Top 10 Product Growth Books every Product Marketer should read.
Top 10 Product Growth Books every Product Marketer should read.
Please note that these books cover a wide range of topics within product growth, including marketing, product development, customer research, and more. Some may be more relevant to your specific needs than others.
In this blog, I will cover the list of books that I have read and found helpful in my execution of Product Growth Strategies. I have written this blog keeping in mind that I won’t spoil the enjoyment of reading the book but at the same time give you an idea of whether you should read this book or not.
Let’s start, shall we?
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The First book is “Crossing the Chasm”
Crossing the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore is considered a must-read for marketers because it addresses the challenge of transitioning a product from early adopters to the mainstream market.
The book introduces the concept of the "technology adoption life cycle," in which a product moves from innovation to mainstream acceptance. It argues that there is a chasm between the early adopters of a product (who are willing to take risks on new technology) and the mainstream market (who are more risk-averse and require more evidence of a product's value before they adopt it).
The product growth book provides insight into how to navigate this chasm and successfully bring a product to the mainstream market. It suggests that marketers should focus on a specific target market (referred to as the "bowling alley") and tailor their messaging and go-to-market strategy to that group. It also highlights the importance of building a "beachhead" in that target market before attempting to expand to other segments.
This book covers the importance of developing a "whole product," which is a term used to describe all the elements that a customer needs to fully utilize a product, beyond just the core technology. It also provides a framework for creating and executing a successful marketing strategy for a high-tech product.
"Crossing the Chasm" provides valuable insights and strategies for marketers looking to bring a new product to the mainstream market, and it is considered a seminal work in the field of high-tech product marketing.
The Second book is “The Lean Startup”
The Lean Startup by Eric Ries provides a framework for developing and launching successful new products. The book introduces the concept of "lean startup," which is an approach to product development that emphasizes rapid experimentation, continuous iteration, and data-driven decision-making.
This product growth book suggests that traditional product development methods, which involve extensive planning and market research, are often slow and inefficient.
Instead, it proposes a more agile approach that involves quickly building a minimum viable product (MVP) and testing it with customers. This allows marketers to gather feedback and iterate on the product based on that feedback, rather than basing decisions on assumptions.
It introduces the concept of "validated learning," which is the process of using experimentation and data to validate or invalidate assumptions about the product and its market. This allows product marketers to make informed decisions about which features to develop, and which to discard, based on customer feedback.
The book also emphasizes the importance of creating a "culture of innovation" within an organization, which encourages experimentation, learning, and adaptation. It also provides a framework for measuring progress and success and a set of tools and techniques for implementing the lean startup approach.
It is a widely-influential book in the field of product development and marketing.
The Third one is “The Mom Test”
The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick provides guidance on how to conduct customer research in a way that is both effective and reliable. The book argues that traditional methods of customer research, such as surveys and interviews, often lead to inaccurate or misleading results because they encourage customers to provide hypothetical, aspirational, or overly-positive feedback.
The book suggests that a better approach is to focus on collecting "behavioral data" instead of "opinion data", which means paying attention to what customers do, not what they say. It also provides guidance on how to ask questions that encourage customers to talk about their past experiences, rather than their future plans or hypothetical scenarios.
It highlights the importance of understanding customers' "jobs to be done", which is a framework that describes the underlying motivation behind customers' actions. By understanding what "job" the customer is trying to accomplish, product marketers can better understand how their product fits into the customer's life and how to improve it.
This product growth book provides guidance on how to identify and avoid common pitfalls in customer research, such as confirmation bias, survivorship bias, and vanity metrics. It also gives tips on how to interpret and use the data collected in a useful way.
It emphasizes the importance of collecting behavioral data, understanding customers' jobs to be done, and avoiding common pitfalls in customer research.
The Fourth Book for Product Growth is “Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion”
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini provides a comprehensive understanding of the psychological factors that influence people's decisions to buy products. The book is based on the author's extensive research on persuasion and compliance, and it explains the six principles of persuasion that are most effective in influencing people's decisions:
Reciprocation: People tend to return a favor or comply with a request after they have received something from others.
Scarcity: People tend to want something more when they believe it is scarce.
Authority: People tend to obey figures of authority or trust experts.
Consistency: People tend to be consistent with their past actions and decisions.
Liking: People tend to comply with requests from those they like.
Consensus: People tend to follow the actions of others.
The book provides a detailed explanation of each principle, with real-world examples of how they have been used to influence people's decisions. It also provides guidance on how to use these principles ethically, and how to defend against them when they are used in a manipulative way.
The book is considered a classic in the field of persuasion and marketing, and it provides product marketers with valuable insights on how to influence consumer behavior and build effective marketing campaigns. It covers the understanding of human behavior, which is crucial in order to build a product that people actually want to buy. By understanding these principles, product marketers can create more effective product positioning and messaging, design more persuasive calls to action, and ultimately, increase conversion rates.
The Fifth one is “The Challenger Sale”
The Challenger Sale by Brent Adamson and Matthew Dixon gives a new perspective on sales and how to be effective in it. The book is based on research of thousands of sales reps and hundreds of companies, and it argues that the traditional approach to sales, which focuses on building relationships and being a "trusted advisor," is no longer effective.
Instead, it suggests that the most successful sales reps are those who take a more "challenger" approach, which involves teaching customers something new and challenging their assumptions about their business.
