Nkosi868

Welcome to my blog, and to introduce you to my blog and the general content of the posts you'll encounter here, I will be starting off with a review of a wonderful book I've just finished reading.

The title of the book is Rubies in the Orchard: How to Uncover the Hidden gems in Your Business. It was written by Lynda Resnick with Francis Wilkinson.

Lynda Resnick is the woman behind the successful marketing of brands such as POM Wonderful, Fiji Water and Teleflora. She began her business career at the age of 19, when she founded a full-service advertising agency. Other successful ventures throughout her career include corporate management, marketing, product development, and most recently, writing.

Stop Thinking Outside The Box

A major point that Resnick made in this book was to stop searching outside the box for ideas. Ever since I could remember, I've been told by people in authority, to think outside of the box when I get a mental block. I've also been guilty of pushing this ideology on others. When I started to seriously study advertising, I realised that this was the total opposite of what I should be doing if I want to be successful in this field. In the book Resnick points out some very funny examples of when "thinking outside the box" went wrong.

The example that best supported her ideology is the shotgun marriage of Dominos Pizza and Jessica Simpson. Dominos Pizza hired Jessica Simpson to be the official spokesperson of their brand. Unfortunately for them, Jessica was allergic to nearly every one of the ingredients they put on their pizzas and even the dough itself.

Resnicks solution to this PR disaster which could have avoided this entire nightmare is to simply market the product for what it is, PIZZA! This is an ideology that she practices with her brands POM Wonderful, Fiji Water, Teleflora and how she turned around the Franklin Mint.

In my opinion, thinking outside of the box is a desperation move and after you clearly analyze this notion, you will agree that is.

Always Price For Value

This is something that eludes most advertisers because it has become the cultural norm for us to question a product or service being advertised to us. When was the last time you viewed an advertisement or infomercial which promised to make life easier and you didn't question its veracity? I do it all the time. Every time I pick up a bottle of juice I smirk at the words "100% Juice". Most of these brands that push the "100% Juice" banner on their labels are swindling their consumers. Look closely on these products and you'll see exactly how many different "juices" actually make up your beloved apple juice. Drug dealers aren't the only people "cutting their product".

In her book, Resnick discusses the pomegranate fruit from where the book gets its title. As you'll read in the book, the Resnicks are credited with making this fruit popular in America. Studies have shown that this fruit holds many antioxidants that help maintain a healthy body and it even has a powerful effect against prostate cancer. Resnick discusses in the book how she marketed and priced the pomegranate for its worth even though she knew many people would cringe at the price. Although many people advised her to "cut" the pomegranate juice with other natural juices to reduce the retail price, she defied them and bottled 100% pomegranate juice because that was the only way the health benefits from the pomegranate fruit could be acquired. POM Wonderful is now one of the most sought after juices in America even though it sells at a price point many people are not willing to bow to. At the moment, I am one of those people.

There are many other valuable morsels of information in this book and I am very happy that I read it. Lynda Resnick has had a long and successful career in Advertising and this book truly gives you a look inside the mind of a guru.

Happy Reading.