Top Small Business Books – My Picks for SmallBizTrends 2012 #BizBookAwards

February 10, 2012 · 99 comments

UPDATE: 46,000 Votes later, you can see the
Small Business Book Award Winners.

The fourth annual Small Business Book Awards highlights the best new Small Business books specifically beneficial for small businesses rather than applicable only or primarily to enterprise or corporate level businesses.

SMALL BUSINESS RESOURCES:

Instrumental in bringing us this valuable awareness of books that can make a difference are:

Anita Campbell

Anita Campell, Founder of the Small Business Book Awards and the driving force behind:

Small Business Trends – recognized in 2005 and again in 2008 as the winner of the Forbes “Best of the Web” distinction for small business blogs.
BizSugar small business social bookmarking, voting, and networking site for small business and medium-sized business owners and managers.
Small Business Blogging Community BloggerTone – All three of these sites are dedicated to for Small Business and highly recommended.

Ivana Taylor

Ivana Taylor, publisher of DIYMarketers.com and an exceptional writer in her own right. She is co-author of the book “Excel for Marketing Managers.” Do be sure to check out her DIY Marketers blog.

TOP NEW SMALL BUSINESS BOOKS:

Over 200 small business books published within the last year have been nominated this year. There are my top picks – one in every category and three in Marketing:

Marketing Shortcuts for the Self-Employed
(Excellent for entrepreneurs, small businesses and their employees and managers as well as the self-employed.)

VOTE for Marketing Shortcuts for the Self-Employed
Marketing Shortcuts for the Self-Employed
Twitter ID: @schwerdtfeger
Read Tia Peterson @BizChickBlogs Marketing Shortcuts review
BUY Marketing Shortcuts for the Self-Employed

Engagement from Scratch

Managing with a Conscience

VOTE for Managing with a Conscience
Book Site: Frank Sonnenberg Online
Twitter: @A_Conscience
BUY Managing with a Conscience
Review of Managing with a Conscience: “This is, without question, one of the best business books I’ve ever read” ~ John Spence ~

Locavesting: The Revolution in Local Investing & How to Profit From It

Vote for Locavesting: The Revolution in Local Investing and How to Profit From It
Book Site: Locavesting
Twitter: @locavesting
Buy Locavesting
Locavesting review on Good Reads:

“One of the best things about the book is that each chapter ends with a concise set of information on resources/next steps you can take to get involved in that particular local investing approach.” ~ Elizabeth on GoodReads ~

Duct Tape SEO: WordPress SEO Done Dirt Cheap

VOTE for Duct Tape SEO
Duct Tape SEO: WordPress SEO Done Dirt Cheap
Twitter ID: @TheAvgGenius
BUY Duct Tape SEO

Digital Impact: The Two Secrets to Online Marketing Success

Vote for Digital Impact: The Two Secrets to Online Marketing Success
Book Site: Digital Impact
Twitter: @vipinmayar
Buy Digital Impact

Become a Franchise Owner

Recommended: How to Sell Through Networking and Referrals

Vote for Recommended: How to Sell Through Networking and Referrals
Book Site: Andy Lopata
Twitter: @andylopata
Buy Recommended: How to Sell Through Networking and Referrals

And Death Came Third

Books distill the wisdom and experience of decades into an easy to consume format; exceptional books provide actionable strategies and a map you can use to guide your small business to greater heights. I highly recommend them as the fast path to success.

I was not aware that Olivier Blandchard’s book was in the running when I originally created this post. I thought it had been out too long to qualify so I didn’t think to look for it.

I am adding it to my list as he is the only one I have seen writing about how you CAN track Social Media ROI and the impact of other actions by using timelines.

Social Media ROI: Managing and Measuring Social Media Efforts in Your Organization

Book Site: Social Media ROI
Twitter ID: @TheBrandBuilder
Buy Social Media ROI

No doubt other excellent books have been nominated so feel free to share your favorites or draw attention to your own book in the comments. I did not have time to review ALL the nominations – so your book could end up in this post.

Disclosure: Many of the images in this post and the Buy links take you to Biggerbooks – my choice as the best alternative to Amazon. There is NOTHING unethical about a blogger using affiliate links provided they only recommend what they truly believe in. I do not support, buy from, or recommend the highly unethical Amazon.com. I have received free review copies of some of these books.

