32+ Best Content Marketing Books for every content marketer

2021 brought to us a long time of quarantine, and it’s such a great opportunity to create new habits, start a new hobby, or learn something valuable to improve yourself. Reading is such a natural act of social distancing and also a great way to make yourself smarter and more knowledgeable in the field you are working in.

If interested in reading, you might have already searched “what to read in quarantine” and see the variety of fiction or non-fiction books in the recommendation. If you expect more than just reading and entertaining, we can help you with today’s topic: Best Content Marketing books - a specific taste for both beginners and veterans in content marketing.

Let’s dive into our list of 32 best content marketing books to fill up your shelf with favorite ones.

Our picks:

• 1. Epic Content Marketing - Joe Pulizzi
• 2. Managing Content Marketing - Robert Rose & Joe Pulizzi
• 3. Everybody Writes - Ann Handley
• 4. How to Write Short - Roy Peter Clark
• 5. How Brands Become Icons - Douglas B. Holt
• 6. Book Launch - Chandler Bolt
• 7. Born to Blog - Mark Schaefer & Standford Smith
• 8. Building a StoryBrand - Donald Miller
• 9. Content Inc - Joe Pulizzi
• 10. Content Rules - Ann Handley & C.C. Chapman
• 11. They Ask You Answer - Marcus Sheridan
• 12. #AskGaryVee - Gary Vaynerchuk
• 13. Permission Marketing - Seth Godin
• 14. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion - Robert Cialdini
• 15. Optimize: How to Attract and Engage More Customers - Lee Odden
• 16. The New Rules of Marketing & PR - Avid Meerman Scott
• 17. Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook - Gary Vaynerchuk
• 18. The Power of Visual Storytelling - Ekaterina Walter & Jessica Gioglio
• 19. Blah Blah Blah: What To Do When Words Don’t Work - Dan Roam
• 20. Master Content Strategy - Pamela Wilson
• 21. Brand Identity Breakthrough - Gregory V. Diehl & Alex Miranda
• 22. Practical Content Strategy & Marketing - Julia McCoy & Mark W. Schaefer
• 23. F#ck Content Marketing - Randy Frisch
• 24. The Adweek Copywriting Handbook - Joseph Sugarman
• 25. Content Machine - Dan Norris
• 26. Content That Converts - Laura Hanly
• 27. The Content Code - Mark W. Schaefer
• 28. Conversation Marketing - Kevin Lund
• 29. Inbound Content - Justin Champion
• 30. Stories That Stick - Kindra Hall
• 31. The Art of SEO - Eric Enge, Stephan Spencer, Jessie C. Stricchiola
• 32. How to Shoot Video That Doesn’t Suck - Steve Stockman

1. Epic Content Marketing - Joe Pulizzi

Goodreads: 4.01/5

Written by one of the world’s leading experts in content marketing, Epic Content Marketing gives readers a step-by-step guide to the process of creating content and stories that customers want to engage with. Epic content marketing is to develop and deliver stories that inform, entertain customers, and compel them to act without actually telling them.

This groundbreaking and provoking-thought guide will be a great start for you in the epic content marketing journey.

2. Managing Content Marketing - Robert Rose & Joe Pulizzi

Goodreads: 3.78/5

If you want to increase your brand’s audience and shoot up conversions in an ever-changing marketing world, you can’t ignore Managing Content Marketing. In this book, Robert Rose and Joe Pulizzi will show you how to make your content marketing work and manage the entire flow within your organization.

No matter if you are a content marketer from a small company or multi-million dollar brand, this book will provide you with practical ideas to develop strategic and compelling stories that draw passionate subscribers to your brand.

3. Everybody Writes - Ann Handley

Goodreads: 4.05/5

Everybody Writes by Ann Handley will help you unhide the power of your online words and create the kind of content that can make your business thrive. You are not just writing a deadly dull listicle or texts on docs; you’re creating value for your audience and communicating with them through your words. Ann Handley guides you through the process of creating and publishing content that works on any online channels, such as web pages, home pages, landing pages, blogs, emails, and social media platforms.

