Our Favorite Social Media Marketing Books

• Date: 27 May 2019
• reading time: 6 Minutes
• Blogger: Francisca Zimmermann
• E-mail: [email protected]

Are you running a business, an organization, or are you a blogger or influencer? You are most probably managing one or a few social media accounts. Social media is booming at the moment. The last years the number of social media platforms grew fast, and every year more and more people started using the popular online platforms.

This makes social media an incredible opportunity for business to reach their customers all over the world. However, besides a huge opportunity for growth, social media can be a struggle too. The channels are in constant development, the algorithm changes, trends change, and many people seem to have no idea how to do it right.

Luckily, there is a lot of help out there. The internet offers many interesting courses and communities to learn from, and experts write (e-)books to guide new social media users to success.

For those interested in a good read about social media management, we created a list with our favorite social media books.

1. Social Media Marketing 2019 + Personal Branding Strategy Bundle, by Jack Gary

If you are looking for a very practical and complete social media book, Social Media Marketing 2019 will be a great one for you. The book covers all kind of skills and facts needed to perfect a social media marketing strategy. Think of pros, cons, and descriptions of the leading social media platforms, social media marketing techniques that work best in 2019, how to work with Facebook advertising, and how to create a personal brand that people will remember.

For those who recently started a business and would like to learn all the skills needed to start your social media strategy from scratch, this is the perfect book for you.

2. 2000 Social Media Marketing Tricks, by Invictus Media

Another very practical guide is 2000 Social Media Marketing Tricks. This recent book consists of a long list of tips and tricks, and includes great details on how to apply those to your social media strategy.

What we love about this book is the fact that it is full of information, but absolutely not boring and hard to read. Through clear examples, the author makes it easy for readers to try the tips out for themselves while following the book’s guidelines.

3. One Million Followers, by Brendan Kane

Brendan Kane, the author of this social media book, is one of the most experienced social media gurus we know. He has worked with celebrities like Taylor Swift and Rihanna and advised major brands like MTV and IKEA.

In this book, Brendan teaches the readers how to grow an engaged social media following by sharing high quality and unique content on the right platforms. He covers topics like testing, targeting, and planning.

The book is easy to read and includes interviews with several social media experts and influencers.

4. Content Mavericks: How to Grow Your Business with Insanely Shareable Content, by Andrew Pickering and Peter Gartland

Content is an essential part of social media management. Without good content, it’s simply impossible to grow an account and gain fans through social media platforms. By creating the right content, your company may go viral. And this means reaching thousands or even millions of people. However, standing out is not easy. The internet is full of content, and a lot of it is the same.

In their book Content Mavericks, Pickering and Gartland dive into the world of content. And more specifically, content that will perform well on social media. How do you stand out and how do you make your story go viral? If you are already set up with your social media channels and looking for a way to improve your content, this is a great book for you.

5. The Art of Social Media, by Guy Kawasaki and Peg Fitzpatrick

Although this book was published a few years ago already, we think it deserves to be on the list. This book is written by two absolute experts, Guy Kawasaki, and Peg Fitzpatrick. Guy Kawasaki has a huge amount of marketing experience. One of the companies he worked for is Apple, where he was responsible for marketing their Macintosh computer line in 1984. For this book The Art of Social Media, he collaborated with social media expert Peg Fitzpatrick to teach readers all about successful social media management.

Their guide is clear, easy to understand, and excellent for beginners. If you have no idea where to start, you can simply follow the steps of this book and you will be able to build a solid foundation on the most well known social media platforms.
 

6. Likeable Social Media, by Dave Kempen

Another great social media book for beginners is Likeable Social Media. This book consists of precise instructions, guiding readers through the steps of setting up and growing a company's social media channels.

What we like about this book, is the way it explains how to create content that people actually like and want to follow. Since many marketers are heavily focusing on the numbers, we think it is important to remember that social media users are people with opinions and preferences. It is way more valuable to find real fans who are genuinely interested and involved than to have a large number of followers that has no interest in your product or service at all.
 

7. “Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook” by Gary Vaynerchuk

This book is all about storytelling. There is so much activity on social media nowadays that it’s hard to stand out. However, it is not impossible. Storytelling is finding a way to share the message of your company through content.

Every company has a story, and every social media channel needs a different strategy to bring this story across. In ‘Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook’, Gary Vaynerchuk explains how to share a great story on social media and how to communicate this story on each of the social media channels. The book focuses on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and Tumblr and explains precisely how content can be adapted to fit these platforms perfectly.

8. “Everybody Writes” by Ann Handley

The last book we would like to mention is another one focused on content, and more specifically on writing. Writing is crucial on social media, and tone of voice or nuance can make a massive difference in the way people perceive your company.

Ann Handley’s book covers all the details on writing, specifically for social media writers. Including a few great grammar rules that can function as a checklist while you are creating your social media posts.

Not into reading?

Reading is not for everyone. Luckily, we did the reading for you. If you are looking for help with social media marketing or social media advertising, we would love to help you out. Our SMG Community is full of resources that will help you stay up to date on all the latest developments and possibilities in this field.

Feel free to apply to work with us or book a FREE strategy call so we can dig into your social media issues and consult on how to fix them.

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• Blogger: Francisca Zimmermann
• E-mail: [email protected]
• Social media manager & content creator at Social Media Gids
• Francisca Zimmermann is a social media expert with a background in research and a love for learning new things. She travels the world looking for beautiful places and interesting cultures, while she dives into the world of her clients to be able to write about them and their interests as a real 'insider'.
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