Keep Reading

I like reading. I really do. (My wife loves it, but I just really like it.)

I often recommend books, articles, blogs and such to the point of annoyance. But I think there is something to be said for reading responsibly. It is important to be realistic and responsible about the content we read and how we share it, and how we use it.

Harry Potter, for example, should be viewed for what it is: a fiction book, heavy in theme and detailed description, designed for kids to explore their imagination and entertainment. It is not the devil’s work in print, like many radical groups would like us to believe. (This really happened to me 7 years ago where a co-worker would rebuke the devil aloud whenever the book title was mentioned).

The same can be said for so many marketing books out there. And magazine articles, and journals, and blogs. The reader cannot always take everything as literal or as fact. In my opinion, most marketing books out there are too general and vague anyway. Rarely have I found where the authors give definite answers, detailed examples or how-to steps that are realistic – even in the books that I love. Many are written by marketing gurus that never really share anything; possibly because they do not want to give away the secrets that have made them rich. Or, perhaps, they don’t want to reveal how small their role was in the successes.

It has been my experience that even the best advertising books, ones I love and would never trade away, may fall short of excellence because the examples do not apply to most accounts. They often highlight the national brands that are, I am sorry to say, easy to get creative with on most levels. A 12-year old can come up with at least one idea out of 60 that’s clever and fun for a national Pepsi TV campaign, but what about a small auto body shop in a small market like Mobile, Alabama? Figure in the recession, a fixed budget…now THAT takes real creativity. Volkswagen and Nike are commonly referenced brands in these ad books, but these are also major worldwide names; these are brands that have multiple agencies working on different areas of their marketing; these are brands that have hundreds of millions of dollars behind them and they can afford to make some duds and still come out unharmed. They can afford a mediocre idea with an overwhelming frequency media buy that balances things out. (Just look at almost any Taco Bell ad in the last decade, or any freecreditreport.com ad…ever) A small insurance agent’s office in, say Manhattan, Kansas, may have just one shot at a good ad or ad campaign to drum up business. Most books leave these kinds of small business or mid-size business case studies out.

More importantly, I find that far too many business managers, sales managers and marketing directors focus too much on reading what others have written instead of finding solutions to their own business. I have met many smart managers who do their teams no favors by doling out reading assignments instead of having some real brainstorming time. I knew of one higher-up in the realm of education who started nearly every board meeting by referencing the latest book he read. No matter what the real issues were to discuss, it was as if he was convinced that the answers & inspiration would lie in whatever book he read that month. His passion and hunger for inspiration was appreciated, but it rarely worked and it often frustrated the team members. The employees thought, “Great. Our problems were not solved and now I have another chore for work to do in my off hours.”

I once worked with a higher-up on some projects who was all excited about a recent read. It was a teamwork/management type of book, geared to inspire and rally the troops to be proactive. I was thrilled to see him so amped up about a book, so when he passed it on to me to read, I was eager to dig in. The book was all about making things happen instead of waiting for someone else to do them; tie up the bootstraps and take things head on all on your own rather than assigning to others. The irony was that this manager told us to read it and then put it on us to come up with things to implement into our operation. Then it was up to us to do the actual implementation. If he’s staying true to what the book preaches, shouldn’t he have done that stuff himself? It’s funny how a do-it-yourself book suddenly leads to a let’s-get-someone-else-to-do-this-for-me motion.

I knew of another marketing manager who would introduce books and pass out copies with the best intentions, but a week later he would lose interest and tail off just as his team would be digging in. Inspiration is one thing, but the power of the written word deserves some time, full attention, and follow through; not just a flippant, sudden gust of euphoria that leaves as quickly as it comes.

In addition, I have encountered a few customers who stick with whatever they last heard or read. No matter how much or how long they’ve worked, they put all their weight into their latest conversation. These are tough because they are the customers and you always want to carry out their wishes, but at this pace, those wishes change from week to week depending on the number of books or type of blog that was last read. This clearly defines the business approach as following instead of leading, where nobody wins.

Read because you like it. Read because it interests you. Read to guide you as you plan your next course of action, but don’t let it make the decisions for you.

Read responsibly and no one gets hurt.

And now for a few of my favorites to recommend…

Advertising, Creative Books:

· Hey Whipple, Squeeze This | Luke Sullivan

· Then We Set His Hair on Fire | Phil Dusenberry

Sales/Business Books:

· Never Eat Alone | Keith Ferrazzi

· Management by Baseball | Jeff Angus

Sociology, Political, Philosophy/Religion Books:

· A Beautiful Game: The World's Greatest Players and How Soccer Changed Their Lives | Tom Watt

· Freakonomics | Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

· Searching for God Knows What | Donald Miller [also one of my fav. Book cover designs]

Sports Books:

· October Men | Roger Kahn

· Opening Day | Jonathan Eig

Fiction:

· The Pleasure of My Company | Steve Martin [also one of my fav. Book cover designs]

· A Separate Peace | John Knowles

-Lance LaRue, Advertising & Creative Manager at Americom Marketing Ad Agency in Beaumont, Texas 2011