by Geoffrey A. Moore

Author Geoffrey Moore makes the case that high-tech products require marketing strategies that differ from those in other industries. His chasm theory describes how high-tech products initially sell well, mainly to a technically literate customer base, but then hit a lull as marketing professionals try to cross the chasm to mainstream buyers. This pattern, says Moore, is unique to the high-tech industry.
Moore suggests remedies for the problem that can help businesses meet their long-term goals. He coaches marketing professionals on how to move slowly through the gulf, teaching them to create profiles and target specific segments of the population rather than trying to plow right into the mainstream. He cites examples of successful chasm crossings by such companies as Apple, Tandem, Oracle, and Sun, showing what they all had in common and exposing the different weaknesses in their strategies. Moore also assigns responsibility for success to programmers and developers by suggesting they design a "whole product model." Here, because integration tasks are daunting to the mainstream market, all the components of a technological product must be in one package. Moore also describes strategies for competing with rival companies and assessing the best distribution channels for penetrating the target market.

Written not just for marketing specialists but for all employees whose futures ride on the success of a technical product, Crossing the Chasm delivers crucial information in an engaging, readable tone.
 

by C.W. Allen

This user friendly manual is a complete home study course for establishing and effectively administering your Corporation, Limited Liability Company or Limited Partnership.

Compiled by corporate strategists, this manual provides complete details addressing why you should incorporate your business, how to totally maximize corporate advantages, and maintain critical elements of the ongoing corporation.

 

by Steven D. Strauss

An indispensable how-to guide from the small business columnist for USAToday.com.

Hundreds of thousands of people start their own businesses every year, and untold more dream about the possibility of becoming their own bosses. While entrepreneurship has its many potential rewards, it also carries unique challenges.

Steven D. Strauss, one of the nation’s foremost authorities on small business, has developed an easy-to-read compendium of everything an aspiring entrepreneur needs to start and succeed in business. He explains what works, and what doesn’t, while giving entrepreneurs scores of tips and hints. Readers will learn:

• Why following one’s passion is important when picking a business.

• How to analyze a franchise property.

• Which business form is best-corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship.

• What funding options are available-from venture capital to SBA loans.

• How much to charge for goods or services.

• Why having more than one revenue stream is important.

• How to start a business on a shoestring.

• Strategies for growth once the business is up and running

Unlike other books on business formation, Strauss’s advice not only explains what steps to take, but also includes proven strategies, worksheets, forms to fill out, and success secrets. To that end, it is a business primer, step-by-step guide, and success strategies book all rolled into one.

 

by Greg Holden

Get the scoop on recession-proof online strategies
Packed with e-commerce survival stories, best practices, and resources

Get the information you need to thrive online — even in today's economy!

Today is a great time to launch an online business – the competition is less, the technology is better, and Internet use is at an all-time high. This thoroughly updated guide shows you how to dive right in. From fine-tuning plans and setting up a high-traffic site to marketing, customer service, and security, it's just what you need to succeed!

The Dummies Way

• Explanations in plain English
• "Get in, get out" information
• Icons and other navigational aids
• Tear-out cheat sheet
• Top ten lists
• A dash of humor and fun
   

by Eric Tyson

You’re not alone if the thought of running your own business has crossed your mind. Even if your vision of a small business differs from your neighbor’s, you probably dream of being your own boss and of providing a needed service or creating a cool new product.
But your very first small-business decision may be to admit that you’re not ready for this career – at least not yet. If you’re straddling the fence, Small Business For Dummies will uncover whether this career works for you. You’ll also gain insight into getting your personal finances in order before exposing yourself to the risk of a new business, and discover how to draw a roadmap to reach your career destination. This easy-to-understand guide is also for those who want to:

• Write a gang-buster business plan
• Create the right legal framework for your business
• Locate financing that suits your needs
• Develop and market your product
• Hire the right employees for the right jobs
• Build your business

You’ll also gain understanding of the tactical side of running a small business, from pricing, budgeting, business expansion, and complying with government regulations to operational issues including:

• Managing your time
• Collecting accounts receivable
• Understanding your financial statements
• Taking good care of your customers
• Locating new financing or revising existing financing

You don’t need to be a genius to run a successful small business, but you do need some help. And that’s exactly what this book is, a guide into the stimulating world of small business ownership and management.

