[.ca] Pro-Sumer Power!: How to Create Wealth by Buying ... (ISBN 1891279041)

Don't waste your time!:
I read this book twice, because I thought I missed something the first time. This book does point out some of the marketing tricks that stores use to get you to impulse buy, but that's about it. There are no specifics! The sub-title on the book reads, "How to Create Wealth by Buying Smarter, Not Cheaper!", but it fails to tell you how to do that. The book goes on and on about WHY you should do that, but it doesn't tell you HOW to do that. I thought that my copy of the book must have been missing some pages when I got to the end the first time. Though the concepts of referring other people to collect a fee may work, I thought the book would spell out how to do that or who to contact. It doesn't! It was like listening to a 5 minute joke with no punchline. It just left you hanging. What a frustrating read! Now that I read the other reviews, I see that this was supposedly just some sort of motivational tool for a Multi-Level-Marketing scheme. If you need to be motivated, it MIGHT be useful, but otherwise-DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME!

misleading read:
I was fortunate to be given this book - fortunate as I would have wasted money had I bought it! It is misleading as it attempts to entice the reader into believing they will find the key to financial freedom inside. After reading a chapter or two it became clear this is a marketing and motivational tool for those willing to join a multi-level marketing scheme, nothing more. The author is passionate about this cause, evidenced in the chatty nature of the book, which is annoyingly repetitive. This book adds to your financial liabilities, not your assets! A very frustrating read.

Overzealous:
Quixtar has caught my attention (or perhaps the other way around) in the last few weeks and this new friend asked me to read this book. He had an entire library of books and tapes since he started in this business. Unfortunately Bill Quain talked too much. He called all other distribution systems evil. He says that when you buy at discount, you "create liabilities" and these shops "create wealth", while when you "shop smarter, not cheaper", you "create assets" on your way to financial freedom -- whatever the product is. He talked endlessly about this, I snapped out of the spell. On the plus side, though. The book discusses tricks merchandisers use to increase sales. It also convinced me that saving my time is more valuable than saving a few dollars in discount stores. Indeed, rich people spend their time creating assets, not liabilities. They invest their time. For that lesson I give this book two stars.

Great Book...PERIOD!:
I usually do not write these reviews, but felt the need to do so after reading one of the other comments about this being a sales tool used for people marketing the website Quixtar and not of any other value. I think the same person indicated that the concept of Prosumer was just another buzz word to entice you into a MLM. Well, I just want all the readers to know that there will be in early June a seminar by Agency.com (one of Adweek Magazine's Top 10 interactive marketing firms in the country) in Pittsburgh entitled "Moving from the Era of the Consumer to the Prosumer". So if it is not an accurate book with awesome information, why would a successful marketing company like Agency.com be doing a seminar to talk about the same basic concept...being a Prosumer. Great book!

A recruiting tool for Amway / Quixtar:
When reading this, it's important to keep in mind this is not a book or study - it's a recruiting tool handed out to new recruits into the Amway / Quixtar line. It's not about a revelation of retailing - it's a story that tries to justify the Quixtar model of business. As such, its about 80% anecdotes and fluff, with very little meat or factual foundation. Of course, passions about MLM marketing, and Amway in particular, run high on both sides of the debate. I won't get into this debate here (although I notice a lot of the five star reviews for this book mimic the mindless "Ambot" mantras they use to prevent skeptical thinking towards Amway.) For anyone seriously considering the merits of this book, I'd just say do a google search on "Quixtar" and see what you come up with. Read some of the positive and negative sites, and then make up your own mind.