This blog is presented by Immersion Active, the only Internet marketing agency in the U.S. focused solely on the mature markets.
David Weigelt: Dot Boom: Marketing to Baby Boomers Through Meaningful Online Engagement
A cutting edge offering for those looking to increase their online marketing effectiveness to boomers and older customers. (*****)
George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller: Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives the Economy, and Why It Matters for Global Capitalism
Blows to smithereens the two-plus century old idea in classical economics that markets follow a course determined by an "invisible hand" driven by people acting rationally in their own interests. (*****)
Dan Ariely: Predictably Irrational, Revised and Expanded Edition: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions
Makes an almost inarguable case for the claim that emotions not reason play the bigger role in our marketplace decisions. (*****)
William C. Taylor & Polly LaBarre: Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win
Indispensable book for surviving and thriving in tough as well as in good times. "Mavericks" describes one of the best decision-making methods ever introduced to the world of business: open source problem solving. (*****)
Gary Hamel: The Future of Management
Justifiably cited by an Amazon editorial panel as one of the top 10 business books of 2007 (along with our own "Firms of Endearment." Hamel's book presents an insightful perspective on the corporation of the future. (*****)
James H. Gilmore: Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want
Gilmore and Pine, who wrote "The Experience Economy" describe the rising demand of customers for authentic experiences. (*****)
Chip Conley: Peak: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow
Peak: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow
How can we say it persuasively enough to motivate you to buy it? No book will better prepare you for the 21st century business ethos than Peak. (*****) (*****)
Paul Hawken: Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming
A book of breathtaking scope about a movement that almost no one saw coming that is reshaping the world. (*****)
Phil Rosenzweig: The Halo Effect: ... and the Eight Other Business Delusions That Deceive Managers
A brilliantly executed book that could change forever how you read other business books. (*****)
Ori Brafman and Rod A. Beckstrom: The Starfish and the Spider
A clear-eyed look at the future shape of organizations from bridge clubs to global governments. (*****)
Gene D. Cohen: The Mature Mind
Destroys the fable that older minds are disadvantaged minds and gives the marketing community a lot to think about when it comes to creating communications for second half markets. (*****)
Max Lenderman: Experience the Message: How Experiential Marketing Is Changing the Brand World
First rate, pragmatice treatment of the stil poorly understood concept of experiential marketing. (*****)
Joel Garreau: Radical Evolution
One of the best ways to prepare for a future of previously almost unimaginable advancements in human abilities is by reading this book. This is not speculation. It’s already happening. You need this book to figure how you fit into the picture. (*****)
The Empty Cradle
A must, must read if you want a glimpse of economic conditions that marketers -- both local and global -- will have to deal with in the not-too-distant future. (*****)
V. S. Ramachandran: A Brief Tour of Human Consciousness
You'll never look at consumers' minds -- and your own -- ever the same, and all for the better. (*****)
Kevin Roberts: Lovemarks
The "L" word enters mainstream business's vocabulary in a testament to the moral transformation taking place in capitalism. (*****)
Dan McAdams: Stories We Live By
A developmental psychologist's first-rate treatment of how our quest for identity influences our behavior in each season of life. (*****)
Gerald Zaltman: How Customers Think
Don't depend on what consumers say. This book shows how to dig deeper into their brains to learn what really motivates them. (*****)
Melinda Davis: The Culture of Desire
Davis's book introduces the idea that marketers can improve their results if they abandon the role of huckster to become healers. (*****)
Margaret Mark and Carol Pearson: The Hero and the Outlaw
Best book around for guiding the personality development of a brand. (*****)
Martha Barletta: Marketing to Women: How to Understand, Reach, and Increase Your Share of the World's Largest Market Segment
If you're in marketing and read only one book this year, this should be it (*****)