Chuck Mefford’s specialty is connecting businesses to consumers. He takes great pride in partnering with good local businesses and turning them into great local brands. We read his newest book, Tickle the Toes, Touch the Heart, Change the Mind.
Here are the five takeaways from Chuck’s book.
from A Client Perspective
Before digging deep into the takeaways we found extremely valuable, we wanted to share some thoughts from one of our clients. Here's what Mike Bryant from Bradshaw and Bryant PLLC thinks about the new book.
"I have been a student of Chuck Mefford’s work for years, having read all of his books and many of the source materials he learned from. With Toes, Hearts and Minds, he takes a step forward in a new way that while relying upon his past work, goes way beyond it. It is a very easy read and filled with all sorts of great ideas. He explains the use of storytelling by using his and many other stories. He sells the idea in a way, that if followed, will sell many of the reader's ideas. It takes complex ideas of the reader and breaks them down to an easy-to-understand and useful process. If you are interested in selling something, from products to yourself, this is a book worth reading."
If reading this passage above wasn't enough, perhaps this next section will convince you how great this book is.
1. Short and Sweet
Arguably, the best part about Tickle the Toes, Touch the Heart, Change the Mind is the length. We were surprised and elated to discover this book was the perfect one-day read. "This book can be used as a quick branding reference at any time for myself and my clients. The book is sized differently, so it sticks out from other books you may have." states Bri Thompson, Account Executive in our Grand Forks market.
Allison Happel, Account Executive in our Winona market, said it best, "With the way our attention spans are today, I think Chuck did a phenomenal job of putting what was absolutely necessary to make his points in the book without any excessive verbiage, like other books tend to do."
So much valuable information in such a small space makes this an easy read.
2. No Snooze-fest Here
Besides its easy-to-read style, this book was actually fun to read, too! Chuck has truly made it a painless process and even entertaining by including high-quality photos and illustrations.
Whether in a blog post, social media post, or a book, photos really take things to the next level and allow the audience to connect. The memorable pictures in each chapter of this book help solidify the lesson while making the read feel even lighter and more enjoyable. Each picture brings you in and makes you feel excited about what the next chapter has to offer.
3. The Three 'f's
Too often, marketers get caught up in their own world and forget to take a look from the client’s perspective. Chuck provided us with an entire lesson about how to do just that.
The lesson is in Chapter Six of his new book Tickle the Toes, Touch the Heart, Change the Mind titled Fit, Feel, Faithful.
With remarks like, "I loved how it talked about approaching the story from the consumers' eyes and how it will impact their lives," and, "It makes you take a step back and look at the consumer point of view. It’s a game changer," it is easy to see why this lesson was so useful.
4. Understanding the Consumer
Similarly, we all enjoyed how focused the book was on understanding the why in marketing. Why are clients interested in your product? "People don’t buy products, but they buy what that product can do for them. You need to have a strategy behind your message." Breanna Hokanson says, Account Executive in our Fergus Falls market.
Everything we do should be centered around helping our clients and consumers, so it is only logical to take extra measures to really understand them.
5. Tell Your Story
"It's important for readers to remember Chuck's big point here: Stop focusing on hitting sales, and start focusing on your differentiating idea and telling your story." says Allison Happel, Winona.
Branding and marketing is all about connection. Tickle the Toes. Touch the Heart. Change the Mind is a shining example of how to tell your story in a way that promotes connection—human connection.
Instead of focusing solely on sales, focus on why your story matters and how you can help your clients. This shift in focus will allow you to connect your brand with consumers on a deeper level, which then improves the quality of stories you’re telling.
More Thoughts from Our Clients
Another client of ours, Mike Kelley, of J.F. Kruse, has some additional thoughts on this exceptional read.
- What was your overall review of the book? "Loved it. Fits my reading style though. Short, pithy, and storied."
- What surprised you the most? "Start telling stories and have on-going conversations in your marketing. So simple, but awesome."
Overall
This book gets a full five stars from Leighton Broadcasting. It's short and to the point, easy to read, entertaining, and chock-full of thought provoking lessons.
We will continue to use this book as a reference guide and share it with our clients. We highly recommend that business owners and marketing directors take a few minutes and read Tickle the Toes. Touch the Heart. Change the Mind.
