Your Marketing Sucks.

By: Mark Stevens

Narrated by: Michael Arkin

This BusinessWeek bestseller from esteemed marketing guru Mark Stevens is an entertaining and useful guide to improving the way businesses promote themselves. Stevens attacks conventional strategies with infectious zeal, making it crystal clear that most companies might as well throw their money away.

In blunt, perfectly logical terms and through clear examples, Stevens shreds modern marketing and provides practical advice on how to fix the problems. Among his pearls of wisdom are, “Be a skeptical SOB about every dollar you are spending,” and, “Get someone who can sell—and he doesn’t need to have ‘salesperson’ in his title.” In no time, listeners will know how to spend their marketing dollars wisely and get a good return on their investment.

Whether you work for a small store or an international manufacturing conglomerate, Your Marketing Sucks. may be the most important book you ever explore.

©2003 Mark Stevens (P)2003 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"This gem of a book is brimming with anecdotal evidence of advertising strategies gone awry, and full of examples of better plans." (Publishers Weekly)

"...Clear, sensible suggestions for making money through marketing." (Time)

marketing strategies

if you are spending money in marketing, buying ads or social media,
you need to read this.

I will tell you what really sucks!

If anything, I find that the above negative comments "suck" and the book is just fine. People, the point of leaving a review is to do just that. We have to elevate our standards from leaving one sentence quips and jabs. Others that come behind you will never get that time back that was wasted reading your undeveloped thoughts. It is also remarkable that you spent 5 hours and 23 minutes with this work and think that you are providing useful feedback with one or two sentences.

As for my review, the first time that I listened to this book I learned from the author's perspective regarding the energy that businesses extended marketing a product and they do not have the necessary systems in place to monitor the ongoing or final results of the campaign. Very helpful.

The book was also informative because he spoke to the company's organizational structure which may contribute to marketing that is ineffective. I also like the tone and edge that the author gave this book. It is as though a good friend sarcastically pointed out the shortcomings that you overlooked in a product that you were about to buy. I'm not a multi-million dollar CEO, but as a result of reading this book when I become one I will see marketing that sucks from a mile away.

I feel that everyone who reads this book will benefit from its contents.

Reinforces many ideas

I think that a lot of marketing does suck. Many smart business people think they are good at marketing when in reality they are simply impressing their colleagues and spending a lot of money. This books basic premise is that if your marketing is not ringing the cash register then it is useless. Although many of the ideas are common knowledge and well understood, the fact that so much marketing does suck seems to illustrate the need for books like this.
In my opinion the book is well narrated and easy to listen too. There is some unneeded redundancy but overall I think the book is a keeper if you want to reinforce the need for extreme marketing concepts in your business. Some of the information is dated (he doesn’t talk about blogs or some of the other newer permission marketing concepts) but it was entertaining. I’ve read better but I have read a lot worse too.

Great Book!

This is a great marketing book! No pulled punches. It would be hard to listen to this book and not improve your marketing skill and savy.

Your Marketing Sucks

Sorry, I can't agree with the other reviewer. I found the narrator to be almost as angry and contemptuous as the author. I love the subject and could have endured if I was getting something new and insightful but alas.