If you've been wanting to get a paperback copy of either one of my books, today would be a great day to do so. Amazon.com is offering a 30% off coupon.
Use promo code: HOLIDAY30. Ends Nov. 30 at 11:59pm PT. Paperback only.
Decode and Conquer: Answers to Product Management Interviews
Rise Above the Noise: How to Standout At the Marketing Interview
Wishing you the best this holiday season,
Lewis C. Lin
I'd like to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving. I hope you've had a chance to give thanks to everyone you love.
In the Thanksgiving spirit, I also want to give thanks to you -- as a reader and as a supporter. Your help has been invaluable as I build new tools and resources to grow our careers and get the jobs we love.
I want to give you a gift that will help you bring home the turkey. Many of you know that I'm finishing off my third book. It's about salary negotiations. Here's a special offer: get a SNEAK PEEK PREVIEW of my magical ONE MINUTE SCRIPT that will get you more in your next SALARY NEGOTIATION. And for those of you looking for a raise, I've included my magical two minute script to get the raise you want.
Download it now: http://bit.ly/OneMinuteScript
Don't miss out. Preview ends on December 3. After that you'll have to wait for my soon-to-be-published book to see it again.
Don't leave any turkey on the table,
Lewis C. Lin
P.S. One more thing, I am thankful for Roger Fisher, William Ury, Stuart Diamond, and Dale Carnegie. Their classic books paved my early knowledge of salary negotiation. I wanted to share my favorite books from these negotiation thought leaders:
Getting to Yes: Fisher and Ury demonstrated the importance of thinking win-win. Orange peel for the win!
Getting More: Diamond conveyed the value of seeing the situation from the other party's perspective.
How to Win Friends & Influence People: Carnegie emphasized the importance of being well-liked. You can't get agreement with someone you don't like.
Photo Credit: MGF Customs/Reviews
Welcome to the latest edition of my offbeat career newsletter. As always, you'll find my 11 favorite reads for product management, marketing and negotiations below.
And if you missed my earlier note on being a brand ambassador, it's not too late to apply.
Let's go...
Cheers,
Lewis C. Lin
PS Thanks to those of you who sent in your NYC recommendations. My trip favorites: The Meatball Shop (ice cream sandwiches!), Luksus (sour beer!), and the High Line (gorgeous!). Other noteworthy places that I visited, but didn't make the cut list: Eataly, Ippudo, and Carnegie Deli. And for Broadway fans, Jersey Boys is a must!
TOP PRODUCT MANAGEMENT ARTICLES WORTH READING
Google Ventures On 8 Shortcuts For Better, Faster Design Research
Good design matters. But can you do it quickly? Google Ventures offers some excellent tips.
My Dream Design Curriculum
Julie Zhuo shares what she'd take in college to be the ultimate product designer.
Are These the 12 Types of Millennials?
Having trouble defining personas? Let this list of 12 millenial personas inspire you.
Mothers Get Social on Smartphones
Trying to understand how mothers spend time on their smartphones? This market research give a detailed look into this use case.
Affordances matter
Geoff Teehan goes clinical and tells us how something as simple as a "Shift" key on a smartphone can be redesigned.
TOP MARKETING ARTICLES WORTH READING
Sex, Lies, and the Art of Commanding Attention
Advertising legend, David Ogilvy, once said, "“On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.” If you believe Ogilvy, then you better read this article.
How To Write Seductive Sales Copy Like Apple
If you believe in the power of headlines, then you probably believe in marketing copy. Read how the best do copy.
A Glimpse Into Marketers' Social Media Strategies
What are the top questions, priorities, content shared, and platforms used by social media marketers? Market research firms share the numbers from their poll of 2,500+ marketers.
The Psychology Behind Costco's Free Samples
Dan Ariely explains why free samples drive Costco sales.
KitKat Has the Best Response So Far to Apple's #Bendgate Scandal
Top social media marketers leverage Internet memes, and KitKat did it best during Apple's recent iPhone 6 launch.
TOP NEGOTIATION ARTICLE WORTH READING
Become a Master Negotiator in 4 Easy Steps
4 timeless tips on how to get better at negotiation.
