Whether you are a successful business owner, an experienced marketer, an entrepreneur that’s just starting out, or just someone that is looking to develop their personal brand, Don’t Sell Me, Tell Me by Greg Koorhan is a must-read for anyone that wants to tell their story.

Whenever I read business related books, I’m very hesitant going in. I need the book to be informative but also written in a way that is very enjoyable to read. This one checked off both of those boxes!

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

I’ve been working in marketing for six years now. While that is not a ton of time, I’ve learned a lot about what customers like to see, and what is just background noise to them.

Along this journey, I always seem to come back to focusing in on telling the story of the product or company.

However, it’s the old toxic phrase, “But we’ve always just done it this way…” mindset that really bogs things down. So many people are so hesitant to show the human side of their companies. And why is that?!

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve pitched creating About Us pages for various clients just to have them say something like, “Let’s focus on the more important elements first.” Or “I don’t think our website needs that.” Or my recent favorite, “No one wants to see our ugly mugs! Besides, it will take too long to pull that information together.”

In a world where people are getting very weary of the cold and secretive big corporations, showing your more human side to help build trust is absolutely critical.

Reading books like this one is always so exciting to me because it helps to back up my beliefs when I start to lose faith after being brushed off so frequently.

My 3 Favorite Elements Of This Book

First, I thought that the way the chapters of this book are organized was wonderful! I loved that there was a little recap at the beginning of each new chapter. This would make this book perfect for the busy entrepreneur or business owner that can only read a chapter here and there.

Second, this book was written in a very upbeat and fun way that kept me totally engaged. It made me so happy to compare the sections that I was highlighting in the book to the way that my current company runs. I believe that my current workplace has wonderful principles and they do an awesome job telling their story. In turn, this trickles down to our members.

Third, this book was very actionable! From the things that the author prompts you to think about and list out, to the exercises and additional resources mentioned, this can be used to jump start your storytelling process!

An absolute must-read!

I thought this was such a well-written book filled to the brim with advice. It didn’t bog itself down with too many examples, or long drawn-out and dry passages. It kept to the point, and it moved along at a great pace.

This is a great book to add to your shelves no matter who you are:

- A successful business owner- this book could make you rethink the way that you are putting your store out there and inspire you to update it.

- An experienced marketer– this may be a great reminder of why storytelling is so important. You may even learn a few new tips.

- An entrepreneur that’s just starting out– this is a great platform to help you properly organize your thoughts and beliefs before portraying that to the public.

- Someone that is looking to develop their personal brand– while this book is geared more toward the business owner, there are many elements that can be used to help with a personal brand.

On your first read through, you will probably be like me and highlight sections left and right! This will also be a great book to revisit every few years to make sure your story is still being told effectively.