Books on deal-making...
 

Hi,

I just wanted to know - has anyone read any books on "deal making" that they'd recommend?

By "deal making" I mean the "art" of finding potential (win/win) deals, and making them happen...

I think the best book I've read on deal-making is probably Donald Trump's first book, "The Art of the Deal."

In that book, he explained how he managed to pull together multiple parties to turn the Commodore Hotel in NYC, which was closing, to become the Grand Hyatt hotel. He had to deal with multiple parties - and "did the deal" by managing to work it so everyone "won" in the end!

Anyway, it's a good book explaining multiple deals, and I recommend it. Has anyone come across any others they'd recommend?

Best wishes,

Dien

Re: Books on deal-making...
 

Hi Dien,

Thanks for asking.

Another Excellent resource for deal making is Robert Ringer "A Dealmaker's Dream". It's not an audio program, but I got a lot of value from it.

http://robertringer.com/new-etr-add-recasting.html

Just reading the salesletter alone was valuable. My favorite part from the salesletter was where he discusses the "twin keys" of making money.

"Though it goes against conventional wisdom, I can tell you with certainty that having the best product or service in your industry doesn't guarantee success. The twin keys to making money are dealmaking and marketing. And of the two, I would argue that dealmaking is what makes marketing possible."

Best

Re: Books on deal-making...
 

There is truly an art to finding win/win deals, and I think it's a separate subject from making them happen.

For the making them happen part I recommend Roger Dawson's information on negotiating.

.

Re: Books on deal-making...
 

Highly recommended reading...

Further Digging into, Could be well worth the Time... For Select individuals, Smart business Hunters! ...

Deals & Dealmakers... SpecialReports... ;)
Hunt for raw power fuels dealmaking. Resources deals have accounted for nearly a third of M&A so far this year – but the right ones can still be hard to find...
http://www.ft.com/intl/dealmakers

Pitch Anything by Oren Klaff is a masterpiece...
https://www.google.com/search?q=Pitc... =1525&bih=743

Allow Loading time for A Quick peek a Boo! ... Then Scroll down, Investigate & Study into further...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/007...der_0071752854

Phil

Re: Books on deal-making...
 

The 50 Best (and Worst) Business Deals of All Time - by Michael Craig
But I think you were the one who had referred this book to me in the first place.

Another biography that is pretty awesome is Cold Steel. Its the story of Laxmi Mittal and how he went about merging ArcelorMittal - if memory serves me right, Arcelor was bigger than Mittal's steel mills at that point.

Some time back, I came across these that may be pretty awesome. Haven't bought them myself - but they are checklists on deal making:
http://www.startupplays.com/plays/ho...ero _leverage
http://www.startupplays.com/plays/bu...-like-manpacks

My referral link for startupplays.com:
http://www.startupplays.com/giveaway?refcode=6195b7e5f4
(I don't get paid anything. I just get entered into a contest for their entire library if you signup using my ref if.)

Re: Books on deal-making...
 

Thanks Duane,

Actually, I have "a Deal Maker's Dream" - it's one of the few "deal-making" info-products out there.

Unfortunately, I'm terrible at listening to audio. I'm definitely more of a "reader" than a "listener" - however, I should give it another try... I'm sure there's great info there... :)

Best wishes,

Dien

Re: Books on deal-making...
 

Thanks "Bozo"...

I agree with you completely, that "finding win/win deals" is quite different from "making them happen."

I do have one Roger Dawson book - I liked it! I read it many years ago. It's where I learned how to do some "NLP" stuff... :)

There seem to be thousands of books on negotiation - and virtually none on "finding" the deals.

I do know something about it - but I'm always "hungry" to find out more!

Some people may not realize that doing a "deal" does not have to involve the transfer of money - however, you do have to bring "something" to the table. That "something" could be your own skills, time, or some assets you have of your own (which could include contacts)...

I'll quickly mention a recent "offer" I made. (I can't give too many details as I don't want this post to show up if someone does a "Google" search.)

I recently found out about a cinema in my city which has been vacant for around 2 years. The owner wants to sell it or lease it - but nobody has yet offered what he wants.

I made an offer to run the cinema for him on a profit-sharing basis. The way I see it, it is a "win/win" offer for everyone if it is profitable, and even if it is not profitable, he won't lose money. As it is right now, he still has to pay various taxes and bills for his cinema property even while is vacant, and is not bringing in any money.

(My offer was rejected, as they said they only want to sell it or lease it. However, if it stays vacant longer, who knows? Of course, they could also just reduce the price they're willing to sell it or lease it for, too...)

By the way, I am not experienced in running a cinema - but I know people who do have this experience. If it went ahead, I would partner with one of them in running the cinema, and I personally would focus on the marketing side of the business...

Best wishes,

Dien

Re: Books on deal-making...
 

Thanks Phil!

I'll look more into "Deals & Dealmakers"...

I immediately purchased "Pitch Anything." Sounds like it could be good! I can't wait to start reading it... :)

(I bought it on Kindle, so it was instant delivery - but just haven't had a chance to start reading yet...)

Best wishes,

Dien

Re: Books on deal-making...
 

Hi Ankesh,

Yes, I remember that book! I think I read a big chunk of it... I should hunt it down and refresh my memory. :)

That sounds good! Of course, I've heard of Lakshmi Mittal - one of the world's richest people. I'd love to read his story. Thanks for pointing that out! :)

You can learn a lot from autobiographies, sometimes. I learned some thing about "deal making" from "The Art of the Deal" by Donald Trump (as I mentioned earlier), but also from a biography of Kirk Kerkorian and Richard Branson's (first?) autobiography (he might have another one out now!).

They sound interesting... I'll check it out further!

I think the best thing to do with "deal making" is to just go out and do it!

I try to make sure it is a "win/win" type of proposal, and that I am also bringing something "valuable" to the table, too. (It can be money - but it could also be your time, skills, or other assets.)

It really doesn't matter if the person you want to make a deal with has his last $100 in his pocket, or has a billion dollars in his bank account. As long as it is a "win/win" type of proposal, then there is no reason why that person shouldn't at least consider your offer...

Thanks for sharing that, Ankesh!

Best wishes,

Dien

About "Pitch Anything" by Oren Klaff...
 

Hi Phil,

I started reading "Pitch Anything" by Oren Klaff - and you're right, it is, as you said, "a masterpiece"!

I've already had a "paradigm-shift" in my thinking about this from reading it (and I'm not even halfway through it yet)...

I highly recommend this book. The author raises capital for a living, and is very good at it - but I think what he says is applicable to all deal-making...

Best wishes!

Dien

Re: About "Pitch Anything" by Oren Klaff...
 

I just bought the book and it is supposed to be here this week. From what I read, I was mesmerized. Even if only half of it works, WOW! All that NLP stuff will disappear :D

Tom