The Weekend Review: A Digital Marketer's Summer Reading List
Anthony Yodice of Blue Fountain Media Shares his Marketing Must Reads for the Summer
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Summertime is synonymous with rest and relaxation. It’s the best time of year to take a much needed vacation, unwind on the weekends, and unplug from work when you have the chance. That being said, unfortunately, the summer season for marketers doesn’t mean you suddenly have all the time in the world to do other things, but it’s important to take part in activities that you enjoy.
If reading is one of these activities than you already know that summer is a great time of year to pick up a good book. Whether you’re at the beach, commuting to work, or have time before bed, diving into a book is a great way to reduce stress, stimulate your brain, and learn something new. For digital marketers, chances are your idea of a good book may differ from the average reader. If you work in the industry, than you know how crucial it is to stay on top of industry news and trends. These five books are some of the best reads a marketing professional can pick up this summer, and they just might help you get ahead in the office.
- Everybody Writes by Ann Handley
In a content-driven world, being able to write well is not optional, but completely necessary to communicate effectively with your audience. Everybody Writes is a guide to attracting customers by capturing their interest with your words. Handley teaches her readers how to cut through the clutter and use compelling and refined writing techniques. In the digital age, all of the content you produce is so easily available, so it is essential for it to be stellar now more than ever. Without a strong content marketing strategy, the ability to effectively generate sales, promote a product, or advertise a service can often fall short.
When consumers are constantly bombarded with advertisements everywhere they turn, from commercials to telemarketers and so on, how can you break through to connect with a consumer? Permission Marketing. Godin’s book explains how Permission Marketing sets out to build a long-lasting relationship between company and consumer. The book really breaks down how to build trust with a consumer, which is a primary goal of all B2C marketers, and an important component to any marketing initiative.
- Content Inc. by Joe Pulizzi
Content marketing is an important channel within digital marketing, but it’s obvious that some content produced by brands often seems unoriginal, which makes it difficult for messaging to resonate with the respective audience. If content marketing is executed the way it should be, it can have a major impact on a brand’s online growth and be incredibly effective at driving sales and building brand awareness. Content Inc. lays out Pulizzi’s content marketing model for creating entrepreneurial success. Pulizzi breaks this guideline down into six steps, making it simple for you to apply his advice to that of your own organization. If you are struggling to come up with new, fresh ideas for clients or for your own business, this book is highly recommended to break through any walls and gain inspiration to produce content that isn’t stale and will help to accomplish your objectives.
- No Man’s Land: Where Growing Companies Fail by Doug Tatum
Entrepreneurs, this one is for you! If your passion in marketing has lead you to start your own business, than you are aware of the ups and downs that come with running a start-up. Even more difficult than getting your business up and running and is continuing to lead the company when things have begun to take off. Tatum points out common issues that occur when managing a business and how to both learn from them and key insights on how to proactively avoid them. This book is strongly recommended for individuals who run their own business or are looking to start one.
- Ogilvy on Advertising by David Ogilvy
If you’re in the profession of advertising and you haven’t read this yet, than you need to start. David Ogilvy’s book provides a blueprint for anyone in the industry to produce the highest quality work. While the book is considered a classic and some of the examples used are a bit outdated, it is filled with timeless advice and a foundation that should be understood by any good advertiser and marketer in the business. Ogilvy’s insights throughout the entire piece are smart, strong and memorable and can be found at the core of any successful marketing campaign today.
Anthony Yodice (@antyodz) is a digital marketer at Blue Fountain Media (@bfmweb). Blue Fountain Media is a digital agency in NYC specializing in driving results for brands online.
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