 

by Barry Moltz

Advice about starting a business never sounded like this! Beginning with "must be crazy," serial entrepreneur and angel investor Barry Moltz offers the true insider's scoop on new business start-ups. With doses of irreverence and humor, the return-to-basics guide focuses on what comes before the bottom line. Addressing passion-the ultimate entrepreneurial fuel-relationships, failure, and authenticity, Moltz incorporates stories from his entrepreneurial colleagues and shows what it takes to integrate personal and professional life to achieve the highest satisfaction. Moltz describes the ups and downs and emotional trials of running a start-up business and invites readers to let go of the myths and expectations that can hamstring them emotionally while getting their businesses up and running.

In a helpful, heartfelt, and often humorous way, Moltz reassures entrepreneurs that they are not alone-whatever their form of craziness-and that they can retain self-worth and sanity as they ride the start-up roller coaster. Showcasing the varieties of new venture craziness, entrepreneurs at all ages and stages in their business-building processes will realize they too can succeed. Jolts of passionate entrepreneurial wisdom energize these anecdotes, with such ideas as:

• People-not capital-are the true currency.
• Passion keeps everything going.
• Relationships and authenticity are the drivers in this business climate.
• There is no perfect idea and no magic bullet.
• Don't expect your path to be a straight line.

Incorporating lessons from the boom and bust 1990s, the realignment of business and personal values in the wake of terrorism, and proven ways to nurture the human dimension in business, these are voices to help all business owners find and trust their own entrepreneurial passions. After all, says the author, "The worst they can do is eat you!"
 

by Bill Chiaravalle, Barbara Findlay Schenck

A simple, practical guide to the basics of branding

Branding For Dummies breaks down the basics of brand-building for businesses both big and small. Branding is more important than ever as differentiation becomes more difficult and products become increasingly interchangeable. This handy, easy-to-read guide demystifies the process by which brands are created, managed, differentiated, leveraged, and licensed. Branding For Dummies gives readers the tools they need to apply a dynamic brand creation model to their own business using templates, tools, and proven processes. For entrepreneurs who need to jump-start their businesses, struggling small business owners, or anyone who needs to brush up on the basics of branding, this friendly guide provides the techniques and strategies of successful branding.

• The latest thinking on key branding concepts, including brand positioning and design
• Strategies for launching new brands, leveraging existing brands, and managing a brand portfolio
• Techniques for building a brand-centered organization
• Insights from senior managers who have fought branding battles and won

This is the first book on branding from the faculty of the Kellogg School, the respected resource for dynamic marketing information for today's ever-changing and challenging environment. Kellogg is the brand that executives and marketing managers trust for definitive information on proven approaches for solving marketing dilemmas and seizing marketing opportunities.

by Al Ries, Laura Ries

As it becomes increasingly associated with impressive corporate gains realized in recent years by companies ranging from FedEx and Rolex to Starbucks and Volvo, "branding" has developed into one of the marketing world's hottest concepts. And for good reason, contend well-known strategist Al Ries and his daughter Laura Ries in The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding: How to Build a Product or Service into a World-Class Brand.

"Marketing is building a brand in the mind of the prospect," they write. "If you can build a powerful brand you will have a powerful marketing program. If you can't, then all the advertising, fancy packaging, sales promotion and public relations in the world won't help you achieve your objective." A no-holds-barred look at a diverse collection of successful--and not-so-successful--branding efforts undertaken by these and other high-profile firms, their book distills the most critical principles involved into a series of clear rules with straightforward titles such as The Law of Expansion, The Law of Contraction, The Law of Consistency, and The Law of Mortality. While some of their suggestions may at first seem counterintuitive, together they compose a logical blueprint for success in today's ever-more-competitive environment.