Recommended Books & Magazines
Following are a few of the books that are part of my core library that I have read and HIGHLY recommend (essentials (some are classics) for each category). Note: As an Amazon Associate (affiliate), I link and earn from qualifying purchases.
Advertising
- Ogilvy On Advertising. This is the core foundation for ROI based ads.
- Media Buying Academy (videos). If you buy, then get this training.
Entrepreneur
- A Good Hard Kick In The Ass – Basic Training for Entrepreneurs. Practical advise from the Product Manager for Lotus Notes and a VC (in the Finance Video).
- How To Finance A High-Tech Start-Up (DVD). FREE – so watch this as your foundation for funding.
- Venture Capital Handbook. Practical concepts you need to know if getting funding.
Channel & Alliances
- Canalys Top 55 Channel & Alliances Books. A list of channel books for vendor and distributor partner leaders. Compiled by Noah dantes and Jay McBain. 2024.
Employment
- Rites of Passage – Your Guide To 100k+ Jobs. The best recruiting books I’ve ever read–I built an entire seminar around it.
Industry
- In Search of Stupidity – 20 Years of High-Tech Marketing Disasters. Do NOT make the same mistakes – by Rick, on my board–very funny.
- Hard Drive – The Making of the Microsoft Empire. The definitive history of the world built by Microsoft–a classic.
SaaS Industry
- SaaS Industry Report. Over 580 pages containing the industry’s most invaluable data and survey results on SaaS. Covers operations, ratios, pricing and subscription modesl, re-subscription metrics, SaaS architecture, SaaS Security, reseller channels (affiliate, OEM, reseller), sales metrics, customer service–it is THE most comprehensive resource in the industry for SaaS.
- SaaS Entrepreneur: The Definitive Guide to Success in Your Cloud Application Business. This is by far, the most thorough, effective book on how to setup, manage and succeed with a SaaS application. It is written by the Editor in Chief of SoftLetter (the industry’s #1 source for industry information) and has the most recent and accurate metrics compiled from over 200 SaaS companies. A must have if you are in the SaaS market space.
Marketing Communications
- White Papers for Dummies. Excellent book about how to write and promote white papers. See Chanimal review.
- The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing. Very practical tips on market promotions.
- The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding. My first book (of many) on branding–classic.
- Your Marketing Sucks. Yeah, most marketing (promotions) is not good–this explains why and how to fix it.
- Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind. Excellent examples of sucessful product positioning–easy read.
Management
- Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. The all-time classic for working with people–get it, learn it, live by it.
- The One Minute Manager. Entertaining, classic and timeless.
- Putting The One Minute Manager To Work. Shows how to implement the principles.
- Leadership and The One Minute Manager. Introduces the PAR, PIP, etc. Classic.
- One Page Management. Wow – I wrote a white paper about this same concept. The defacto for managerial reports.
- The One Minute Manager Meets the Monkey. If it says One Minute Manager… just get it.
- Gung Ho. How to make your teams buy in on your vision–so everyone is pulling.
- One Minute for Myself. It’s all about balance.
- The One Minute Manager Gets Fit. Yep, FAT doesn’t help you succeed.
- Raving Fans. Same author as OMM – classic.
- Situational Leader. The original book that started the One Minute Manager series (classic)
- The Game of Work. This book changed my entire career in sales and applies else ware (all about the numbers)
- Dress For Success. Ultimate classic. Think “class” and you do well every time.
Product Management
- The Product Marketing Manager’s Handbook for Software. This is “The” book for our industry–read it and you will be 10 years ahead.
- Crossing The Chasm. A classic explanation of the technology adoption cycle. I didn’t know this at one time and it cost me.
- Inside The Tornado. The second part of Crossing. Classic–finally, intelligent marketing that works.
- Market Orientated Pricing. Exellent book that explains the framework for establishing pricing.
Sales
- The Greatest Salesman In The World. The greatest classic ever–I almost memorized this entire book (read over 50 times! It is part of me)
- The Lacy Techniques. Helped increase my door ratio from 27 – 97%. The time in my life when I did direct sales.
- How To Master The Art of Selling – Tom Hopkins. Hard skills – closing, overcoming objections, essential for anyone who carries a bag.
- The One Minute Sales Person. Again, a OMM series–easy to read, quick to apply.
- Spin Selling. The classic model of solution selling (solve the problem and your product will sell).
- Secrets To Closing The Sale – Zig Ziglar. Another “hard” sales skills. Zig is the perfect trainer (I have read almost every book and wore out his tapes!
Chanimal #1 Rated Book
The Product Marketing Handbook for Software is the #1 rated book by Chanimal for anyone in hi-tech (software or hardware). If you only get one book from this entire list–this needs to be it!
“I highly recommend it!” Ted Finch, Chanimal
Newsletters & Resources (e-mail & print)
Below are several hi-tech industry newsletters and forums along with a brief description.
- The Levison Letter. Monthly hi-tech newsletter for direct mail, copy and ads.
