Distinguished Reads: Top Books for Insurance Professionals While Social Distancing

The coronavirus pandemic has many of us working from home, practicing social distancing and self-quarantining. During this challenging time, we thought it would be a good time to put together top books for insurance professionals to brush up on topics that include everything from leadership to negotiation, sales and marketing and social media. Included in each recommendation is a brief synopsis of the book. 

Leadership/Business Growth

The Bezos Letters: 14 Principles to Grow Your Business Like Amazon

In The Bezos Letters: 14 Principles to Grow Your Business Like Amazon, author Steve Anderson, with more than 35-plus years in the insurance industry, provides a deconstructive look at Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ annual shareholder letters, and extracts 14 key “growth principles” that both the large corporation and “solopreneur” can use to scale up. Anderson’s look at Bezos’ shareholder letters shows why, when, and how the billionaire takes risks and how that makes the organization successful. As Anderson began the research for his book, he asked: “How did this juggernaut of a company deal with the risk inherent in any business, and what did they do to be the fastest-growing company to reach $100 billion in sales? As I read through the letters with my bent toward looking through the lens of risk, I began to see how he had ‘hidden in plain sight’ what he had done to grow Amazon, in general, and his unique bent on how he embraced risk, in particular.”

The Motive

Patrick Lencioni’s new book, The Motive, helps leaders understand the importance of why they’re leading in the first place. He asks readers to assess themselves and offers key steps to take to avoid the pitfalls that stifle organizations.

Business Negotiation

Never Split the Difference

In Never Split the Difference former FBI hostage negotiator Chris Voss equips readers with the negotiating skills needed to secure business deals, building a foundation for negotiation on the basis of understanding the other party through empathy and active listening skills.

Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement without Giving In

Originally published more than 30 years ago, Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement without Giving In, by authors Roger Fisher and William Ury, has provided millions of people with step-by-step strategies on how to learn a better way to negotiate.

Sales Techniques

Way of the Wolf: Straight Line Selling: Master the Art of Persuasion, Influence, and Success

In the Way of the Wolf: Straight Line Selling: Master the Art of Persuasion, Influence, and Success, author Jordan Belfort, who was famously played by Leonardo DiCaprio in the film, “The Wolf of Wall Street,” opens his playbook and gives you access to the same step-by-step system he used to create massive wealth for himself, his clients, and his sales teams.

Inbound Selling: How to Change the Way You Sell to Match How People Buy

Hubspot Sales Director Brian Signorelli’s Inbound Selling: How to Change the Way You Sell to Match How People Buy provides unique insights in describing the steps sales professionals must take to meet the needs of today’s empowered customer. Inbound Selling provides front-line sellers, sales managers, executives, and other sales professionals with a complete resource on how to thrive in today’s sales environment.

The Science of Selling: Proven Strategies to Make Your Pitch, Influence Decisions, and Close the Deal

In The Science of Selling: Proven Strategies to Make Your Pitch, Influence Decisions, and Close the Deal by David Hoffeld, you get a science-based approach to asking questions, securing incremental commitments, resolving objections, reducing your competition’s influence, and more.

Selling 101: What Every Successful Sales Professional Needs to Know

Selling 101: What Every Successful Sales Professional Needs to Know by Zig Ziglar in a concise format provides the basics on how to persuade more people more effectively, more ethically, and more often.

Marketing

Killing Marketing: How Innovative Businesses Are Turning Marketing Cost Into Profit

In Killing Marketing: How Innovative Businesses Are Turning Marketing Cost Into Profit by authors Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose, you get an inside look at how the most innovative companies around the world have achieved remarkable marketing results by fundamentally changing their approach. In creating value for customers through the use of owned media and the savvy use of content, these businesses have dramatically increased customer loyalty and revenue, with some having transformed marketing into a profit center.

This Is Marketing: You Can’t Be Seen Until You Learn to See

This Is Marketing: You Can’t Be Seen Until You Learn to See, written by marketing master and bestselling author Seth Godin, provides all of his marketing wisdom in one book. This Is Marketing provides practical strategies on how to best obtain permission to communicate with potential prospects, deciding to whom you should (and, perhaps more importantly, should not) target your offerings, and how to refine your messaging.

Stories That Stick: How Storytelling Can Captivate Customers, Influence Audiences, and Transform Your Business

In Stories That Stick: How Storytelling Can Captivate Customers, Influence Audiences, and Transform Your Business, author and nationally known speaker Kindra Hall reveals the four unique stories you can use to differentiate and elevate your business. They are: the Value Story, to convince customers they need what you provide; the Founder Story, to persuade investors and customers your organization is worth the investment; the Purpose Story, to align and inspire your employees and internal customers; and the Customer Story, to allow those who use your product or service to share their authentic experiences with others. As one review says: “With case studies, company profiles, and anecdotes backed with original research, Hall presents storytelling as the underutilized talent that separates the good from the best in business.”

Social Media

The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Social Media, Online Video, Mobile Applications, Blogs, News Releases, and Viral Marketing to Reach Buyers Directly

The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Social Media, Online Video, Mobile Applications, Blogs, News Releases, and Viral Marketing to Reach Buyers Directly, by marketing strategist and bestselling author David Meerman Scott, provides a step-by-step action plan for harnessing the power of modern marketing and PR to directly communicate with buyers, raise visibility, and increase sales.

The Art of Social Media: Power Tips for Power Users

In The Art of Social Media: Power Tips for Power Users, authors Guy Kawasaki and Peg Fitzpatrick present a bottom-up strategy to produce a focused, thorough, and compelling presence on the most popular social media platforms. They will guide you through the steps to build your foundation, assemble your digital assets, optimize your profile, attract more followers and effectively integrate social media and blogging.