Buy Now! (A Book Review)

Book Review written by Aaron M. Lepsch

Do you ever have the urge to go out shopping? Do you ever watch a commercial, infomercial or advertisement that sticks in your memory? Do you ever feel the NEED to go out and have the latest product? Buy Now: Creative marketing that gets customers to respond to you and your product by Rick Cesari and Ron Lynch may be a book for you to read.

This nonfictional book educates the reader about the marketing methods that Rick Cesari and Ron Lynch use every day in their company, Cesari Direct. In Buy Now, Rick talks about the story of how Cesari Direct and he became successful through old marketing techniques, but use them in creative ways to differentiate themselves from the competition. One example to tease your thoughts further will be the famous infomercials and the famous product: OxiClean. With the iconic pitchman Billy Mays, Cesari Direct made OxiClean a must have for households throughout the United States.

WHAT’S THE BOOK ABOUT?

Buy Now is about creating your own blue ocean. What do I mean by blue ocean? A blue ocean is a new area that has never been explored and that the competition has not currently tried or touched. Rick Cesari goes through how Cesari Direct became famous through creating its own ocean in direct response marketing.

One important aspect discussed in Buy Now talks about achieving the Triple Crown in advertising. The Triple Crown is described as, “It (1) offers an excellent product, (2) develops highly successful direct advertising for that product, and (3) has smart businesspeople at the helm to manage fast growth correctly.” Several examples that Rick cited as having obtained the Triple Crown were Juiceman, Orange Glo and Sonicare. Each of these companies achieved the Triple Crown through the use of a unique selling proposition (USP).

PERSONAL REACTIONS

Buy Now is a very easy to read book that offers great information and stories that the reader would have never thought to be connected. When reading the book, it was amazing to see how one particular marketing / advertising strategy could be so successful if your product and business had the right pieces to move forward. Most of these products used simple ideas, but each product was novel. Additionally, each product solved a problem that made consumer’s life easier, healthier and less complicated.

One of the most compelling stories in the book was the story about how Rick Cesari and Cesari Direct had the direct influence of revamping George Foreman’s career through the sponsorship of the Lean Mean Grilling Machine. Another compelling story was the fact that Cesari Direct also had the direct influence of beginning Billy May’s famous career as a pitchman with the product, OxiClean. These two stories, along with detailed explanation of how each marketing campaign was successful offers a great opportunity for any entrepreneur looking for inspiration that they too can be successful.

Buy Now has changed my thinking about infomercials. The book has allowed me to create a deeper understanding regarding the benefits of marketing. Marketing doesn’t just benefit the business that sells a product, but it benefits the consumer and the economy on a local, national and global level.

WHAT WILL I GET OUT OF THE BOOK?

You might be asking yourself, how might a marketing book assist me in my life or any of my endeavors? That may be a valid statement for some critics, but one may benefit if you take the stories, examples and knowledge that Cesari and Lynch have placed in the book for your own personal knowledge on how advertising, products and creativity may have an impact on our lives without us even knowing it sometimes.

The stories of Orange Glo, Sonicare, George Foreman Grill, Billy Mays and Juiceman may be a powerful motivator and inspiration for any reader. These companies went from small businesses that sold products at state fairs to massive multi-million dollar companies in several years with the help of Rick and Cesari Direct. Individuals reading this review, I urge you to purchase this book. Please enjoy the book for the stories and strategies presented by Cesari and Lynch. Buy Now exemplifies the fact that simple ideas and products have the chance to hit the consumer market at a highly successful level to compete with big business.

Aaron Lepsch is a Operations Analyst at Citigroup and a part-time graduate student at the International Center for Studies in Creativity. Aaron enjoys anything that deals with learning, creativity, self-fulfillment and assisting others.