Sometimes, we need a little inspiration. And where better to find it than from fellow entrepreneurs? Taking a step back to reevaluate your marketing strategy is the best thing you can to gain a fresh new perspective, inspire new and creative ways to get ahead of the competition and grow your business. We’ve done our research and compiled our top 10 marketing strategy books from our favourite industry leaders, authors and entrepreneurs.
So, let’s get those creative juices flowing to inspire even the most uninspired.
1. Permission Marketing – Seth Godin
We kick off with one of our favourite entrepreneur-turned-author of all time, Seth Godin. Although this book was released 20 years ago it’s still incredibly insightful and relevant. This book is what turned Seth Godin into a world-famous marketing thought leader.
Since then, this business guru and teacher has published 18 books and has made his way into the Marketing Hall of Fame. So, when he talks, we listen.
Permission Marketing is about delivering the right marketing message to the people that actually want to, and have flagged an interest in, receiving it. In this book, he talks about how to capture the audience’s attention without interrupting them, and how you can use the power of your marketing message to earn the right to be top of mind to the consumer.
Permission Marketing is all about building long-lasting relationships through brand loyalty and trust and how to grow your profit margin through that.
2. The Digital Marketing Handbook – Robert W. Bly
This step-by-step guide is written by marketing and copywriter expert Robert W. Bly who has over three decades of experience in the industry.
This book is written for marketers at all levels and in numerous industries. From Fortune 1000 companies with full marketing teams right down to solopreneurs, this all-inclusive book takes you through how to create websites that generate leads, improve conversions and increase online revenue.
Robert W. Bly takes the reader through his tips and tricks on how to become an expert at creating responsive, optimised websites and how to leverage off social media platforms to grow your brand.
3. No BS Guide to Direct Response Social Media Marketing, second edition – Dan S. Kennedy and Kim Walsh Phillips
The name says it all! Millionaire, Dan S. Kennedy, and marketing strategist, Kim Walsh Phillips, have joined forces to bring an alluring, no BS approach to using your social media channels to their full potential.
In this attention-grabbing guide, they talk about using the power of social media as a lead magnet and conversion tool to drive sales. They also teach you how to focus on the correct audience for a brand, instead of wasting precious time, money and energy on frivolous “likes” and “shares”.
The authors introduce the reader to the importance of paid content and how to convert a lifeless audience to reach for their wallets.
4. Guerrilla Marketing on the Internet – Jay Conrad Levinson
If there’s one person who can give us advice on guerrilla marketing, it’s Jay Conrad Levinson.
The Father of guerrilla marketing takes us through his best tactics and explains how to implement them on a budget. The book aims to help readers achieve a stronger online presence.
This complete guide offers:
- The 10 most effective guerrilla strategies
- 5 case studies of the top-performing online guerrilla campaigns
- Creating an effective website on a budget
- Cost-effective ways on how to maximize traffic to your website
- The 12 biggest internet marketing mistakes
- Tactics and tools to encourage the audience to convert
- And vital information on how to stay up to date with the latest technology.
5. Ultimate Guide to Local Business Marketing – Perry Marshall and Talor Zamir
In this book by Google AdWords expert, Perry Marshall, and lead generation extraordinaire, Talor Zamir we learn just how to market your business locally, online. We love it because it’s a great tool for small business owners everywhere.
Gain clarity on how to reach your customers by defining online marketing campaigns around local search using platforms such as Google, Yahoo! and Bing.
This guide goes further than your average local SEO and sheds light on how to capture the target audience through mobile advertising and successful search to create high-quality leads within 48 hours.
6. Made to Stick – Chip and Dan Heath
Why do some ideas survive, and others die? Chip and Dan Heath unpack it all in this provocative best-seller that explains what it takes to make your ideas and messaging stick.
With real-life success stories and failures, this book takes the reader through a journey of storytelling and how applying the Velcro Theory of Memory can be the secret weapon in your digital marketing strategy.
7. Hacking Growth – Sean Ellis and Morgan Brown
From the co-founder of GrowthHackers.com comes this pragmatic approach to how some of the world’s most dynamic, successful companies grew from garage projects to what they are today, using the Growth Hacking method.
This book takes the reader through how to create their custom growth hacking strategy to dominate the market share, engage customers and achieve consistent results that won’t break the bank.
With companies like IBM, Microsoft and Walmart all part of the GrowthHackers.com community, we can tear a page out of this book!
8. Epic Content Marketing – Joe Pulizzi
“Once we hook customers in with epic content, they reward us by sending our sales through the roof.” – Joe Pulizzi
Gone are the days of creating ordinary advertising that doesn’t grip the audience. From the godfather of content marketing comes this step-by-step guide on how to cut through the noise that is consuming a customer’s digital space.
Joe Pulizzi equips the reader with tools on how to create content that stands out against your competition and that the audience wants to interact with to drive epic sales.
9. Contagious, Why Things Catch On – Jonah Berger
Have you ever wondered why some products sell out, why some ideas become popular? Or why some videos go viral within a matter of hours?
This book shares scientific answers to all these questions with six simple, actionable principles that brands have applied to become a success.
From small business owners to moguls, Contagious shows the secret science behind word-of-mouth and how your business can apply this technique to build boost brand awareness and make your content shareable.
10. Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind – Al Ries and Jack Trout
To wrap up our top 10 marketing strategy books for entrepreneurs, we look at this book by advertising experts Al Ries and Jack Trout.
In their witty approach, Ries and Trout describe how to position your brand in the mind of the consumer so that you’re seen as an industry leader and an easy choice above your competitors.
This book provides valuable insight on how to:
- Play to your competitors’ weakness
- Use winning techniques to gain market share
- Leverage off your current positioning in the market
- Build a strategy to reposition yourself around the strongest competitors.
We hope after reading this you’re feeling inspired enough to be “adding to cart” and ready to get stuck in with some motivational reading.
Don’t forget to share this blog and let us know which marketing strategy book was your favourite!