Photo credit: Nomadic Lass
This summer I looked for money. For YOU.
Being focused on career management, I found the easiest way to get more money is to raise YOUR individual salary. For both new and current jobs.
But getting a better salary is not easy. So my wonderful research assistant, Christine, and I did lots of research. And finally we cracked the code. We came up with a solution to get a better salary in just 5 minutes -- for 72 different scenarios. And it's going into a upcoming book called Salary Boost.
I want YOUR help. Become a Salary Boost brand ambassador. That is, review an advanced copy of the book. And tell your friends all about it.
Here's what you'll get:
* An electronic edition of the book, before it publishes
* A private, exclusive one hour event with me, along with other brand ambassadors
* Thank-you web link from my professional website
If this is something you'd enjoy doing, I'd encourage YOU to apply!
Yours,
Lewis C. Lin
P.S. I'll be in New York City on October 18, 2014. You catch me at General Assembly. I'll be talking how to best prepare for the product management interview.
P.P.S. I'll also be at Columbia Business School on October 21st for an exclusive 5 hour interview prep workshop.
P.P.P.S. Got restaurant suggestions in NYC? Email me.
Photo credit: Ingrid Taylar
Football season is back! And that's a good reminder to tackle our career challenges head-on. To kick things off, I've got two online webinars to help you get some career momentum.
Tomorrow, September 9
How to Stand Out at the Brand and Marketing Management Interview - FREE
Wednesday, September 10
How to Ace the Product Management Interview - $10, Kellogg Alumni Only
For those of you who prefer meeting me in-person, I'll be speaking in Seattle at the Product Management Consortium later this month.
Thursday, September 18
Decode and Conquer: Preparing for the Product Management Interview- $25
As always, you'll find my favorite reads for product management, marketing and negotiations below.
Crush and Conquer those Interviews,
Lewis C. Lin
TOP PRODUCT MANAGEMENT ARTICLES WORTH READING
12 things product managers should do in their first 30 days at a new company
Ever get that dreaded interview question, "What will you do in your first 30 days as a new PM?" Former Google PM, Ken Norton, tells you exactly what you need to say and do.
Google: 6 Reasons Why Nobody Uses Your App
Google's UX researcher, Tomer Sharon, explains why nobody is using your smartphone app.
3 Reasons Better Products Don't Always Win
Maybe marketing matters after all.
A Brief Rant of the Future of Interaction Design
Bret Victor shares his fresh approach to thinking about interaction design. And he argues why the iPhone swipe gesture doesn't make sense.
This Mobile Microwave Will Make You Want To Eat More TV Dinners
How would you redesign the microwave? One designer rethinks this legendary 1940s invention.
TOP MARKETING ARTICLES WORTH READING
How Facebook Sold You Krill Oil
Even skeptical big brand marketers have to admit that Facebook may have more marketing potential that they first realized.
Toyota Sees 45% Boost in Traffic Through Targeted Mobile Ads
Want to target your competitor's customers? Try this tactic from Toyota's playbook.
Johnny Manziel Gyrates From Hunger in Latest Snickers Ad
Capitalizing on Johnny Manziel's popularity, Snickers cleverly reinforces their value proposition in this humorous and timely ad.
How to Run Your Marketing Team Like a Startup
Hubspot, the leaders in content marketing, shares a novel approach to get things done.
TOP NEGOTIATION ARTICLES WORTH READING
How to Negotiate with Someone More Powerful than You
Six tips and two case studies on how to negotiate with someone with more power. And the best line: “Negotiating is a little like dating. If you are too interested, you lose power. But if you can remain calmly interested but still detached, that creates power.”
Why Women Don’t Negotiate Their Job Offers
In a negotiation, either as a man or woman, in addition to explaining why a proposal is good for you, it helps to explain why the proposal is important for them.
Photo credit: Daniel Hartwig
Hi there,
In this newsletter, I've included my ten favorite reads for product management and marketing. And today's newsletter has a special bonus: FIVE NEGOTIATION ARTICLES WORTH READING.
