Our colleagues Martijn, Matthijs, Tamara and Patricia give you some must reads in this article. Are you still looking for a good book? Then read on
1. How (not) to plan by Les Binet
Almost a classic as far as I'm concerned, a book on "planning" or in other words, strategic communication. Always nice to read 1 work related book on your beach bed. My tip is: How (not) to plan, 66 ways to screw it up by Les Binet. An absolute mustread for any professional in communications. Whether you work at an advertising or media agency, or on the client side, here are all the pitfalls and solutions of effective communication. And remeber: branding is everything.
- Martijn Jaartsveld, Strategy Director at STROOM
2. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
What if, before you die, you had the opportunity to live a different life? Something you had always wanted to do but never did? In the Midnight Library, you do get the chance to play in a successful rock band, become an Olympic swimming champion or marry your childhood sweetheart. Anything you've regretted you can try. No professional literature for a while but a philosophical novel. But what if you try all these routes? Do you find a better life you want to live?
- Matthijs Kloezeman, Senior Communications Consultant at STROOM
3. GRIP by Rick Pastoor
The secret to working smart. Do you let your workday be guided by your inbox? Are you mostly busy putting out fires? Is your head often full of to-do lists? Then maybe Rick Pastoor's book GRIP is for you. In this book he shares his smart method on how to work more relaxed, get more out of your day and pursue your dreams. Ideal to put into practice immediately after the vacations as far as I'm concerned.
- Tamara Baeke, Senior Communications Consultant at STROOM
4. The Attention Economy by Karen Nelson-field
In 150 pages, uproot the beaten path and plant new vegetation in the form of an optimized way to look at online advertising. That's what Karen Nelson-Field does in this book. In advertising, there are many myths on which choices are based. These are often assumptions, and the YIM college tour taught me that assumptions are the very cradle of mistakes. I therefore agree that Karen Nelson-Field exposes myths and fights them with scientific evidence. She goes back to the basics: attention. Without attention, no impact. But how do you measure attention and how do you get attention in a world full of advertising clutter in which people's attention is becoming increasingly fragmented? She breaks with common thinking on impressions, viewability standards, screen coverage and clutter. And looks at what we should be looking at the true quality of an impression.
My view of online advertising has been sharpened by this book and has taught me to look at the deeper layer. And to look critically at the impact of an impression to make the most effective use of clients' media budgets. For me, this starts with maximizing attention for online ads. Because there appears to be a direct relationship between attention and sales. This book is about how people's attention works, how they process advertising and how to maximize viewers' attention to regain control.
- Patricia van Zon, Senior Digital Communications Consultant