Bookmark These Top Bestsellers to Help Build Your Brand in 2021
Grab any of these engrossing reads and get ideating, innovating, and creating your most brilliant and best ideas yet!
If the economic and social turmoil of 2020 have offered us anything remotely substantial and positive to help enrich our lives and careers, it was that it was a great opportunity to catch up on our reading to do lists. Social Attraction Agency’s founders have dutifully compiled a list of their noteworthy, favorite finds deserving of your precious time. It’s a perfect segue way from our earlier posts detailing the most notable marketing and social media trends of 2021 that will help embolden your brand/business written by seasoned pros who’ve already done it! Let’s take a closer look at each of these best selling picks you’ll want to add to that stash sitting on your nightstand.Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NIKE by Phil Knight
Co-founder of legendary sneaker and athletic apparel brand, Phil Knight, pens the rise of the iconic sports brand from a simple sneaker concept to an all-encompassing athletic conglomerate. Inspiring, engaging, and thought-provoking, especially if you’re in need of a major motivational boost, Knight also chronicles the brand’s early struggles and key details of his life and upbringing.
Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind by Al Ries and Jack Trout
First published in 1981, Positioning is more relevant than ever after over two decades since its first edition. Written from an economics standpoint, this timeless publication will help you craft an effective angle around your product, service, idea, or brand using tried-and-true, leading advertising strategies to capture the biggest market share and become an enduring household name. Think “Q-Tip,” “Kleenex,” or “Band-Aid.” Prose that’s witty, fast-paced, and impactful, Positioning is sure to elicit enthusiasm in beginning your brand. An oldie, but goodie!
Contagious: Why Things Catch On by Jonah Berger
Ever wonder how some products, brands, ideas, etc., make it to long-standing, legendary status, while others fall to the “one-hit-wonder” wayside? This New York Times Bestseller dishes the secrets behind the science of “word-of-mouth” using six basic principles you need to know.
How Brands Become Icons: The Principles of Cultural Branding by Douglas B. Holt
Holt shares how the world’s most iconic brands create “identity myths” through a series of interesting, eye-opening case studies and why they are valued by society more for what they represent than for what they create/do.
Top of Mind by John Hall
A timely read for the digital era, especially those seeking to create an e-commerce company, Holt shares how to create content that counts – from website landing pages to social media to email marketing and more.
Everybody Writes: Your Go-to Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content by Ann Handley
Think you can’t write or believe a brand requires a scribe with a born talent to succeed? Think again. An informative, enriching blend of how-to write rules and what-to-write ideas, this DIY gem will help you creatively craft compelling, catchy copy and engaging content for today’s digitally driven marketplace.
Building a Story Brand: Clarifying Your Message So Your Customers Will Listen by Donald Miller
New York Times Bestselling author Donald Miller dives deep, teaching you the 7 universal story points ALL humans respond to, plus the REAL reason people hit the proverbial “buy” button, boosting your bottom line. Learn how to craft a succinct, simple, compelling message that’s effective and, ultimately, unforgettable.
Influencer: Building Your Personal Brand in the Age of Social Media by Brittany Hennessey
Nightlife blogger turned savvy social media strategist, Hennessy leads the charge as the first-ever Senior Director of Influencer Strategy and Talent Partnerships for Hearst Magazines and Hearst Digital. Hennessey learned to leverage the power of social media for both personal and company branding during the early days of photo-sharing app Instagram, helping to coin the term “influencer” and becoming one of the most sought-after, brand-building gurus in the biz. Seeking social media stardom or just wanting to learn how to effectively brand yourself for standout appeal to headhunters? Grab a cup of cappuccino, get your glasses, and start reading!
The PR Masterclass: How to Develop a Public Relations Strategy that Works by Alex Singleton
Former newspaper, magazine, and online journalist, Alex Singleton, helps entrepreneurs and small business owners devise an effective public relations strategy, soup to nuts. Plus, he’ll show you how to concoct an original story idea that is newsworthy and notable, ensuring successful media exposure for your product, service, brand, business, or idea.
Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
Create a sticky situation around your ideas, brand, business, products, etc., with this no-holds-barred, go-to guide that reveals the “anatomy” of ideas that stick and how to make them even “stickier.” Learn to apply the “human scale principle,” i.e., the velcro theory of human memory, to all your most pressing product ideas.
AP Style Book by The Associated Press and Norm Goldstein
The bible for every writer, copywriter, journalist, essayist, columnist, and other professional wordsmith, the AP Style Book is the universal handbook for American-English grammar style and usage guide created by fabled American journalists working for or connected with The Associated Press. Used primarily for news and magazine prose, the AP Style differs in technique from the NY Times Style and the Chicago Manual Style guidebooks, respectively.
Did we forget any? Which book(s) are you looking to lose yourself into, while learning the nuts and bolts of creative marketing strategies and branding techniques that will take your brand or business to the next level this year? Please share with us!