Re: Good Reading?

"Nerfem Thims" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>...
> Greetings, everyone...
> 
> I read the "how to get good advice" post from the moderator and it said to
> give as much detail as possible so I will, even though my question is rather
> simple.
> 
> A recent career change has taken me from working as the communications
> director of a political consulting firm to working for a large, national
> non-profit organization in their communications dept.  Due to the
> organizational structure of my new employer, I will be doing a lot of
> marketing as a part of their communications team.
> 
> I have a political science degree but I don't have any formal marketing
> training or education.  With a couple weeks to kill before my new job
> starts, I want to spend some time in the library learning things about
> marketing that I didn't learn in politics.  The "short course", so to speak.
> 
> My questions are:
> 
> 1)Can any of you recommend some good reads for me?
> 
> 2)Any books out there with a special emphasis on marketing/branding large
> non-profit orgs?
> 
> 
> Thank you,
> Nerfem
> REMOVE the 9's to email....


Hello. I too work for a national non-profit organization.  My
specialty is fundraising but I do a lot of marketing.  My background
is similar to your in that my degree is in social science and I used
to work for a smaller organization in a position unrelated to
marketing.

As you begin, I'd recommend staying away from your "traditional"
marketing books becuase they place an overemphasis on selling
products, not services.  Working for a nonprofit, you'll probably be
dealing primarily with intangibles.  For starters, I'd read anything
by Harry Beckwith.  He's written three books that I'm aware of
concerning selling invisibles (services).  His first book in
particular, "Selling the Invisible," is superb.

Next I'd read Guerilla Marketing by Jay Conrad Levinson.  Like
Beckwith, Levinson's stuff is straight-forward and relatively free of
marketing jargon. As you read Levinson, though, remember that he tends
to focus way more on promotion than the other marketing domains.  Even
after reading Levinson, you'll still need to get an overview of the
other "Ps."  (Marketing lingo for the stuff that happens before
promotion such as product, price, and place.)  Then I'd read the
marketing chapter from a book called "The 10 Day MBA" (I can't
remember the author's name).  Finally, I'd read "The 22 Immutable Laws
of Branding" and "The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing." Both of these
books offer great insight into what separates good marketing from bad.

I hope this list helps.  Feel free to contact me via email if you have
any questions.  It's tough to find good marketing materials relating
to the nonprofit world.
Scott
[EMAIL PROTECTED]