Summary: The 22 immutable laws of marketing Al Ries and Jack Trout

This ebook offers a summary of the book “The 22 immuable laws of marketing” by Al Ries and Jack Trout. There is often an assumption that marketing is a field that anyone can succeed in, with enough enthusiasm. However, marketing has rules of success, just like any other profession. Ries and Trout identify and explain the 22 laws of marketing, and why if you break them you will be doomed to failure.

“Marketing is a battle of perceptions,'' they suggest. Marketers must persuade their customers that their product is the best for them. There is no substitute for being first (in the customer's mind, that is, which is different from being first in the marketplace), even if you have to invent a new category, because changing someone's opinion is astonishingly tricky. Ultimately, successful marketing is achieved when a product is associated in the customer's mind with a positive word, which must be “owned”, not shared with another company.

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing is a book that encourages realism. If your business is fourth on the ladder, rather than first, acknowledge that to yourself and plan accordingly: you can stop trying to be better, because you will have more success being different. Ries and Trout offer a convincing marketing manifesto that's fascinating reading for all in the field.