In this episode Mark interviews Jim F. Kukral, author of Your Journey to Becoming Unskippable™: (in your business, life & career).

Prior to the interview Mark

• Shares a comment from a previous episode
• Talks about a new short story he is working on and some of the logistical research challenges that were holding him back
• Talks about an ASK US ANYTHING Facebook Live chat that Mark, Kevin Tumlinson and Dan Wood will be hosting on the Draft2Digital Facebook page on Thursday July 27 at 3PM Eastern

Mark then says a word about this episode's sponsor Findaway Voices . . .

You can learn more about how you can get your work distributed to retailers and library systems around the world at starkreflections.ca/Findaway.

In their conversation, Jim and Mark discuss:

• Why Jim opened the book sharing his perspective on goals and priorities that have more to do with personal satisfaction than seeking wealth and status
• The importance of the merger between mindset and business
• The deeply personal and vulnerable way Jim shared his experience getting involved in local politics
• The authenticity of Jim's voice in the book which matches the way that he would deliver the same content in person via a conversation or on stage
• The strategy of not wanting to write a straight-up marketing book, but, instead, a book with business lessons and personal inspiration
• Jim owning the trademark for the term Unskippable™
• The importance of creating powerful moments and "talk triggers" that people will remember well beyond just the "cheapest price" or "fastest delivery" or some other temporary perk from a popsicle hotline at a hotel pool to the Jolly Ranchers that a business supply owner added in to every order
• The reasons that set you apart, take you to th next level, and make you unskippable and memorable
• The story behind the mysterious persona "Johnny Showtime"
• The importance of actually standing for something as a brand in order to reach "belief-driven buyers"

After the interview Mark shares the logistics of how listeners can download a free digital copy of Jim's new book, and also possible win some signed copies.

Free Digital Download

• Click here to access your free copy of Unskippable™

Win a Signed Copy of the paperback of Unskippable™

• Leave a comment for Episode 81 at www.starkreflections.ca by July 10, 2019. Entrants will be entered into a random draw for a signed copy of the book that Jim will be shipping.
• All entrants who leave a comment by July 10, 2019 will be entered
• Possible things to comment about include:
  • What's one point you took away from this interview that you'd want to highlightor reflect on?
  • What's one unique thing about you or your writing that might help you towards establishing yourself as unskippable in today's skippable world?
• This copy is courtesy of Jim Kukral

Win a paperback copy of Unskippable™

• All entrants, as above, will be entered in a second random drawing for an additional copy of the paperback
• Mark will be ordering this via an online bookstore (most likely Amazon, unless the listener is in a country where shipping via a local store there is preferable)

One more chance for winning the 3rd paperback copy

• All Patrons of Stark Reflections will automatically be entered in a chance to win the third copy of the book.
• (Yes, that means Patrons who comment get an additional chance to win)

A final chance for the 4th copy (also for Patrons)

• Over on Patreon, patrons of the podcast can comment on this post for an additional chance to win a print copy of the book

Mark then reflects on something that Jim spoke about in the interview. When Jim was talking about standing for something and brands taking a stance, a solid, non-wishy-washy stance that focuses on beliefs and core values, it reminded Mark of the age-old advice to authors that your book is NOT for everyone.

Links of Interest

• Jim Kukral's Website
  • Your Journey to Becoming Unskippable™ (All Retailers)
  • Jim's other books
  • Jim's podcast: Unskippable with Jim Kukral
  • Jim's co-hosted podcast - The Sell More Books Show
• The Creative Penn Podcast (Joanna Penn) Episode: How To Be An Unskippable Author with Jim Kukral
• Findaway Voices
• Stark Reflections Survey
• Patreon for Stark Reflections

Jim Kukral is recognized as an expert in online marketing and branding. He delivers insightful and entertaining keynotes to growth-oriented organizations on attention-getting marketing, creative branding and understanding how customers think, react and most importantly, buy.

With a passion for speaking and teaching, Jim travels around the world to teach brands and business owners on how they can apply his UNSKIPPABLE method to their marketing and brand mission to generate positive ROI-based outcomes and purposely attract lifetime customers.

The music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0