- Softletter. An industry stable – around for over a decade.
- Pragmatic Marketing. No called Pragmatic Institute. e-Mail and monthly publication for high-tech product management. Great!
- Product Mgmt Challenges. Periodic e -Mail newsletter. Type “subscribe” in subject line.
Hi-Tech Magazines
Below are several publications for the hi-tech industry.
- ChannelWeb
- CIO Magazine
- Computer Reseller
- ComputerWorld
- InformationWeek
- Infoworld
- InternetWorld
- MacWorld
- Network Computing
- PC Gamer
- PC Magazine
- PC World
- Red Herring
- VAR Business
Industry Lists
Partner events, magazines, associations, chanel leaders, training, etc. (Chanimal is found in many of these directories). Compiled by Canalys:
- 270 partner events: https://www.canalys.com/insights/top-270-industry-events-msps-vars-tech-channel-professionals
- 106 industry magazines: https://www.canalys.com/insights/top-106-channel-magazines-worldwide-msps-vars-integrators-solution-providers-it-consultants-read
- 67 channel-friendly associations: https://canalys.com/insights/top-67-associations-MSPs-VARs-tech-channel-professionals-worldwide
- 146 social media groups: https://www.canalys.com/insights/top-146-social-media-groups-for-msps-vars-and-tech-channel-professionals
- 117 thought leaders & channel consultants: https://canalys.com/insights/top-117-technology-consultants-and-agencies
- 121 channel podcasts: https://www.canalys.com/insights/top-121-channel-podcasts
- Top 59 peer groups and communities for channel ecosystem professionals: https://canalys.com/insights/channel-ecosystem-peer-groups
- 41 training and education courses: https://canalys.com/insights/the-top-41-education-and-training-programs-for-channel-and-partnership-professionals
- Top 261 channel software technology tools: https://www.canalys.com/insights/channels-ecosystem-landscape-2025
Recommended Software & Systems
Here are some of the software applications that I use and recommend:
Affiliate Software
Used to track affiliate / referral partners.
- PostAffiliatePro. I recommend using PostAffiliatePro.com on your site to capture all the leads you recruit (they also have one of the best integration alliances–so lots of other applications work with them). I would try to find their self-install version (much cheaper than their SaaS version).
- AffiliateWP. If you use WordPress, then I recommend AffiliateWP. Their pricing is about 1/10th PostAffiliatePro and they have similar features. There are numerous positive comparative reviews that show the features (I especially like the Gravity Forms and Paid Membership Pro integrations).
Learning Management System (LMS)
Used to train your partners and run your certification programs.
- LearnDash. I have reviewed over 20 LMS systems (installed, used–or tried to use). I use LearnDash for the Chanimal University Certification Program. It works inside WordPress and is amazingly powerful. Here is a video.
- Thinkific. For a stand-alone, non-WordPress LMS I recommend Thinkific. Many LMS systems are good for universities, some for basic courses, but if you need something for training partners and for certification (with certificates), then Thinkific is my first choice. It is similar to Teachable–but Teachable takes a percentage revenue for the lower plans, 10% for free, plus 2% for BackOffice payouts (not obvious during signup) which can add up). Here is a detailed review between Thinkific and Teachable (opens own window).
Internet Service Provider & Video Hosting
If you use a WordPress LMS like LearnDash (above), then you will need to host it with an Internet Service Provider. I used to use BlueHost, but as a shared server they kept getting slower. Now, after about 20 hours or research (comparing WP Engine, Kiesta, etc.), I went with CloudWays.
- Cloudways. Click HERE for a review I did on G2 that shows the detailed selection process I followed. HERE is a link from Cloudways for a discount coupon ($15)
- Swarmify. The Video CDN (content delivery network) I use to host all Chanimal and Chanimal University videos. It is FAST (no delays like YouTube), secure (no way to copy except screen scrapers), no ads (does not show competitive ads like YouTube), and can accelerate the video (you can watch up to 2x speed). Plus, it is super easy to use.
Lifetime SaaS Deals
- AppSumo. One of my clients recommended AppSumo years ago and I picked up SerpStat (similar to SEMRush) SEO software for $49 lifetime deal (instead of $49 per month). I’ve now saved over $1,200 during this time and have used it for my own site and others. Since that time I have purchased lifetime access to my calendar app, my accounting software, my analytics for social comparisons, my DepositPhotos for my site and certification videos, and the list continues. It is a reseller channel for new SaaS applications to jump-start hundreds if not thousands of new customers and testimonials. I highly recommend it!
Software Investigating
Here is a list of software and systems I am aware of and investigating. I want to list them, but I don’t know much about them yet.
- Partnertap.com Enterprise partner platform. For data-driven discovery for partner revenue.
- BuzzBuilderPro.com. Outbound lead generation.
Contact Info
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I join a LOT of affiliate programs (connoisseur–like to see what they do), including Amazon, so there may be links throughout Chanimal.