Unlike previous leaders of Social Networking such as Friendster and MySpace, Facebook is fast and easy to use.  It has an image problem though, and projects arrogance, often due to abrasive remarks of its founder & CEO, Mark Zuckerberg.  To its credit, the company responds to criticism quickly and recently unveiled a set of user-friendly privacy settings to alleviate a growing uneasiness among its users.  Despite the naysayers, Facebook will not go away anytime soon.

Most people do not like change. Facebook has effectively done what the author Geffory Moore described as “Crossing the Chasm,” and moved from the realm of early adapters (teenagers & young adults) to mainstream (moms, pops, and grandparents). It’s simply too inconvenient for 500 million users to move to a new social network, when Facebook is “good enough” to connect with your friends & family.

Previous social networks lost their leads because of explicit pains such as slow load time, and horrible user interface. Facebook’s shortcomings are subtle.  For better or for worse, it has become a fundamental part of the Internet Experience, and will be with us for a very long time.

  Warren Buffet is the one of the richest person in the world.  Many people are fascinated by the secret of his success.  This book leverages that hype, and targets not the usual audience of investors, but instead entrepreneurs.

To people outside Utah, Idaho, Nevada, and California, R.C. Willey doesn’t really “ring a bell.”  However within those states, this home appliance/furniture retail giant has created quite a loyal following bordering fanatical, making it one of the jewels in the Conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway, chaired by Warren Buffet. 

The book can be divided into 3 parts.  The introduction takes narrative approach and details the background of the company which got the name from its founder.  However it was after R.C. Willey’s death that Bill Child, the son-in-law, took over and really launched it on the path towards prosperity. 

The body of the book contains chapters that read like case studies on business success.  Even though the industry is retail, the lessons transcend well and are very relevant to anyone who wish to start their own business.

They include:

1. Don’t give up
2. Relationship Matters
3. Be Frugal
4. Involve your family if possible in the business
5. Stick to principles
6. Plan for the long term

Specifically in chapter 10, Bill lists some of the rules of his success:

1. Treat every customer the way you wan to be treated
2. Little things make all the difference
3. Be honest
4. Do the right thing
5. Don’t follow the herd
6. Hire the right personnel
7. Treat employees like family

Towards the end, we finally get the story of how R.C. Willey was sold to Berkshire Hathaway.  And more interestingly the chemistry and friendship that eventually emerged between Bill Child and Warren Buffet. 

The readers get a good description of Warren’s affable personality and style of management based on integrity, humor and common sense.  However the real star of the book is Bill Child, whom we get to see maturing from a prospective teacher, to a struggling entrepreneur, to the CEO of a major corporation. 

Admirably even after selling his corporation, Bill still exhibited an insatiable hunger to improve his company, and took enormous personal financial risks that paid off huge.

As mentioned earlier, the book can be read on several different levels.  1) As an inspiring account of a man’s struggle to achieve the American dream through hard work, innovation, and the ability to fulfill the needs of others.  2) A series of business case studies for other entrepreneurs, or 3) for investors who wish identify similar gems.

Other valuable aspects of the books dealt not with success, but failures of competitors.  I wish that the author had expended on those stories instead of offering succinct explanations. 

The book is commissioned by John Child, who really only wrote the Afterward section, where he outlined another 13 philosophies on management.  Some of them are redundant and overlaps his 7 rules of success.

Overall at 168 pages and medium page size, I finished the book within several hours, and really enjoyed it.  If you have your own business, or think about starting one, I’d highly recommend this book. 

Marketers and salespeople are taught very early in their careers to “sell the sizzle, not the steak.”  Why would they do that?  The idea is to involve the senses and imagination of the customers, and get them excited and easier to part with their hard earn money.  You can find examples in almost very luxury brand.

But as a buyer, I want the freakin steak!  Sure it’d be nice to have the sizzle as well.  But if I’m paying for it, I want something substantial, not some hype or glamorization that will soon vanish after purchase.

Unfortunately most people don’t really look for the value.  Instead they will get what makes them feel better, and often pay a premium.  With the economy downturn, that spendthrift tenacity has moderated.

The same is true in many area of life.  The things that we buy, wear, live, drive.  We’re trying to show off to the world that we’re special and deserving. 

It’s also brain versus heart.  The heart is emotional and buys things based gut feelings.  The brain is analytical, and trying to weight the pros and cons. 

So if you want to make sure that you get the steak, ask the following questions when making a purchase:

1. Do I really need this?  Needs and wants are often confused.  Need is the steak.  Want is the sizzle.
2. Am I buying this because it will make me feel better?  Not to minimize this emotion, but depression shouldn’t be mitigated by spending money!  Go out exercise, socialize, and get the energy flowing.
3. Who’s putting the thought there?  We like to pride ourselves as independent thinkers.  But some desires are actually planted by clever marketers.

A basic rule of getting the steak is to look for quality and value.  Quality is doing something that it’s suppose to do, ideally for a long time without maintenance.  Value is getting more for less.  The sizzle is reverse, or getting less for more.  It’s a game that companies, governments, and people play with your perception.  That’s why you have to be consciously aware of it.  Don’t get suckered by the images.  They’re illusion that fade away. Or to borrow a Star War reference, they’re “Jedi Mind Tricks.” 

Some more tricks that marketers use to sell the sizzle is by stressing factors like:

1. Sexiness.  Sex sells.  It’s almost a timeless statement.  But by focusing on a product’s qualities like youthfulness, attractiveness, and vitality are powerful motivators to cause people buy things.
2. Health. People cares about their health which directly relates to their quality and length of the life.
3. Prestige.  Most people are social creatures and care vastly how others perceive them.  Status symbols tell others without words of our supposed status in life.  People who wish to set themselves apart are keenly aware of these items.

All these factors are shortcuts that bypass our rationality, and instead to get us to automatically pay more.  Be vigilant and buy things only on your terms.

As a seller it makes sense to focus on the sizzle.  But as a buyer, get the biggest, juiciest steak for the least amount of money.