4. How to Write Short - Roy Peter Clark

Goodreads: 3.75/5

In How to Write Short, Roy Peter Clark provides an engaging and practical guide to mastering short-form writing - an essential skill in the ever-changing Internet age.

The book covers how to write compelling and powerful titles, headlines, essays, sales pitches, letters, Tweets, product and service descriptions, and more. You will quickly learn practical techniques to craft brilliant prose and convey your messages in just a few words.

5. How Brands Become Icons - Douglas B. Holt

Goodreads: 3.82/5

In How Brands Become Icons, Douglas B. Holt takes us on a journey about cultural branding through real case studies of America’s most iconic brands.

Holt explains how those brands become icons is not through conventional branding strategies that focus on benefits, brand personalities, and emotional relationships. Instead, it’s built from targeting, positioning, brand equity, brand loyalty in traditional marketing.

The author provides a set of cultural branding principles that companies can leverage to create a brand that resonates with customers and solidifies themself as icons.

6. Book Launch - Chandler Bolt

Goodreads: 3.98/5

If you are too tired of seeing your projects fail to the ground and want a breakthrough to secure your business future, this book is for you.

Book Launch does not cover the secret or magic behind successful businesses. It tells you the proven approach and new model that experts and millionaires use to create their brands and thrive in the marketplace. From that, you will learn to write and launch your first book with a proven book launch formula. No matter your writing level, you can start writing your first draft, bring it to the public, and grow your business with self-publishing.

7. Born to Blog - Mark Schaefer & Standford Smith

Goodreads: 3.82/5

If you are starting a blog at the beginner level, this book might be for you. Or you’re holding your plan to start out a blog but you’re too lazy to write, this book may also kick off your blogging spirit to take yourself into a serious commitment to write. Born to Blog gives you helpful tips to start your own blog, enter the market, and make money. Even if you are not doing business with blogging only, your business can benefit from blogs more than you ever imagined. This book covers tips and techniques that help you leverage blogs for your business growth.

8. Building a StoryBrand - Donald Miller

Goodreads: 4.34/5

Through seven universal elements of powerful stories, Donald Miller - the New York Times bestselling author, tells readers how to connect with customers on a deeper level and grow their businesses.

Building a StoryBrand focuses on helping readers understand the story’s killing points that attract customers and leverage them to create a simple and effective brand message on different materials. This book will transform the way you talk about your brand, what you do, and the value you offer to customers.

9. Content Inc - Joe Pulizzi

Goodreads: 3.98/5

Content Inc. introduces a systematic process that any entrepreneur with limited resources can build massive online audiences and win a competitive edge without initially selling anything at all. Through this book, you will learn how to create an audience of future buyers, maximize the efficiency of social sharing, and search engine optimization to scale your content plan and start monetizing.

10. Content Rules - Ann Handley & C.C. Chapman

Goodreads: 3.92/5

Through Content Rules, you can craft practical, tested, and proven skills and techniques to create any kind of social media content that works for your business. You will learn how to create an effective content marketing strategy and draw your audience to the interesting information. If you are delving into social media, this book will be incredibly helpful for you.

11. They Ask You Answer - Marcus Sheridan

Goodreads: 4.30/5

They Ask You Answer is a concrete and straightforward guide to tweaking your content marketing strategy by leveraging your in-house resources, discovering and investing more on the potential power of the Internet. No matter how your budget is, you can build excellent content marketing strategies with Marcus’s revolutionary ideas.

12. #AskGaryVee - Gary Vaynerchuk

Goodreads: 4.16/5

#AskGaryVee is a helpful book to read in this social media marketing era. Originated from his same-name popular show, the book contains his genuine, straightforward, and useful answers to the question about multiple fields and aspects. From marketing, social media, content marketing, storytelling, to company culture or family business, you’ll get the answer you’re dying to know but afraid to ask.

#AskGaryVee is your go-to guide to make things happen in a fantastic way.

13. Permission Marketing - Seth Godin

Goodreads: 3.93/5

Permission marketing helps marketers shape their brand messages so that it’s easier to create and deliver content that does not interrupt customers or annoy them with interruption marketing. Instead, brands can offer customers incentives to accept advertising voluntarily, create trust, and build long-term relationships with customers.

