Book Reviews
Creating Competitive Advantage By Jaynie L. Smith
Creating Competitive Advantage was published in April 2006 by Doubleday and hit Amazon’s best-sellers list within two months of being released. Jaynie Smith’s first book is in its 13th printing and still receives commendable reviews and praise. Select reviews are listed below.
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Submit My Creating Competitive Advantage ReviewSo many companies think that differentiation is the key to success. It isn’t. The key is knowing how to articulate what’s different or better about your product. Creating Competitive Advantage is a must-have for any CEO’s library.
I found Jaynie Smith’s book to be very informative and practical. It inspired me to DO something, rather than just contemplate theory. That is why I called her to engage an activity for our company. We so often talk about what we do right – why we are special – but it is generally from our own internal perspective. This activity forced us to realize that what our customers think is truly our ‘reality’ – and we need to meet their expectations regardless of whether we agree with them or not. I have found this exercise to be incredibly helpful in explaining a ‘marketing’ concept to the rest of my company. I am very pleased with the tremendous support and effort I have seen from all departments and leadership toward making changes based on the results of Jaynie’s work.
Relevant Selling is cleverly practical and extraordinarily insightful. The straightforward style of Ms. Smith makes this invaluable book a must read for every business person.
Ninety percent of the information used in organizations is internally focused and only ten percent is about the outside environment. This is exactly backwards.
Throughout my ‘athletic’ sales career, I have held positions with companies like Nike, Stride Rite and Sketchers before making my move to Puma. In all that time, I was never exposed to a training session like [Jaynie Smith] conducted for us on Friday. In that short time, your presentation truly made me think about how I pursued my business and through your suggestions and exercises, made me rethink/revise my ‘old ways’ of attacking / maintaining my customer base – Thank you!
In a world where most and I mean MOST selling is irrelevant selling, Jaynie Smith’s Relevant Selling can mean the difference to you between profit and loss. My head is spinning with the wisdom in her book.
Relevant Selling is a solid business book that every company can benefit from. From the first chapter you will nod your head and say “yes” that is what we need to do in order to resonate with our customers! Jaynie’s writing style is a terrific combination of practical ideas and examples which are plentiful and meaningful. You will definitely use Relevant Selling as a reference book for decades to come as it forces every business to evaluate their point of differential which can only be a benefit in the current and future economic environment.
Having spent the morning at Jaynie’s presentation today at Newcastle, im so pleased i have at least 10 hours to calm down otherwise i would not sleep.
I have never, ever received a presentation that has pricked so much inspiration. You mention the AHA moments, well, i found lots during your presentation. I cannot wait to purchase your books as I feel I can learn so much more. 25 years thinking i was good at my job only means after I read you books and indeed implement what you say will make better. I often read, “Who would you like to be stuck in a lift with”, my answer now is Jaynie Smith, i could listen to you for ever.A relevant competitive advantage gives buyers a reason to choose you over your competition.
Relevant Selling is a playbook for all times, all geographies, and all products and services. It is universal in its wisdom and makes that wisdom crystal clear.
Jaynie was articulate, focused and gave high level advice to over 100 New York City CEOs. The audience stayed engaged and interacted throughout the entire presentation. It was impactful and all walked away with tangible action items that could add value to every company, if implemented.
Outstanding! Jaynie L. Smith provided a memorable speech to the graduate business students by sharing her unique views on creating a competitive advantage, as well as her real industry experience. Ms. Smith encouraged students to relate to the topic by focusing on how they can create a competitive advantage for themselves when starting their careers. The students really appreciated her time and have come to understand the value in creating a competitive advantage!
Jaynie Smith was extremely helpful in directing the executive team of Zurich Specialties in
identifying and articulating our competitive advantages. She helped us get over a very big hurdle…Jaynie Smith took great care in providing the critical information needed to help our members understand how to gain a competitive advantage. She is an excellent speaker and her presentation was extremely relevant.
In this highly readable book, Jaynie Smith makes a compelling case for why you’re almost certainly mistaken if you think that your company’s sales and marketing pitches are relevant to customers.
