I was sitting in a seminar room at university last time I saw a chart that depicted the trade off concept. I remember that the professor back then argued that the “dream state” of a product or service would always be the upper right corner.  Kevin Maney explains in his book “Trade Off” that this can never be true. He illustrates with numerous examples how trying to achieve both can lead to ruin and worse: indifference by the customer towards your company.

The content in a nutshell:

• Every (consumption) decision we make is a classic trade off:
  Do I want a convenient (get fastfood)
  or fidelity (eat out at a restaurant)
  kind of solution to my problem (me hungry)?

• Kevin Maney says that a successful product or service can never be both at the same time: You are either needed or loved.

As in most business books that I have listened to the core message of the book can easily be summarized in two or three sentences, but Maney does a good job in building up his thesis. He differentiates facets of the trade off and provides fitting examples that clarify the consistency that one needs to apply in order to build up a clear appearance. The book was well worth it’s time and provides a great framework for entrepreneurs when judging products and services or even better: When (re)positioning their own product. Though Maney sometimes stresses the content too much by providing too many examples and not enough new angles, I highly recommend the book.

Rating: 4 out of 5
Content suitable for audiobook format? Absolutely.