Follow the Permission Marketing concept; you are guided to develop content that gears to your audience, tailors to their needs, and provides them with value, not just a ton of advertisements.

14. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion - Robert Cialdini

Goodreads: 4.79/5

Whether you deploy a video marketing campaign or a Facebook advertisement, your ultimate goal is to attract customers and persuade them to act as you want them to. That’s why understanding the psychology of persuasion and applying to your content marketing is important.

Influence by Ph.D. Robert Cialdini will teach you how to become a successful persuader with six universal principles of influence, including:

• Social proof
• Scarcity
• Liking
• Reciprocity
• Commitment and Consistency
• Authority

15. Optimize: How to Attract and Engage More Customers - Lee Odden

Goodreads: 3.76/5

Optimize helps you seamlessly integrate search engine and social media optimization into content marketing to boost relevance, visibility, and customer engagement. No matter if you are from a small and medium business or a large-scale enterprise, you can leverage imminently useful and creative content marketing tactics in this book to acquire and engage your customers online.

16. The New Rules of Marketing & PR - Avid Meerman Scott

Goodreads: 3.88/5

The New Rules of Marketing and PR gives readers a practical approach to communicating with customers and creating online visibility to increase awareness and sales through modern marketing and PR. The book is a step-by-step guide to plan your effective marketing plan with the latest social media and marketing trends that address the right customer needs at the right time.

17. Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook - Gary Vaynerchuk

Goodreads: 4.04/5

Once again, this bestselling author with Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook tells you how to win a competitive edge in the market by mastering social media marketing. With the leap of changes and innovation in social media, only quality content is not strong enough to help you beat the competition. Instead, creating quality content that adapts to the right social media platform and target audience is way more critical to success in a noisy social world.

18. The Power of Visual Storytelling - Ekaterina Walter & Jessica Gioglio

Goodreads: 3.71/5

The Power of Visual Storytelling is a valuable guide to understanding how to develop a powerful marketing plan and grow your business by leveraging the power of visual storytelling. Through full-color images and thought-provoking examples from successful companies, the book gives you a concrete roadmap to use visual and social media elements to enrich your content and stories.

There will be more substantial takeaways from this book than just how to include visuals in your social media or content marketing campaign.

19. Blah Blah Blah: What To Do When Words Don’t Work - Dan Roam

Goodreads: 3.99/5

In Blah Blah Blah, Dan Roam brings out a problem: We talk so much that we don’t think very well. Frankly, we rely too much on our words, which are thought to be able to detect, describe, and defuse any problems. But the fact is that they can’t. Therefore, the author proposes a solution - vivid thinking that can make any complicated subject crystal clear.

Dan Roam explains the concept and provides dozens of examples so that anyone can understand and apply this creative approach to clarify everything. For content marketers, this book is a helpful guide to make their content out of the blah blah blah and simulate more creativity in a content marketing program.

20. Master Content Strategy - Pamela Wilson

Goodreads: 4.33/5

Master Content Strategy is an all-inclusive step-by-step guide to creating a content marketing strategy that draws the audience’s interest in your business and turns them into your happy customers.

In this book, you will discover how to make your content marketing effort count from capturing and using the best content ideas to writing the most effective headlines, subheadings, and first sentences. Both B2B and B2C content marketers can leverage all the techniques and tactics in this book to tap into content marketing and build their online presence with it.

21. Brand Identity Breakthrough - Gregory V. Diehl & Alex Miranda

Goodreads: 3.90/5

Brand Identity Breakthrough teaches you how to make your products and brands stand out amongst others by exploding and creating a unique story. You will need to develop a strong business identity by blending your personality, value, and functionality of your products. It will effectively solidify your business’s position in your audience’s heart and make it much easier for you to sell products to your customers.

22. Practical Content Strategy & Marketing - Julia McCoy & Mark W. Schaefer

Goodreads: 4.00/5

Practical Content Strategy & Marketing gives you the most important foundations and skills you need to tap into and leverage the industry of content marketing. It’s a straightforward and hands-on approach to the complicated field of marketing. You will learn the principles and physicals behind six key cores of effective content marketing to build a content marketing strategy from the ground up.

