Holiday Reading List: Business Books
In the past few years, a record number of small firms have been established. Business books are excellent for aspiring business owners to learn about strategy, leadership, and a wealth of other important topics, and they can help you learn from others’ mistakes so you can reduce your own learning curve.
Not sure what to do during this holiday season? Below is a list of business books that will enrich you, so you can go back to work with a new perspective.
1. The Leadership Book: A Step by Step Guide to Excellent Leadership by Neil Jurd
As the title suggests, this book is about how to excel in a leadership role. It’s a simple and powerful guide for people with an open mind willing to improve their leadership skills. The outcome of applying the concepts discussed include happier teams and consistent, efficient output. The author shares his wisdom in a compelling manner with practical advice that creates an authentic experience for readers, and his military background makes it all the more credible and interesting.
2. Digital Marketing Strategy: An Integrated Approach to Online Marketing by Simon Kingsnorth
Hundreds of universities and institutions employ this international best-seller which is a perfect read if you want to take your business into the digital world. It discusses the fundamental aspects of strategy development, including business strategy, channel-specific considerations, content strategy, branding, and other major areas. It also covers case studies, upcoming technology trends, and much more to assist you in developing a strong digital marketing plan that can quickly provide genuine results. This book has everything you need to know about marketing, especially for those new to the field.
3. The Business Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained by DK
Many people dream of owning a business, but few of them follow through and build one that succeeds. The Business Book aims to help you achieve this goal by making complex business ideas accessible through graphs and flowcharts. It includes ideas from thinkers such as Malcolm Gladwell and Michael Porter. All in all, it is an ideal introduction to the fundamental concepts of business and management. No matter if you are a CEO or a budding business student, anyone can gain something valuable from this book.
4. She Thinks Like a Boss: Leadership: 9 Essential Skills for New Female Leaders in Business and the Workplace by Jemma Roedel
For a long time, running a business was regarded as a man’s job. Business is male dominated field and women’s contributions are often undervalued. This book encourages women to think like bosses and influence teams effectively, and it contains the perfect technique to effectively combat imposter syndrome. It is a handy reference for women in business, especially those who are just starting out.
5. The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon by Brad Stone
Amazon has changed the world and it’s hard to imagine life without it – they have a solution for practically everything. This book highlights the journey of Jeff Bezos and his “relentless pursuit of new markets”, demonstrating how a book selling website changed the world and took over every market. Author, Brad Stone, delivers a well–researched book that keeps readers engaged until the very end.
6. The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It by Michael E. Gerber
This is the most important book any business owner can read, as it leads readers on a journey from the infancy of a new business up until the expanded operations involved in launching franchises. The author makes a distinction between working on your business versus working in your business, a concept that is often overlooked. The book talks about how being good at a skill and running a business based on that skill are two very different things. Everyone running a business must read this book.
7. The Art of SEO: Mastering Search Engine Optimization by Eric Enge, Rand Fishkin, Jessie Stricchiola, and Stephan Spencer
This one book offers the wisdom of four seasoned experts in the field of SEO. To maintain your present ranks and organic search when revamping your website, it is essential to understand how SEO works. Given that this book offers excellent, tried-and-tested approaches, it’s an invaluable manual for learning about SEO. Whatever your background, it will show you the exact methods to rank well on Google and how to gain a significant number of clients as a result. This book covers every aspect of SEO; it is a comprehensive manual that everyone involved with SEO must read.
8. Mastering Google Adwords: Step-by-Step Instructions for Advertising Your Business by Noah Gray
Do you feel like your business is getting lost in the ocean of Goggle searches? If so, this book is going to help you stand out among the crowd. Sometimes, SEO practices are not enough and you need to give your website an extra push through Google Ads. This book will take you from knowing nothing about advertising to having an intermediate understanding of the topic. It is not recommended for people looking for something advanced.
9. Content Machine: Use content marketing to build a 7-figure business with zero advertising by Dan Norris
Regular content creation is now part of running a successful business. If a company does not have an active presence on all social media platforms with regularly updated content, audiences consider it questionable, especially the younger generations. This book is written by Dan Norris, a serial entrepreneur, who shares his strategies for drawing a seven figure salary through content marketing, with no spending on advertising. This book gives you actionable steps for developing a robust and scalable content marketing plan.
10. The User Experience Team of One: A research and design survival guide by Leah Buley
In the beginning, a business owner must wear many hats to get their business off the ground. When you’re doing everything, it’s important to have an understanding of where to cut costs and where to invest. The book suggests a number of strategies that are more effective than the typical UX deliverables, and that require less time and money. It offers a highly organised method of web design that completely prioritises the user experience. Essentially, it serves as a manual for setting up the “UX” methods it promotes, and for operating as the sole executor of those strategies.
11. 500 Social Media Marketing Tips by Andrew Macarthy
With constant changes in algorithms, new owners coming and going, a plethora of competition, and its unpredictable nature, social media can be very hard to navigate. This book will guide you so you don’t have to surf through video tutorials or follow social media “gurus” online. The author makes sure that the book isn’t boring by calling social media a party and you, a social media manager a party thrower. This book is going to be your one stop guide to all things social media, especially if you are totally new to it. Small businesses can benefit greatly from it because of easy to apply practical tips.
12. The Digital Marketing Handbook by Simon Kingsnorth
This book is the best practical guide to marketing, containing actionable methods about the concepts I introduced in my previous book, Digital Marketing Strategy. It covers everything from SEO to social media to paid search and display advertising. It guides the reader step-by-step through the various elements of B2B and B2C digital marketing, and takes a very pragmatic stance. It includes suggestions about which platforms to use, and teaches you how to avoid common problems. It also includes case studies from well-known companies like Google, Amazon, and Nissan. Other key topics including leveraging marketing automation, producing content that engages readers and encourages them to take action, and measuring your performance.
13. Judgment and Decision Making: Psychological Perspectives by David Hardman
Do you ever wonder how people make decisions? It is fascinating to think about what drives people to buy a product or click on an ad. This book includes some fantastic insights into the psychology of decision making, providing current theoretical perspectives from evolutionary psychology and neuroscience. The author is an authority on this subject, and the book best suits those with some experience in psychology and a keen interest in this subject. If you’re looking for an easy-to-read handbook, this might not be for you because it covers the subjects intricately.
14. Web Analytics 2.0, Sybex by Avinash Kaushik
Data is required for running a business with precision, so analysing and managing it is a skill you need to master. Although there are a lot of platforms online that analyse data for you, you cannot only rely on software. This book covers web analytics in great depth – a very useful read for anyone who will be using analytics in their strategy (which is most of us). Avinash is a Digital Marketing Evangelist at Google and has given lectures at Stanford University, the University of Utah, and the University of Virginia. He keeps things straightforward and provides some excellent examples of the measurements to enhance your understanding.
I’ve mentioned some great books on a wide range of topics, all of which can help future-proof your business during these difficult times. Running a business is not easy, so if you have some time off this holiday season, I highly recommend you take some time to develop your knowledge base so that when you return to work, you’re ready to implement new methods if necessary.