Consumer Research

In this book, Eric von Hippel, author of the influential Democratizing Innovation, integrates new theory and research findings into the framework of a "free innovation paradigm." Free innovation, as he defines it, involves innovations developed by consumers who are self-rewarded for their efforts, and who give their designs away "for free." It is an inherently simple grassroots innovation process, unencumbered by compensated transactions and intellectual property rights.

Among today’s most successful businesses are those that have significantly transformed our daily routines. This focus on the consumer experience, not solely on product, has enabled them to drive remarkable growth and customer loyalty and, in many cases, to create totally new marketplace categories. Seeing the How invites you to reimagine your brand, company, or idea through the lens of consumer experience. It gives today’s disruptors a path to offering consumers a new and better way to do what they do, clearly demonstrating how to see opportunities, and how to seize them to great advantage.

If you apply even one tenth of the things I learned in my journey to better understand our emotions and behaviors around money, I guarantee you’ll have greater success in making money, beating debt, and reaching your dream career.

Innovation requires solving big problems from a new perspective, but many struggle to successfully innovate in their work or personal life when faced with a problem that requires innovative thinking. Author and researcher April Bell has zeroed in on the power of empathy and the ability to embrace risk when solving big problems in the unknown. In her book, The Fire Starter: Igniting Innovation with Empathy, Bell combines engaging personal stories with research to provide listeners with a simple framework helping them connect to greater human truths to solve big problems.

Trend forecaster James Wallman reveals the world's growing sense of stuffocation – and how we can move away from it. We have more stuff than we could ever need - clothes we don't wear, kit we don't use, and toys we don't play with. But having everything we thought we wanted isn't making us happier. It's bad for the planet. It's cluttering up our homes. It's making us feel 'stuffocated' and stressed - and it might even be killing us.

One of the largest consumer markets of the world, India is made up of lots and lots of small consumers―each earning and spending just a little bit that adds up to a lot. It is served by millions of small suppliers oozing innovation and customer intimacy, and is powered by digital infrastructure that does billions of unique and small transactions every day. In her new book, Rama Bijapurkar dismisses the easy and simplistic view of the Indian demographic and embraces all the complexities and opportunities that new India has to offer.

Do you want to know exactly how to get the upper hand in conversations, debates, and negotiations? Do you desire the ability to persuade individuals as well as audiences? Persuasion is one of the most important skills to acquire and it is all around us. You are affected by it every day. Simple choices like the colors of a company logo influence the way you think. You may already practice persuasion without even realizing it.

The Compass and the Nail presents an unconventional perspective of how particular organizations create rabid fan bases, in turn making them more successful and more profitable. Written by Patagonia's former lead strategist for consumer marketing, and advisor to such iconic brands as Seventh Generation and Burton Snowboards, Craig Wilson outlines game-changing insights for providers of any product or service who desire fiercely loyal behavior.

By one expert's prediction, within 20 years half of Americans will have body implants that tell retailers how they feel about specific products as they browse their local stores. The notion may be outlandish, but it reflects executives' drive to understand shoppers in the aisles with the same obsessive detail that they track us online. In fact, a hidden surveillance revolution is already taking place inside brick-and-mortar stores, where Americans still do most of their buying.

Grant McCracken, an anthropologist who now trains some of the world's biggest companies and consulting firms, argues that the CCO would keep a finger on the pulse of contemporary cultural trends, from sneakers to slow food to preppies, while developing a systematic understanding of the deep waves of culture in America and the world. The CCOs professionalism would allow the corporation to see coming changes, even when they only exist as the weakest of signals.

Today's established companies must find new ways to reignite their entrepreneurial DNA and jump-start revenues - or risk losing their way. By working with startup companies, says Jim Stengel, renowned consultant to Fortune 500 companies and the former global marketing officer for Procter & Gamble, legacy companies can renew themselves: by acquiring new technology and creating new business lines, relearning the need for speed, sparking innovation, and learning from failures.

Flutter Entertainment, the parent company of Paddy Power, is the largest gambling business in the world. The evidence of that success is visible everywhere, from shop fronts and bus shelters to sporting arenas and smartphone screens. The company’s rise to this point has been rapid, but like any gambler worth their salt, Paddy Power has always succeeded in finding an edge.

Our preferences and opinions are constantly being shaped by countless forces–especially in the digital age with its nonstop procession of “thumbs up” and “likes” and “stars.” Tom Vanderbilt, bestselling author of Traffic, explains why we like the things we like, why we hate the things we hate, and what all this tell us about ourselves.

China's Super Consumers explores the extraordinary birth of consumerism in China and explains who these super consumers are. China's Super Consumers offers an in-depth explanation of what's inside the minds of Chinese consumers and explores what they buy, where they buy, how they buy, and most importantly, why they buy. The audiobook is filled with real-world stories of the foreign and domestic companies, leading brands, and top executives who have succeeded in selling to this burgeoning marketplace.

YouthNation is an indispensable brand road map to the youth-driven economy. Exploring the idea that youth is no longer an age - it's a commodity that's available to everyone - this book shows what it takes to stay connected, agile, authentic, and relevant in today's marketplace. Listeners will learn the ins and outs of the new consumer and the tools, methods, and techniques that ensure brand survival in the age of perpetual youth.

Through Market Like a Human, you will learn ways to incorporate a more human-centric approach in your marketing campaigns to better develop trust, create rapport, and establish authority. We have to do more and be better in our marketing to truly connect with our audience.

From bargains in the Big Apple to the bustling bazaars of Istanbul, from in-store to interactive and online to mobile, neuromarketing pioneer Dr. David Lewis goes behind the scenes of the "persuasion industry" to reveal the powerful tools, techniques, technologies, and psychologies seeking to stimulate us all to buy more - often without us consciously realizing it.

Internet Reputation Management for Businesses is a new book by Guillermo "William" Rivas, co-founder of the first company to offer reputation management to businesses. The book cuts through the clutter and hype of reputation management and helps businesses understand the keys to a successful reputation-management campaign for a healthy social media presence online. This book on Internet reputation management looks into the passion and rewards of a healthy online image.

You've been getting ripped off. The rules that have protected consumers for decades are failing. Companies are spying on us. Many of the products we once trusted are dangerous and failing at alarming rates. Whether we are buying a crib, a small appliance, an iPhone app, or shopping for car insurance, it's become harder than ever to know whether the choices we make in the marketplace are putting us at risk—either from physical harm or the abuse of our personal data by hackers or corporations. This is intolerable. It's wrong. And we don't have to put up with it anymore.

Luck is a four-letter-word in business circles. But the truth is that fortune plays a part in every success story - and every failure. In Go Luck Yourself, one of the world’s leading brand strategists explains how a hunting trip led to the invention of VELCRO®. How a little mermaid inspired a famous campaign for Amazon. How a stolen rabbit spurred on Walt Disney. And more importantly, how you can stack the odds in your brand’s favour.