The Digital Radish Book Club: January’s top picks
Resolutions? We’ve had a few. But one that we’re determined to stick to in 2024 is to create innovative and unforgettable content that pushes things to the next level.
In that spirit, we’re sharing three books that really hit the mark for our content and creative team – “The Boron Letters” by Gary C Halbert, “Antifragile” by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, and “Obviously Awesome” by April Dunford.
One way or another, our top picks approach creative problems from unconventional angles, and it’s one of many reasons why we find these books so inspiring.
You can read our December recommendations here – and, as always, let us know what you think at hello@digitalradish.co.uk
- Check out our creativity-themed selections from December
What’s it about?
“The Boron Letters” may be the world’s most unusual marketing book. It’s a collection of letters from a copywriter to his son – written from prison. Serving time for mail fraud in the ’80s, Gary C Halbert dispensed advice of all kinds, from becoming a “student of markets” to why the most effective way to sell real estate is to send a prospect a bag of dirt.
How does the author sum it up?
“The very best writing goes unnoticed. That’s right. You don’t want someone to read one of your ads and say ‘Gosh, that advertisement was sure well written!’ No. What you really want is for the reader to order from your ad. Listen up dummy. ‘If you are writing for applause… you will go home with empty pockets!’ – Gary C Halbert
Why we love it
“Friendly warning – this is a book I’d skim rather than read cover to cover, because the author himself admits that the letters ramble a bit. But a lot of the marketing advice is frankly great – from the ‘bag of dirt’ chapter to the advice on writing good copy – and some of the stories he tells about life in prison and doing “road work” are super interesting.” – Ray Philp
What we learned
Some copywriting advice is timeless: “Use simple common everyday words. Use ‘get’ instead of ‘procure’.” You’ll find lots of nuggets like these in “The Boron Letters,” delivered in a ‘here-are-the-facts-of-life’ tone that give you a sense that you’re being given access to trade secrets.
What’s it about?
Is it better to be robust or fragile? Most people would say the answer was obvious – but Nassim Nicholas Taleb makes a powerful argument in “Antifragile” that a better answer is neither. Instead, he supports a state of “antifragility,” a concept that uses stress and volatility as an opportunity to adapt and strengthen.
How does the author sum it up?
“When you ask people what is the opposite of fragile, they mostly answer something that is resilient or unbreakable – an unbreakable package would be robust. However, the opposite of fragile is something that actually gains from disorder. In the book, I classify things into fragile, robust, or antifragile.” – Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Why we love it
“Honestly, it’s a huge book. Not necessarily in word count or page number, but simply in its theories and the ground it covers. To try to sum it up in one pithy quote would be to do it a disservice. Did some of it just go over my head? Yes. Does it make for interesting reading? Totally. Is this one to read before bed? Absolutely not.” – Brian McKay
What we learned
In B2B, talk about resilience in times of uncertainty has become something of a cliché – so it’s refreshing to see a completely different take on this idea, which essentially frames risk, randomness, and trial and error as elements to embrace rather than guard against. These happen to be principles that have served us well as an agency, too.
What’s it about?
Your amazing new product is going to change the game, the world, the universe! But closing the gap between what you know and what prospective customers understand is often the biggest challenge – so here’s April Dunford to the rescue with “Obviously Awesome,” about how to truly distinguish what you do from the rest through clearly defined positioning.
How does the author sum it up?
“I would be a little bit nervous about building campaigns until we had a really tight definition of, ‘Who do we compete with,’ ‘How are we different,’ ‘What is the value that we can deliver that the other folks can’t,’ ‘What’s our best-fit customer really look like,’ ‘What is the market we intend to win?’ These are the component pieces of positioning.” – April Dunford
Why we love it
“This is a great, really digestible read, and really helped put what brand positioning actually means in simple terms. I’d actually really recommend it for people who work in client-side marketing, because I think it would really help them define their own product goals before they came to the likes of us to try and market for them.” – Jack Toop
What we learned
Positioning is second-nature to what we do at the agency. But the value of April’s book is to give clear, practical steps of finding the right place for a brand, by, for example, imagining what customers would do if a particular product didn’t exist. It’s also really useful as a way to measure the strength of your existing product positioning.
Share your favourites with us
Do you have any podcasts, videos, blogs or even documentaries that you’d recommend to the Radishes? We’d love to hear from you – email us at hello@digitalradish.co.uk