The book introduces the concept of the "Challenger Rep" - a sales representative who has the ability to teach customers something new, reframe their understanding of the market, and ultimately drive change within the customer's organization. The book argues that this approach is particularly effective in complex and high-stakes sales, where the customer's existing understanding of the market is a barrier to change.
The book also provides guidance on how to develop the skills and mindset of a Challenger Rep, such as how to create and deliver compelling insights, how to tailor the message to the specific customer, and how to navigate organizational politics.
Additionally, the book provides a framework for aligning sales and marketing efforts, so that product marketers can better support the sales team.
The Next book on the list is “Hooked”
Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products by Nir Eyal is a must-read for product marketers because it provides a framework for designing products that become an integral part of users' lives by creating habits. The book is based on the author's extensive research on user behavior and psychology, and it explains how to create products that are not only useful but also addictive.
The book introduces the "Hook Model", which is a four-step framework for building habit-forming products. The four steps are:
Trigger: An event that initiates the behavior
Action: The behavior itself
Variable Reward: The reward that keeps the user coming back
Investment: The user's effort to increase the chances of future rewards
The book provides a detailed explanation of each step, with real-world examples of how they have been used to create habit-forming products. It also provides guidance on how to use these principles ethically, and how to design products that are not only useful but also promote well-being.
The book also highlights the importance of understanding users' internal triggers, which are the underlying motivations behind their actions, and how to create triggers that align with these internal triggers. It also provides a framework for measuring the success of habit-forming products.
It explains how to create products that are not only useful but also addictive. It provides guidance on how to use these principles ethically, and how to design products that are not only useful but also promote well-being.
It provides product marketers with valuable insights on how to create products that users can't help but use.
The Seventh Book is “Contagious: How to Build Word of Mouth in the Digital Age”
Contagious: How to Build Word of Mouth in the Digital Age by Jonah Berger provides a framework for understanding and leveraging the psychology of word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing. The book is based on the author's extensive research on consumer behavior and the spread of information and ideas, and it explains how to create products and marketing campaigns that are more likely to be shared and talked about.
The book introduces the concept of "social currency" which is the idea that people want to share things that make them look good, that are interesting, or that are valuable to others. The book argues that by understanding what makes people want to share information, marketers can create products and marketing campaigns that are more likely to be shared and talked about.
The book also covers the six principles of contagious content:
Social currency
Triggers
Emotion
Public
Practical Value
Stories
It gives a detailed explanation of each principle, with real-world examples of how they have been used to create contagious content. It also provides guidance on how to use these principles to create products and marketing campaigns that are more likely to be shared and talked about.
The book also highlights the importance of understanding the role of digital platforms and technologies in the spread of information, and how to create and leverage viral loops in the digital age.
It provides product marketers with valuable insights on how to create products and campaigns that people can't help but talk about.
The 8th one is "The Innovator's Dilemma"
The Innovator's Dilemma by Clayton Christensen gives a framework for understanding how disruptive innovations can disrupt established markets and companies. It explains how even well-managed companies can miss out on disruptive innovations that fundamentally change their markets.
The book introduces the concept of "disruptive innovation", which is a new product or business model that creates a new market and value network, eventually displacing established market leaders. It argues that established companies are often ill-equipped to respond to disruptive innovations because they are focused on serving the needs of their most demanding and profitable customers, rather than the low-end or emerging markets that are the initial targets of disruptive innovations.
The book also provides guidance on how to identify and respond to disruptive innovations, including how to create a separate organization to explore disruptive opportunities, and how to foster a culture of experimentation and learning. It also provides case studies of companies that have successfully navigated disruptive innovations and those that have not.
It provides product marketers with valuable insights on how to navigate disruptive innovation, and how to position themselves to take advantage of new opportunities, rather than being disrupted by them.
The Ninth Book on the list "Made to Stick"
Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath provides a framework for creating ideas and messages that are memorable and effective. The book tells us why some ideas are more successful than others and it explains the principles of "stickiness" - the ability to make ideas stick in people's minds and influence their behavior.
The book introduces the concept of the "SUCCESs" model which stands for:
Simple: Stripping an idea down to its core
Unexpected: Grabbing people's attention by surprising them
Concrete: Using specific, tangible language
Credible: Making the idea believable
Emotional: Making the idea matter to people
Story: Wrapping the idea in a story
The book provides a detailed explanation of each principle, with real-world examples of how they have been used to create sticky ideas. It also provides guidance on how to apply these principles to create effective marketing campaigns, product positioning, and branding.
The book also highlights the importance of understanding the cognitive biases that influence people's perceptions and decisions, and how to use them to make ideas more memorable and influential.
The last and final book on the list is “The Power of Habit”
The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg gives a comprehensive understanding of the science of habit formation and how it can be used to create products and marketing campaigns that influence people's behavior.
The book is based on the author's extensive research on neuroscience, psychology, and business, and it explains the mechanisms of habit formation and how habits shape our lives and the way we behave.
The book introduces the concept of "the habit loop" which is a three-step process that describes how habits are formed:
Cue: A trigger that initiates the habit
Routine: The habit itself
Reward: The benefit that reinforces the habit
This Product Growth book provides a detailed explanation of each step, with real-world examples of how they have been used to create and change habits. It also provides guidance on how to use these principles to create products and marketing campaigns that influence people's behavior, and how to change bad habits.
The book also highlights the importance of understanding the role of habit in decision-making, and how habits shape the way we think and feel. It also provides a framework for measuring the success of habit-forming products and campaigns.