PyroMarketing

We never thought about religion – one way or another – needing a marketing program. So when we first read Mr. Steinstra’s author biography our first impression was what does a guy to has spent much of his professional life promoting religious books know about “real world” marketing and public relations?

Turns out he knows a lot!

Best of all he grabs you right from the get-go with the book’s title PyroMarketing because the metaphor is so strong.

Solid and successful marketing really is just like starting a campfire. The book’s title is like a slap to the side of the head and you know the steps in the process. You only wish you had developed the concept yourself because it makes explaining what you do, why you do it and how you do it easily understood by anyone in your organization.

Stielstra’s entire book is built on the simple, accurate and easy-to-understand fire starting process:

- gather the driest tinder – promote to the people most likely to buy - touch it with a match – give them an experience with your product or service - fan the flames – help them tell others - save the coals – keep a record of who they are Granted the idea of equating marketing to fire isn’t new but Stielstra’s book is the first to bring it all together and organize it into four easy-to-understand, remember and execute points.

We were intrigued to see behind the scenes – if you will – and get a look at his examples that were based on religion but had remarkably founding in business issues and goals. He gives us a very good inside look at Mel Gibson’s movie, The Passion of the Christ” helping us get a better idea of how it was able to gross more than $551 million in its first nine weeks of showing. This despite the fact that it had an R rating, lacked a major distributor and was supported by a relatively modest marketing budget.

The other example that he uses to illustrate throughout the book is a book he helped successfully market, The Purpose-Driven Life. It was interesting to learn how a book written by a Southern Baptist minister, has sold over 22 million copies and has become the best-selling hardcover book in American history. All of this success even though the book is hardly known outside of religious circles.

We all know that no one company, product or public relations department today has the funds necessary to out advertise or out publicize their products and services. What PyroMarketing does is help you clearly understand the basic tools and principles you need to work with to customize tactics that will work for your organization and you.

PyroMarketing is such a fast, easy book to read because Mr. Stiestra doesn’t set down a master plan or roadmap for you to use – which he quickly emphasizes would doom you to failure from the outset – but he does drill home the basic principles. Then he tells you, encourages you, prods you to think for yourself and use them in a way that will work for your company, your product, your service.

Unlike a lot of authors we have read, Stiestra doesn’t use his professional life experiences as proof of what you can do simply by following his step-by-step plan to financial and personal success. We’ve all read the how-to books of business management, marketing and public relations and while they are interesting only a few of the ideas apply to your specific challenges and opportunities. In fact, you’re probably better off reading the books that discuss marketing and PR disasters so you can learn what can go wrong without making the painful mistakes yourself.

Lighting a campfire isn’t difficult once you understand the four key working points. The same is true of building your marketing and PR program. PyroMarketing is the thinking person’s book on how to do his/her job…without getting burned!!!

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PyroMarketing - To learn more about this author, visit Andy Marken's Website.

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