Tagged as: small business, small business book awards, small business books, small business trends

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David who writes about Garbage container February 21, 2012 at 3:05 am

I just finished reading this book ‘Become a franchise owner’ by Joel Libava. This book is full of the resources you need if you are seriously considering buying a franchise, including a self-evaluation to see if you’re cut out to become a franchise owner. As Libava says, most people aren’t cut out for franchises, so this book is an affordable tool to help you figure out if you should move forward.
David would love you to read ..Canaan 4- Steps Powder Coating Methods

logo items February 20, 2012 at 8:30 pm

so many good resources and books that everyone can use. I bet some of them have really good contents and ideas. And some books are also ideal for beginners who want to learn the basic stuffs of SEO and internet marketing.

Chad Twitter: HowToMack February 20, 2012 at 7:52 pm Twitter: @HowToMack

I’ve never heard of any of these books, but I think I’m gonna order that one on SEO… I usually just read the classics for business like Eugene Schwartz and Zig Ziglar.
Chad would love you to read ..Daygame Blueprint Review – DayGame.com’s Daytime Pick Up Guide

Julie February 20, 2012 at 5:19 pm

I haven’t heard about the most of these books, but marketing shortcuts is really a must-have one for the people who are in online marketing and SEO. Such a great collection of must.have items, thanks for the inspiration!
Julie would love you to read ..cosmetic dental treatment

Cammile Mailhot February 20, 2012 at 11:09 am

This is a wonderful list of books. I think I will buy “Managing With A Conscience”. I feel other books will also be helpful but I will buy them after this book gives me good amount of help.
Cammile Mailhot would love you to read ..Achat home trainer

Alex who writes about Fatcow Twitter: no twitter February 20, 2012 at 11:02 am Twitter: @no twitter

Looks like I’ve got a lot of reading to do. The main point is that SEO and inbound marketing is relatively new way of promotion and there’s a lot we haven’t experienced. So we really need to read a lot.

Maja who writes about fantastic sams February 20, 2012 at 9:50 am

This post is is good source of books but might and main is to deeply understand the literature and practically apply these tips in business.
Maja would love you to read ..Choice of Hair Color

Raja who writes about Tamil Twitter: tamilposters February 20, 2012 at 6:16 am Twitter: @tamilposters

Books like these are so inspiring for those in small business. But it is appreciated if someone translate the books into our local Language ‘TAMIL’
Raja would love you to read ..Vishal at Aruwe child and Oldage Home 10 Years Celebration

Isis R. Mason February 20, 2012 at 6:13 am

Hello!

These are great list of books! I have already purchased Engagement from Scratch an it really helps me in the business. Maybe after I finish reading this I will try the other books you recommend.
Isis R. Mason would love you to read ..Local SEO

Clark who writes about new york limousine February 20, 2012 at 6:05 am

I am an avid reader and read books regularly. I must say that is great fun reading books and all that and I must say that your list of books here are great reads as well as great on more information providers. I have a small business and I think your books are great to help promote them.

Mark who writes about Gilbert auto glass February 20, 2012 at 2:41 am

While I’m sure Joel, “The Franchise King”, wrote the book for entrepreneurs and future business owners, I am recommending this work for everyone working the franchise space including marketers, operations, sales, and especially suppliers. You need this book if you’re even sniffing the idea of being a franchise owner. It will be the best money you ever spend. I believe Joel’s book is the best I’ve read on the steps franchisees need to take in order to properly research franchising and how best to lower risk in the process.

Joel Libava Twitter: FranchiseKing February 20, 2012 at 4:27 pm Twitter: @FranchiseKing: WOW, Mark.

Thank you so much.

I sure wish that I could use that quote somewhere

The Franchise King®
Joel Libava would love you to read ..Franchise Infographic; The Evolution of Franchising

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sarah February 20, 2012 at 2:02 am

Wow! Amazing post. All the books you have suggested are good books.my favorite among them is “Marketing Shortcuts for the Self-Employed”

Sharyn Sheldon who writes about business plr content Twitter: sharynsheldon February 18, 2012 at 2:15 pm Twitter: @sharynsheldon

You just lengthened my reading list! There are a few in here that I’d been planning to read but haven’t had the chance. The top one is Engagement from Scratch, which at least one friend of mine said made a huge impact on her business. Definitely want to check out the first one on marketing shortcuts. Give me a title with the word “shortcut” in it and I’m all over it.:)
- Sharyn
Sharyn Sheldon would love you to read ..Offline Marketing PLR Content – Special Offer

custom software development February 18, 2012 at 8:01 am

All this internet marketing books are really one of the best way to increase the business of the company through online mode. I will suggest all new business owners to at-least get through all this books.
custom software development would love you to read ..Managing The Web Design Team-Gears And Ways

John who writes about GTA German Translator February 18, 2012 at 6:24 am

Recently, I was catching up with a few friends and I must say that I was really excited about books that suggest ways and means to propagate small businesses like I have. I must say that the book list you have put here have got me excited and I hope to be able to read some of them and use the tips in my personal business.

