Thanks for your feeback on WTS? the book’s cover/content

You may remember that a few weeks ago I asked for feedback on 4 possible cover ideas for the cover of WTS? the book. It will be different from the 4 books in the brandgym series so far, as it will be pitched at a much lower price-point (£9.99 vs. £20+) and will be much more accessible (100 pages/softback/story vs. 250 pages/hardback/textbook). Its an entertaining, easy read for branding virgins, or those with more experience looking for a fun refresher.

Thanks to the 100 people who voted in the poll, and for all of you who shared your comments. The clear winner was "plate", which most of you found impactful and intriguing:

"My vote goes to the plate, since it made me think for a while."

"It has a great style and I love the impatient scrawled question written in ketchup.  It looked and felt like a protest!"

Well, the publishers of have now confirmed the cover. And I’m pleased that they went with your recommendation. I think they’ve done a good job of polishing the idea, and adding some nice touches like the coffee stain. The cover has good impact and stand-out, and feels friendly rather than scary. And their sub-title is really punchy and to the point, which hopefully addresses a couple of John’s concerns with my first go ("A story about building brands on substance, not spin").

A further group replied to the request for feedback on the draft manuscript. Thanks especially to:
– Bob, for your organisation chart of Simpton’s Sausages, the imaginary company where the hero works
– Rebecca, you should find a clearer explanation for Hugo’s "brand ego-tripping"
– Rob, hopefully I’ve fixed the mistakes your eagle eyes picked up
– Simon, I tightened up the first 3 chapters, cutting out 10-15% of the content to speed things up (for a writer, this is like chopping off one of your own arms!)
– Nick, I used your feedback to write an introduction that made it clear who the book was for
– Alan, thanks for loving it and calling it a ‘masterpiece’, providing a welcome pick-me-up on a day I was bogged down!

By the way, if you on reading this you just can’t wait till Oct 1 to order your copy of WTS?, then you can pre-order here 😉