The Architect’s Reading List

Books to inspire and inform architecture firm owners

Classics and new titles that earned a spot on our Archmark reading list for architecture firm owners.

We’ve included the links to audio books at Audible.

Focus & Mindset

Design Is a Job
By: Mike Monteiro
From contracts to selling design, from working with clients to working with each other, this brief book is packed with knowledge you can't afford not to know.

Essentialism
The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
By: Greg McKeown

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life
By: Mark Manson

The War of Art
Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles
By: Steven Pressfield

Thinking, Fast and Slow
By: Daniel Kahneman

Finance & Systems

The 10X Rule
The Only Difference Between Success and Failure
By: Grant Cardone

The Hard Thing About Hard Things
Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers
By: Ben Horowitz

Principles
Life and Work
By: Ray Dalio

Profit First
Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine
By: Mike Michalowicz

Scaling Up
How a Few Companies Make It...and Why the Rest Don't, Rockefeller Habits 2.0
By: Verne Harnish

Negotiation, Pricing, & Sales

Connect
The Secret LinkedIn Playbook to Generate Leads, Build Relationships, and Dramatically Increase Your Sales
By: Josh Turner

Never Lose a Client Again
Turn Any Sale into Lifelong Loyalty in 100 Days
By: Joey Coleman

Objections
The Ultimate Guide for Mastering the Art and Science of Getting past No

By: Jeb Blount

Pitch Anything
An Innovative Method for Presenting, Persuading, and Winning the Deal
By: Oren Klaff

The Win Without Pitching Manifesto
By: Blair Enns

A manifesto of business practices for those who sell ideas and advice.

Communication & Marketing

Building a StoryBrand
Clarify Your Message So Clients Will Listen
By: Donald Miller

Everybody Writes

Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content

By: Ann Handley

Steal the Show
From Speeches to Job Interviews to Deal-Closing Pitches, How to Guarantee a Standing Ovation for All the Performances in Your Life
By: Michael Port
Start here is you can only imagine heading into a proposal meeting or stepping onto the stage with complete confidence.

The Referral Engine
Teaching Your Business to Market Itself
By: John Jantsch

They Ask You Answer
A Revolutionary Approach to Inbound Sales, Content Marketing, and Today's Digital Consumer
By: Marcus Sheridan
Don’t let the word digital in the title make you think this isn’t relevant for your architect firm. In fact, your firm’s online presence has never been more important that it is today.

Management & Running a Firm

Architect and Entrepreneur
A Field Guide: Building, Branding, and Marketing Your Startup Design Business
By: Eric W Reinholdt

Clockwork
Design Your Business to Run Itself
By: Mike Michalowicz

The E-Myth Architect

Why Most Architectural Firms Don’t Work and What To Do About It
by Michael Gerber & Norbert C. Lemermeyer

Good to Great
Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't
By: Jim Collins
A business classic that is as relevant today as it was when first published. If you’re trying to push yourself and your team forward to greater productivity and accomplishments, you’ll find the straightforward principles in this book give you clearer direction and get your team focused on going from good to great.

Traction
Get a Grip on Your Business
By: Gino Wickman
This game-changing book will help firm owners be more strategic in thinking, planning, and running a more profitable business.

A hand is putting Money into a jar with an arrow pointing back.

Maximizing Marketing ROI for Architecture Firms: 10 Strategies That Deliver Results

By Bryon McCartney • 03 Jun, 2024

Architecture marketing can sometimes feel confusing—we get it! You're putting out content, updating your website, maybe even dabbling in social media, but are you getting a good return on your efforts? Is your marketing actually helping to generate leads and revenue? You want to maximize your return on investment (ROI) on marketing—but, how? Maximizing marketing ROI for architecture firms is about measuring what works and what doesn’t and using that information to develop and focus on strategies that pay off and avoid the ones that drain your resources—both time and money. In this article we are sharing insights and strategies that can transform the way you market your architectural firm. We're talking about making every dollar count and turning your marketing efforts into a plan for success, just like your architectural projects.