers. The answer? Stop marketing, start UnMarketing!

Regardless of your role when you work for a company, we are all sales and marketing people, not only promoting whatever the product or service is but also the customer experience.  According to Scott, "marketing happens every time you engage (or not) with your past, present and potential customers."

This book is about "unmarketing" ... the ability to engage with your market.  It's what comes naturally, not being forced to do things that make you uncomfortable.  It's the authentic, it's personal and it's the way to building lifelong fans, relationships and customers.  This book is for you if you have had enough of the "old-school" ways of marketing and want to believe there is a better way.

If you believe business is built on relationships, make building them your business.  Scott Stratten

Scott starts with the hierarchy of buying ... with cold-calling on the bottom of the pyramid and referrals from current satisfied customers at the top.  He then discusses the value of being considered an expert and trust.  Various methods are described such as "pull and stay" rather than the "push and pray", social media such as Twitter, viral marketing, seminars and more.  He includes his experiences of what some companies did well and how others failed to live up to their promises.

I liked the writing style.  It is very conversational, casual and amusing.  He seems like he'd be a fun guy to sit down and talk with.  I read this book on my iPad and there are links which I found myself going to as I was reading to learn more about the experiences Scott talked about.

I look forward to reading his other books and hope sometime to see one of his keynotes.

Book ~ "UnSelling: The New Customer Experience" (2014) Scott Stratten

From Goodreads ~ "UnSelling" is about everything but the sell. We put all of our focus on the individual purchase transaction, while putting the rest of our business actions second. We've become blind to customer service, support, branding, experiences and even product quality. Sixty percent of a purchasing decision is made before a customer even contacts you. We have funnel vision, and it needs to stop. 

"Unselling" is about the big picture: creating repeat customers, not one-time buyers. Create loyal clients that refer others, not faceless numbers. Becoming the go-to company for something, before they even need you. 

You don't need social media, but you can be connecting with your clients socially. Your video doesn't have to be viral in front of a million people, just contagious in front of your specific market. Content, connection, engagement. It's time to separate from the pack of noise. It's time to "UnSell". 

I watched Marketplace Friday and the episode was about fake video testimonials: inside the world of fake reviews.  A woman from outside Toronto hires herself out as a spokesperson (supposedly she's a financial planner, a customer, a nutritionist, etc.) in many different videos providing fake online testimonials.  The sales expert Marketplace consulted about this was Scott Stratten.  He was interesting and they mentioned he is the author of a book (among others) called UnSelling so I thought I'd check it out.

I'm not a sales person but I think when you work for a company, regardless of your role, we are all sales people, not only promoting whatever the product or service is but also the customer experience and branding.  So that's why I like reading books like this.

The book isn't about how to sell whatever your product or service is.  It's focused on the after sale.  It goes without saying that without new sales, companies couldn't survive.  Many times companies work so hard to get the new client ... and then move on to focus on the next new client.  They forget to focus on existing clients and letting them know they are important and that's what this book is about.

I liked the writing style.  It is very conversational, casual and amusing and though I was reading his book rather than an audiobook, I could hear Scott's voice.  He seems like he'd be a fun guy to sit down and talk with.  There were many examples of what companies have done well with/for their customers and what companies haven't done so well.  There are lots of links and I found myself going to them to learn more about the experiences Stratten talked about, some being his own.

I look forward to reading his other books and hope sometime to see one of his keynotes.