I've included the new section to celebrate a new business I've launched: salaryBOOST.
salaryBOOST is a salary negotiation service. We'll get you more money. It's simple and easy.
We're confident that you'll get your money's worth (literally) that we've backed it with a risk-free guarantee.
Check out our website and sign up for our FREE one-page salary negotiation cheat sheet.
It's never to late to have a BOOST,
Lewis C. Lin
PS Thanks to those of you who came out to see me during my Bay Area book tour earlier this week. I was absolutely stunned by the turnout. We had some crazy fast learners and some incredible out-of-the-box thinkers.
PPS A special shout-out to Christine Ko, salaryBOOST's general manager extraordinaire, for all her amazing work launching salaryBOOST.
FIVE PRODUCT MANAGEMENT ARTICLES WORTH READING
Fun Friday: Things We Hate About Email
Good product management starts with understanding customer problems in detail. This blog post exemplifies the depth necessary.
The design decisions behind the tech industry’s beloved anonymous Secret app
Purple ghost, red owl, fade into blur -- Secret's head designer explains these "non-design" decisions in Silicon Valley's hottest app.
How Xiaomi Beats Apple at Product Launches
Does Apple have the ultimate innovation playbook? These two authors explain why Apple's way might not always work.
The Guide to Wireframing
An incredible 110+ page guide how-to-guide to wireframing. And yes, it's free.
The Anatomy Of A Winning Product Critique
Need to critique a product? Julie Zhuo of Facebook offers 14 questions you need to ask.
FIVE MARKETING ARTICLES WORTH READING
Coca-Cola Invents 16 Crazy Caps to Turn Empty Bottles Into Useful Objects
Coca-Cola reinforces a key corporate value with a clever packaging innovation.
Cannes Lions Recap: See All the 2014 Grand Prix Winners
Whether it's for your next marketing campaign or job interview, get inspiration from the top TV ad winners at Cannes.
Kids Point to British Airways Flights as They Pass Overhead on Magical U.K. Billboards
This interactive billboard reacts when planes fly above.
Netflix Looking To Pursue More Native Advertising
See how Netflix partnered with the New York Times on native advertising, the new marketing trend in 2014.
Social Media Fail to Live Up to Early Marketing Hype
Only 5% consumers report that social media "has a great deal of influence" on purchases. This article discusses what's next for social media marketers.
FIVE NEGOTIATION ARTICLES WORTH READING
Level II Negotiations: Helping the Other Side Meet Its ”Behind the Table” Challenges
Have a negotiation that's stalling? Your counterpart might have trouble getting buy-in for the agreement.This article discusses how to solve this.
How A Warm Drink And A Hard Chair Can Improve Negotiating
Scientific studies show how negotiators improved outcomes with the use of these seemingly inconsequential props.
Even Small Negotiations Require Preparation and Creativity
Force yourself to come up with seven or eight different negotiation proposals. Unrealistic ones are okay too. You'll be surprised how seemingly impossible options lead to more viable ones.
Don’t Let a Negotiation Ruin Your Relationship
Afraid of asking for what you want during a negotiation? This article shares how you can speak up.
2014 Dice Tech Salary Survey
Rule #1 of negotiation: find out what your worth. Dice's 2014 tech salary survey tells you current market rates for top skills.
Photo credit: 401(K) 2013
Hi,
I picked 10 awesome reads on marketing and product management, in case you missed them. Summer kicks off in about two weeks, but these articles can't wait to be part of your summer reading list.
May you Rise Above the Noise,
Lewis C. Lin
FIVE PRODUCT MANAGEMENT ARTICLES WORTH READING
Top 10 Posts on Product Management from the Industry's Best
Indispensable advice on how to be an amazing PM from Marc Andressen, Ev Williams, Ben Horowitz and Steven Sinofsky.
A Personal Reflection On Google+
Rare inside story on the dysfunctional decision making and cultural values that led to Google's failed social networking site, Google+.
The Inputs to a Great Product Roadmap
An incredible how to guide on building a product road map.
