Enchantment

Guy is careful to address how, as an individual, to conduct yourself and create an atmosphere and personality that is appealing to customers, employees, and supervisors. The goal that Guy is aiming for is to establish the idea that individuals can tailor themselves and their actions to inspire transformation in relationships. Through word of mouth and personal interaction Guy aims to show how a little effort can go a long way to winning over the trust and loyalty of a single individual while convincing others to do the same.

This book is not indicative of the performance that Guy Kawasaki embodied while with Apple. Although it can be said that the ideas and techniques discussed in the book are valid and applicable, they are by no means revolutionary material that is rare in the world of marketing, or business in general for that matter. Much of what is stated seems to be common knowledge or very basic tools that can be sourced from any and all books on leadership, success, and marketing. Guy liberally cites other works as the sources of several concepts within the book, invoking questions as to whether this is the preeminent work we should be referring to. The book does well to condense concepts and ideas of the business world into a short book, but much of the information contained therein is most likely to be common knowledge within the workplace. What we were expecting of a man of this caliber was the extrapolation and expansion of commonplace ideas to create a new basis for thinking about “enchanting” the audience. Great material if you have never come across it before, but for an average business-savvy marketer this is quite the letdown.

Enchantment, as defined by bestselling business guru Guy Kawasaki, is not about manipulating people. It transforms situations and relationships. It con­verts hostility into civility and civility into affinity. It changes skeptics and cynics into believers and the undecided into the loyal.

Enchantment can happen during a retail transaction, a high-level corporate negotiation, or a Facebook update. And when done right, it’s more powerful than traditional persuasion, influence, or marketing techniques.

Kawasaki argues that in business and personal interactions, your goal is not merely to get what you want but to bring about a voluntary, enduring, and delightful change in other people. By enlisting their own goals and desires, by being likable and trustworthy, and by framing a cause that others can embrace, you can change hearts, minds, and actions.

The feasibility of this book being used as a guide in the marketplace is great; Guy brings together some of the best concepts into a concise binding of pages. As we have stated, however, bringing together the best ideas does not translate to marketing success and innovation. Therefore, while we would suggest this book to those who are new to the topic of loyalty and winning over customers, those experienced in this field will be unimpressed. To them, this is merely a refresher course of what the markets have taught us over the years and will be a rehash of how companies have adapted. Regardless, the material is quite useful to those who have not already implemented the concepts, and the material is highly recommended for those who hold more customer-facing positions.