- Hardcover: 272 pages
- Publisher: Business Plus (March 1, 1997)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0446520942
- ISBN-13: 978-0446520942
Amazon.com Review
The transformation from a manufacturing-based economy to one that's all about service has been well documented. Today it's estimated that nearly 75 percent of Americans work in the service sector. Instead of producing tangibles--automobiles, clothes, and tools--more and more of us are in the business of providing intangibles--health care, entertainment, tourism, legal services, and so on. However, according to Harry Beckwith, most of these intangibles are still being marketed like products were 20 years ago.In Selling the Invisible, Beckwith argues that what consumers are primarily interested in today are not features, but relationships. Even companies who think that they sell only tangible products should rethink their approach to product development and marketing and sales. For example, when a customer buys a Saturn automobile, what they're really buying is not the car, but the way that Saturn does business. Beckwith provides an excellent forum for thinking differently about the nature of services and how they can be effectively marketed. If you're at all involved in marketing or sales, then Selling the Invisible is definitely worth a look.
From Library Journal
"Don't sell the steak. Sell the sizzle." In today's service business, author Beckwith suggests this old marketing adage is likely to guarantee failure. In this timely addition to the management genre, Beckwith summarizes key points about selling services learned from experience with his own advertising and marketing firm and when he worked with Fortune 500 companies. The focus here is on the core of service marketing: improving the service, which no amount of clever marketing can make up for if not accomplished. Other key concepts emphasize listening to the customer, selling the long-term relationship, identifying what a business is really selling, recognizing clues about a business that may be conveyed to customers, focusing on the single most important message about the business, and other practical strategies relevant to any service business. Actor Jeffrey Jones's narration professionally conveys these excellent ideas appropriate for public libraries.?Dale Farris, Groves, Tex.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Advertising professional Beckwith startles and disarms all potential doubting Thomases with one fact--that by the year 2005, 8 out of 10 Americans will be working in a service business. Chapters here are remarkably short; they are intended to convey one point (summarized in one sentence in boldface italics) and are blessedly free of jargon. Hints and tips cover the conventional four Ps of marketing--product, promotion, place, and price--in an irreverent and iconoclastic manner; nothing is sacrosanct. Stories from every corner of life illustrate and drive home messages. In a quandary about pricing? Read the Picasso story to remember, "Don't charge by the hour; charge by the years." About the value of research? Forget questionnaires and focus groups; instead, ask individuals what improvements are needed--not the dreaded "What don't you like?" A very human, much-needed book to savor and be refreshed by. Barbara Jacobs
Product Description
A comprehensive guide to service marketing furnishes tips and advice on how one can apply one's business knowledge to any area of sales and marketing, from a home-based consultancy to a multinational brokerage firm.
About the Author
Harry Beckwith founded and directs Beckwith Partners, a positioning and branding firm whose clients include Microsoft, ServiceMaster, ADP, Merck, and Hewlett Packard. He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Stanford and an internationally acclaimed business speaker. He also lectures at the universities of Minnesota and St Thomas in Minneapolis. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From AudioFile
Listeners not familiar with Beckwith's 1997 classic will love hearing his timeless wisdom on marketing hard-to-define products such as services. "The core of service marketing is the service itself," he says in this expert lesson, which also stresses the value of practices like seeking customer feedback, acting decisively, continually refining the value of the service, and keeping passion in customer relationships. Listeners will also love the emotional tone of Jeffrey Jones's narration. He stays relaxed--as if he's participating in an armchair talk with friends--but he also knows how to highlight key ideas with subtle phrasing that intensifies without sounding dramatic or clever. His narrative smoothness is ideal for an important business lesson like this. T.W. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine
