These 4 Marketing Books Will Change Your Business Forever (Seriously!)

On one of our recent free FOCUS Friday calls, one person shared that she’d gifted herself a subscription box for women entrepreneurs. This month, the book that came in her box was about the beginning of Instagram. Interesting? Yes, but not actionable.

We talked about some of my favorite marketing books, and I wanted to share them here so you could all benefit. These books have changed how I think, do my marketing, and manage my business.

Book #1: The Automatic Customer

I’ve written about this book before in my post on 9 Recurring Revenue Subscription Business Models.

We all have recurring bills, right? So why not create some recurring revenue to cover them?

Welcome to the magical world of subscription-based business models!

In the book, The Automatic Customer by John Warrilow, you’ll learn how a subscription business model can bless your business with predictable revenue and increased customer loyalty.

Here’s a peek at what you’ll find inside:

1. The Subscription Revolution: Dive into the world of subscriptions and discover why recurring revenue models are oh-so-popular these days!
2. The 9 Subscription Models: Learn the nine different subscription models you can use, from membership sites to subscription boxes. There’s something for everyone, no matter your industry.
3. The Benefits: You know that cash-flow roller coaster we’ve all experienced at various points in our lives? Having a subscription product will turn those scary peaks and valleys into gentle rolling terrain.
4. Attracting Subscribers: How to create irresistible offers that will have your customers lining up to subscribe! Spoiler alert, like the $100M Offers book below, it’s all about providing insane value.
5. Customer Retention: Master the art of keeping your subscribers happy and coming back for more. How to reduce churn and increase your client’s lifetime value.

This book is the reason I added maintenance packages to my offering. It’s also why I turned the Get Leads & Clients Academy course into a monthly membership.

If I had enough recurring revenue to cover my expenses and salary, selling a custom website and funnel or a one-on-one coaching package would be gravy money.

And in total “Heather” fashion, I jumped in with both feet, and to be fully transparent, my results weren’t perfect at first. I had a big revenue dip when I went in on the membership and quit focusing on custom sites. Hindsight is 20/20, but it takes a lot of subscription memberships to make up the revenue I generated from one custom website.

But the good news is that you can learn from my mistakes!

Now I take a more balanced approach between selling custom websites, one-on-one marketing strategy coaching, and my Get Leads & Clients Academy membership. It’s exciting to see each month as my membership and maintenance packages grow and my recurring revenue continues to rise.

I’m not to the “get paid to sit on the beach and do nothing phase.” Still, the recurring revenue (and my Profit First savings, which I mention below) kept my business and household afloat when I could not work for 6 months in 2021 because of a back injury!

Book #2: Building a StoryBrand

If you’ve followed me (or any credible marketing coach) for a while, you already know people who engage with your brand are subconsciously wondering, “What’s in it for me?”

Well, that’s the idea behind the book, Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller! The book shows you how to make your audience feel like the hero in their story while positioning your business as a trusted guide to help them on their journey.

To stand out to your audience, you must position your brand messaging to be about them; your ideal client’s problems, worries, frustrations, dreams, goals, and desires.

In the book, you’ll learn the Story Brand Framework so you can create a clear, compelling message that resonates with your audience and shows them what your business can do for them.

The StoryBrand Framework is a 7-step recipe to craft an irresistible brand story:

1. A Character (aka your client): Who are you speaking to? What do they want in life? What goals do they want to accomplish? What problem do they need to solve?
2. The Problem: Every great story has a conflict, right? Where is the tension in your ideal client’s story? What problems are they facing? How can your offer be the solution to help them solve this problem?
3. The Guide (that’s you!): You’re the wise mentor who’s been there, done that. Show your customers that you understand their pain and have the expertise to help them.
4. The Plan: Your clients need a clear roadmap to success. (Sidenote for my clients and Academy members. This is your signature system!) Provide your audience with a simple, step-by-step plan to overcome their problem and achieve their goals.
5. The Call to Action: What do you want them to do? For example, buy your product, download your lead magnet, or book a clarity call with you. Don’t be shy! Tell them what to do next.
6. Avoid Failure: Create a sense of urgency by showing what could happen if your clients don’t take action. Poke the bruise and remind them how it hurts. How bad could it get? What will the cost be to their finances, health, relationships, etc.?
7. Achieve Success: Finally, what does heaven look like⏤the happily-ever-after your customers could experience if they followed your guidance? Make it juicy, so they take action!

The writing prompts I give to clients who hire us to build a custom website are based on the Story Brand framework. I also just wrapped up a 3-day workshop to help my students write their lead magnet, landing page, funnel copy, and email sequences following a similar structure.

Book #3: $100M Offers

How good of a marketer do you have to be to sell an offer where your ideal client doesn’t see the value compared to an offer that has your perfect client thinking they’d be stupid if they said no?

With the second offer, you can be a lousy marketer and still make sales, which is why I love this book, $100M Offers by Alex Hormozi. It will help you find the sweet spot for your offers between providing insane value without sacrificing your profit margins.

Here are a few of the genius strategies you’ll discover in this book:

1. The Offer Mindset: How to stand out in your niche and pique your ideal clients’ interest by shifting your mindset from selling “products or services” to delivering life-changing value.
2. The Value Ladder: Many marketers teach this, but I love how Alex teaches you how to create a range of offers that cater to different customer needs and budgets. This way, you can scale your business by offering premium solutions and still serve those needing more time until they are ready for your high-ticket programs.
3. Irresistible Pricing: In the book, Alex shows you his trick for pricing your offers so that they make your customers feel like they’re getting a great price and make you feel like you’re getting paid well for your brilliance!
4. Risk Reversal: Think about guarantees and refunds that make your offer a no-brainer because they take away the risk your ideal clients feel when considering purchasing your offer.
5. Urgency and Scarcity: Learn how to create a sense of FOMO that’ll have your customers clamoring for your offers. But remember, keep it authentic and genuine to build trust.
6. The Power of Packaging: Find out how to bundle your products or services in a way that adds massive value and makes it impossible for your customers to resist.
7. Mastering Sales: Alex shares his top sales strategies to help you close deals like a pro without feeling pushy or sleazy!

I highly recommend this book, especially if you want your offers to convert better, or if you’re creating a new offer for your audience!

Book #4: Profit First

I am so grateful I read this book when I did…

Set the scene. I woke up one morning at the end of June 2021 with a bit of pain between my shoulder blades. I figured I slept funny, and it would get better, so I did some stretches and pressed on with my day. By late morning I was miserable. It hurt to use my mouse or type. Even my breathing made my back hurt. So, I rolled a tennis ball against the back of the chair to loosen up the knot. By evening I was in tears because the pain was so intense I was crawling out of my skin.

Long story short, after weeks of excruciating pain, insurance finally agreed to cover an MRI, which revealed I had two herniated disks. I was loopy on pain meds and couldn’t sit at my desk or type on my laptop. Bottom line⏤no workie-work for this self-employed website designer and marketing strategist! And you know what that means? No paycheck for me, right?

Nope! Because of the book Profit First by Mike Michalowicz, I had a fat little savings account for the business that paid my team and me so that I could take the time I needed to rest and heal.

The book follows the old principle my dad taught me when I got my very first paycheck from working in the mall at 16 years old, “Pay yourself first,” and applies it to your business. Instead of sales – expenses = profit, the book teaches that sales – profit = expenses. A little mind-blowing, right? The idea is to prioritize profit by setting it aside first and then manage your expenses with whatever’s left.

Here’s what he covers in the book:

1. The Profit First Mindset: Get the basics of the profit-first mindset so you can stop struggling to make ends meet in your business.
2. Setting Up Your Bank Accounts: Take your grandma’s “envelope” banking to a whole new level by setting up accounts to allocate funds for profit, taxes, and your salary.
3. The Power of Percentages: (This is where it started to get fun for me.) Learn how much of your revenue you need to put into each account every month and how to adjust according to the financial health of your business.
4. Minimizing Overhead & Maximizing Profit: If you need to cut your expenses to increase your profits (or get out of debt), the author shows you how to do it without skimping on the quality of the products and services you provide.
5. Staying on Track: Don’t be a one-month wonder with your books. Learn how to master the art of frequent check-ups of your profit-first routine to ensure your business stays financially healthy and thriving.
6. Real-Life Success Stories: Get inspired by entrepreneurs who’ve implemented the Profit First system and experienced major financial transformations in their businesses.

So there you have my four favorite actionable marketing books that have changed my business!

I hope this post was helpful to you and these books make the impact on you that they’ve made on me!

If you want help with your messaging, optimizing your website, building a marketing funnel, or simplifying your marketing, Join Automagic – our group coaching and mastermind program!