This Mind-Blowing Prototype Shows How Crazy Smartphones Could Look In The Future
Product vision starts with product inspiration, and this smartphone prototype could be Xerox PARC for the next Steve Jobs.
So you want to manage a product?
A nostalgic, thoughtful and humorous look at what it means to be a product manager. Ideal reading for aspiring PMs.
FIVE MARKETING ARTICLES WORTH READING
Jessica Livingston: Why Startups Need to Focus on Sales, Not Marketing
Livingston, a start-up expert, emphasizes why it's important for early companies to focus on sales.
How to Model Viral Growth: The Hybrid Model
Feeling quantitative? Rahul Vohra of LinkedIn shows how you can model viral growth in your business.
Why Content Marketing Fails
Content marketing is one of the most effective ways to drive word-of-mouth marketing. But most marketers fail to do it well. Rand Fishkin explains why in his thoughtful 86 page PowerPoint deck.
The 10 Best Online Ads Of The Last 12 Months
Looking for inspiration for your next online advertising campaign? Business Insider features the top 10 online ads from the last 12 months.
#BrandFailures Are Epidemic on Twitter, So Stop With the Q&As
Ad Age offers several good case studies on how not to engage with social media users.
Photo credit: Thomas Leuthard
In this latest edition of our newsletter, you’ll find ten articles you wouldn't want to miss, picked from the best reads on marketing and product management.
And if you want to catch me in person, chatting about my recent books, scroll down for information about my upcoming speaking events.
Have a happy Monday and may you Rise Above the Noise,
Lewis C. Lin
FIVE PRODUCT MANAGEMENT ARTICLES WORTH READING
4 Things We Learned From This Rare Interview With Apple Design God Jonathan Ive
We find out what Ive really thinks about copycat products and the one thing you need to do to innovate great products.
Google Just Turned Gmail Into Pinterest
Story of how Google’s talented designers turned unlovable spam into a visually engaging display.
Redesigning IMDB
View one talented designer’s perspective on how he would redesign the Internet Movie Database.
The Fifth Protocol
I found this to be the most compelling vision to date on how Bitcoin technology can be applied. And it has nothing to do with buying illicit material.
Can You See the Opportunity Right in Front of You?
Do you struggle with product innovation -- either on the job or at the interview? Your solution might be closer than you think.
FIVE MARKETING ARTICLES WORTH READING
The Best PR Advice You’ve Never Heard
Caryn Mooney, head of technology communication for Facebook and co-founder of OutCast PR, reveals her "RIBS" PR communication framework that will get journalists excited about giving your company free press.
How to Optimize Your Email Campaigns
This article provides a helpful six step checklist for optimizing your email campaigns.
What It's Really Like To Name Products For A Living
How does a marketer come up with a catchy product or company name like Google, Swiffer, or Kindle? Professional namer, Nancy Friedman, offers more than ten tips on how to pick a name like the pros.
In 9 Of 10 Industries Search Tops Lead Generation, Social Shortens Marketing Cycles
Attribution modeling: do you think search advertising is unfairly taking credit for sales conversions? Bizible’s research on 480,000 sales leads will surprise you.
Poland Tourism Advertisement
Advertising Hall of Shame: did Poland’s tourism board create a compelling value proposition with this campaign?
UPCOMING SPEAKING EVENTS FOR LEWIS C. LIN
April 14, 2014 @ Berkeley, CA
Product Management – How to Conquer the Interview, Haas School of Business at University of California Berkeley
April 15, 2014 @ Palo Alto, CA
How to Get a Product Manager Job, Featuring Lewis C. Lin, Bestselling Author of Decode and Conquer , Stanford University
April 21, 2014 @ Seattle, WA
An Evening with Lewis C. Lin, Author of Rise Above the Noise at Foster School of Business at University of Washington. Registration link: http://bit.ly/1hi6RP7
April 24, 2014 @ Online
Careers in Product Management, hosted by Evisors.com. Registration link:http://bit.ly/1oTIcW9
May 16, 2014 @ Online
How to Get Hired as a Product Manager, hosted by collegefeed. Registration link:http://www.collegefeed.com/networking
Photo credit: David Ohmer