Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

It’s Only Common Sense: It’s Time for Summer Reading

Some people go to the beach, excited about their summer reading. They cannot wait to get into their latest John Grisham, Jodi Picoult, or Stephen King. That’s all good stuff, but when I go to the beach (yeah, right!), let’s just say my summer reading involves much more useful, and for me, fun (believe it or not) business books on customer service, business strategy, and my personal favorites, advertising, and marketing.

I thought it would be fun to share some of the titles I’ve been reading lately. I recommend that you read these books so that your time off this summer will not be completely wasted. You can have fun in the sun and learn a little something as well.

Here are some of the best!

The 10 Golden Rules of Customer Service: The Story of the $6,000 Egg by Deb and Todd Duncan

This little book (less than 100 pages) is chock full of advice delivered on great customer service. Yes, there are a lot of stories and pictures too. If a book was ever fun to read, this is it. Just a few of the gems from the book include, “Customer service shouldn’t just be a department; it should be the entire company,” and, “Give your best to your best, so you can get the rest of what they have to give you.”

Further, here’s a pithy piece of advice for what to do when you screw up. Do these four things:

1. Offer a deep and sincere apology for the problem
2. Offer a quick commitment to a solution
3. Deliver a solution that is more than expected
4. Follow up to make sure everything is okay

And then, as a special treat, there is the story of the $6,000 egg, but you’re going to have to read the book for that one!

Hegarty on Creativity: There Are No Rules by John Hegarty

All I can say is, “Wow!” John Hegarty has one of the greatest creative minds of modern advertising. In this small volume (notice a trend here?), he talks about the value of getting your message across with stories. This is the kind of book you read with a pen and notebook handy because, on almost every page, you are going to want to stop and take notes. He talks a lot about how true creativity takes courage because it stands alone and people don’t know they like it until they see it two or three or maybe four times; then, they think you’re a genius. Like the famous quote from Henry Ford, “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”

Damn Good Advice (For People With Talent!): How to Unleash Your Creative Potential by America’s Master Communicator by George Lois

Okay, I said that Hegarty was the top gun when it came to advertising and creativity, but some people would say it is this guy, George Lois. Lois is the brains behind such famous ads as, “I want my MTV!” stolen from his earlier advertising, “I want my Maypo!” He is also responsible for the groundbreaking Esquire cover of Muhammad Ali as the martyr Saint Sebastian pierced with arrows. The great thing about this book is that you not only learn the story behind these great ads but also how advertising works. You learn how to think like a great ad man, and most importantly, the book is filled with stimulating ideas on how to create. This is another one you need to read accompanied by pen and notebook. I should mention that I actually read two books by Lois; the second one was a gem called What’s the Big Idea? How to Win With Outrageous Ideas (That Sell!). I’ll just mention one chapter that stood out, which was called “How to Raise the Value of Your Product With Advertising.”

Whatcha Gonna Do With That Duck? And Other Provocations, 2006–2012 by Seth Godin

And then, there is good old Seth Godin—he is the master and my personal favorite. This book is not a small one, but it is an omnibus of his blogs from 2006 to 2012. Full disclosure here; this is the book I keep on my desk to go to when I cannot come up for an idea for this column. I just pick up this 600-page volume and thumb through it until I find my inspiration for a new column. The book covers just about all topics from sales to marketing and customer service. Because these writings were originally blogs, they are short and focused on one specific idea. But I warn you, these blogs are like Lay’s potato chips; you can’t eat just one. Here are a couple of examples of the topics covered in this book:

• Marketing Potholes
• I’ll Know It When I See It
• I’m Too Busy
• What Will the Boss Think?

Godin’s work has been breaking ground for almost 20 years. This is the guy who invented permission marketing. If you are sending it out in a regular newsletter using software like Constant Contact, it is because of Seth Godin.

Honorable Mentions

But before I go, here are a few honorable mentions that I have been reading lately:

• Minute Motivators for Leaders: Quick Inspiration for the Time of Your Life by Stan Toler
• Born to Blog: Building Your Blog for Personal and Business Success One Post at a Time by Mark Schaefer and Stanford Smith
• The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha

And of course, I cannot complete my list without mentioning Notorious: Business Lessons From History’s Most Ruthless Leaders by my friend and colleague Steve Williams.

Conclusion

So many great books, so little time. Make sure that when you head to the beach this summer, your book bag contains at least one of these great books. You’ll be better for it.

It’s only common sense.

Dan Beaulieu is president of D.B. Management Group.