23. F#ck Content Marketing - Randy Frisch

Goodreads: 3.68/5

F#ck Content Marketing emphasizes that the content experience is just as important as the content itself. It focuses on introducing the content experience framework that enables and improves the personalization of content experiences. There are five parts in this framework which will be covered in each chapter.

• Centralize content
• Organize content
• Personalize experiences
• Distribute content
• Generate results

24. The Adweek Copywriting Handbook - Joseph Sugarman

Goodreads: 4.10/5

If you’re starting a career in copywriting or want to write copies that work for your advertising campaign, The Adweek Copywriting Handbook by Joseph Sugarman - a legendary copywriter, will be a helpful guide.

In this book, the author provides you with proven insights and principles on how copywriters can create enthralling copy that entices and motivates customers to purchase a product or service. Sugarman indicates that if you want to sell a product with your piece of copywriting, you need to understand that product first.

This book is explicitly written so that even the beginners can easily understand and get the message the author wants to convey.

25. Content Machine - Dan Norris

Goodreads: 3.98/5

If you are struggling with content creation, this book will help you tackle all the challenges and simplify the process of creating content.

Content Machine covers the fundamentals of content marketing and teaches you how to develop greater content that makes your business stand out from the crowd. There are also downloads and frameworks that guide you to master every aspect of content marketing from idea generation, writing guidelines to hiring and training a content team.

26. Content That Converts - Laura Hanly

Goodreads: 3.93/5

Content That Converts provides a step-by-step process to execute content marketing in any B2B business to generate and acquire qualified leads and conversations. A detailed and straightforward framework is included in this book that you can use as a pen to start drawing your content marketing right. Content That Converts is definitely an ultra-efficient mix theory and practical steps to follow.

27. The Content Code - Mark W. Schaefer

Goodreads: 3.86/5

If you have freshly ventured into content marketing, or have been working in this industry but haven’t seen success or want some new ideas, this book might be helpful for you. In this book, Mark W. Schaefer addresses your challenges in content marketing and shares creative ideas of how to ignite your content to win at marketing in this digital era.

Hold a note when reading this book because you will want to write down his highlights of the six digital secrets of The Content Code.

28. Conversation Marketing - Kevin Lund

Goodreads: 3.27/5

Conversation Marketing will help you to win your customers’ hearts and build a strong relationship with them by leveraging conversation marketing. The author gives you powerful tools and practical strategies to build meaningful conversations that connect your brand with your customers at a deeper level. You will earn customers’ attention and have the opportunity to provide them with value at every touchpoint.

29. Inbound Content - Justin Champion

Goodreads: 4.56/5

Inbound Content helps you create content that draws customers in. It’s the content that is valuable, relevant, consistent, and reaches the right audience at the right time. Justin Champion tells you how to create and utilize that content at its greatest potential to develop a unified and long-term content strategy and build your brand.

30. Stories That Stick - Kindra Hall

Goodreads: 4.42/5

Stories That Stick enables readers to explore, uncover, and illustrate the hidden or untold stories that can be a great weapon to captivate audiences, influence them, and uplevel their businesses. You will learn how to tell your story and ignite the power of storytelling through four unique stories in this book: the Value story, the Founder story, the Purpose story, and the Customer story.

31. The Art of SEO - Eric Enge, Stephan Spencer, Jessie C. Stricchiola

Goodreads: 4.09/5

If you are deploying a content marketing strategy without SEO, you are missing out on a powerful weapon to achieve next-level success. Search Engine Optimization expands your content’s reach and maximizes the effectiveness of your campaign.

Written by the leading experts in the industry, this book enables you to leverage the art of SEO in every aspect of your business that needs it. It reveals an array of practical tactics, from basic to advanced including the new methods in SEO rankings. You will know how to combine content and SEO to acquire the best result in every marketing program.

32. How to Shoot Video That Doesn’t Suck - Steve Stockman

Goodreads: 4.19/5

Today, video is a powerful tool in modern marketing. With the leap of the Internet, leveraging videos in your marketing is much easier than ever. How to Shoot Video That Doesn’t Suck is a helpful guide to making videos that effectively tell the story you that your customers want to watch, convey the message you want to deliver, and drive audiences to further actions.

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