Jack who writes about undermount sinks February 17, 2012 at 10:38 pm

As a reader I am a fan of business books and was pretty excited to see your post. I have read “Business With A Conscience” and found it to be a stellar piece. I am sure that like the book I read which was of top quality even the other books on this list will also be at the same level. Am looking forward to getting my hands on the books soon.

growmap Twitter: GrowMap February 18, 2012 at 1:22 am Twitter: @GrowMap: Hi Jack,

I find it really encouraging that Marketing with a Conscience ended up fourth in the Social Media category because that indicates there is growing interest in ethical business practices.

There were over 200 (I wish I knew exactly how many but too busy to go count them) nominated and these were the ones I knew about or found early on.

I will be adding more to this list as I only recently found out that Social Media ROI by Olivier Blanchard @TheBrandBuilder was nominated. Olivier is the ONLY person I have seen expound on the importance of Measuring Social Media ROI using timelines in evaluating social media impact and that is crucial. Analytics is highly misleading the way most people go about it and that results in them making bad decisions that really hurt their businesses.

I did not think to look for his book because I thought it had been out more than a year. Only books published during a specific timeframe are eligible to be nominated.

No doubt there may be other exceptional books that were nominated or missed being nominated. I encourage anyone who has particular favorites to share them with me.
growmap would love you to read ..Small Business Internet Marketing: Where to Start

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Joseph who writes about käse allgäu February 17, 2012 at 4:37 am

Nice Collection! I’ve read the “Duct Tape SEO” Book: very useful tips! Do you know whether a book of the founder of “37signals” is nominated? Perhaps “Re:work”. That’s my favorite book of the last years.

growmap Twitter: GrowMap February 18, 2012 at 6:20 am Twitter: @GrowMap: Hi Joseph,

Only books published in the previous year are eligible for that year’s awards. Re:work may have been nominated in previous years, but not all the connections of excellent small business related books know about the awards. They should – but they may not.
growmap would love you to read ..Small Business Trends Book Awards Nominations Close January 31, 2012 #smallbusiness

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Rick Castro who writes about Apartment for rent in Pasig Twitter: dmcihomesonline February 17, 2012 at 2:40 am Twitter: @dmcihomesonline

I know Anita Campbell, she’s a regular contributor at sba.gov which helps small businesses become successful! Great collection of books too!

Anna who writes about Gift Ideas February 17, 2012 at 2:00 am

I am just wondering why there isn’t any book which helps us to boost online business or e-commerce! Anyways a few helped!
Anna would love you to read ..Swingline ClassicCut Ingento 12 Inch Maple Guillotine Paper Trimmer, CL500m – 1132

growmap Twitter: GrowMap February 18, 2012 at 6:42 am Twitter: @GrowMap: Hi Anna,

Many of the books are specifically about boosting online business such as Marketing Shortcuts which I nominated specifically because it provides specific strategies a small business owner can implement.

I did not think to see if there were any specific to ecommerce businesses. If I identify any I will add them as a reply here. I have many posts related to ecommerce conversions. Here are some of them:

How Yahoo Stores Expert Rob Snell Increased Sales by $10,354,767

How to Evaluate an Ecommerce Store (for affiliates – but an ecommerce store owner can use the points to improve their own store and increase their sales and conversion rate).

Guest post by the successful ecommerce store the previous post is about: Small Business Economy: How to Beat the Recession

Are You Driving Away Your Potential Buyers With These Two Common Mistakes?

Better Live Chat Equals More Closed Sales

There is a ton of great information on increasing ecommerce sales. Your highest priority is to improve your conversion rate. Look for Bryan Eisenberg’s excellent book Waiting for Your Cat to Bark.

You will need to either hire someone who knows conversion testing or learn to do it yourself which is much easier now than it used to be. I am one of about a dozen collaborators who will be working together to use and share what we learn using Experiment.ly.

growmap would love you to read ..How YOUR Small Business Can Get Totally Free Advertising on Google Places, Yahoo! Local, Bing and Hundreds of Local Directories and Niche Sites

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sindhuja who writes about IT solutions and services Twitter: satvatinfosol February 16, 2012 at 11:33 pm Twitter: @satvatinfosol

The book “How to Sell Through Networking and Referrals” will be useful for the present and the future online marketers. This is the famous saying of the book “If you want to grow your business….get Recommended!”. so in online marketing people needs trust on them and that can be done by recommendations.

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