Books We're Reading...
There never seems to be enough time to read until you get a good page-turner that you just can’t put down. Here are some of our current and long-time favorites. Tell us what you’re reading and we’ll add it to our list.
This Is How We Do It. The Working Mothers’ Manifesto by Carol Evans, CEO and President, Working Mother magazine.
A remarkable story about America’s 100 Best Companies and the innovative ways they recruit and retain a critical talent base – employees with families. It’s an important reminder that workplace policies and programs have tremendous impact on worker productivity and on customer satisfaction. The career advice is hard to beat, too.
New Product Launch – 10 Proven Strategies by Joan Schneider, APR.
At the 2006 Counselors Academy conference, the author presented one of the most informative professional development sessions that included both strategy and tactical implications. Highlighting the content of her book, Schneider led us through the process of product development – from R&D to distribution and sales – including how the early involvement of marketing and PR enhances the success of new product launches.
Value-Added Public Relations. The Secret Weapon of Integrated Marketing by Thomas L. Harris.
One of the leading gurus of the integrated marketing concept, Harris essentially speaks to the Risdall McKinney philosophy of the power and potential of public relations.
Simple Abundance. A Daybook of Comfort and Joy by Sarah Ban Breathnach.
When life becomes a harried and frenzied 24x7 existence, find solace in taking a minute each day to appreciate the wonder and awe of our amazing world. Through daily essays, this affirming collection centers on priorities and authenticity of self.
Primal Branding by Patrick Hanlon.
One of several Twin Cities marketing execs to publish a book in 2006, Hanlon shares the code for creating and sustaining powerful brands. With more than a few nuggets of PR relevance, this creative-advertising perspective on branding is a quick and enlightening read.
Risdall Advertising Agency, Risdall McKinney Public Relations and Mr. Hanlon co-presented a branding session with the Employers Association earlier this year.
Purple Cow by Seth Godin.
The author explains it is not enough to be great, which is classified as the typical brown cow. You must stand out like a purple cow – completely original and brilliant to make the market "sneeze." More than one client tells us this book inspired their business model.
Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell.
Full of intriguing questions and evaluations of today's epidemics - those that make a worldwide impact – Gladwell offers a fascinating psychological analysis of the consumer marketplace. Though they may appear as a small idea or occurrence, they somehow create a critical mass that tips the market and causes a buying bug to rush through the masses.
Eats Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss.
A bestseller on both sides of the pond, Eats, Shoots & Leaves gets its title from a panda description that has punctuation errors. The British journalist Lynn Truss, tells an entertaining anecdotal history of English punctuation and is a stickler for properly using commas, apostrophes, semicolons and dashes.