Reading List: Mark Fitzsimmons of Xigen

“Reading List” is an occasional series where we ask ecommerce professionals to name some of their favorite books and blogs and tell us why they read them.

For this installment, we corresponded with Mark Fitzsimmons. He is managing director at Xigen, a U.K.-based digital agency offering web design, development, ecommerce, and online marketing services.

5 Favorite Books

“Crush It! Why Now Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion“ by Gary Vaynerchuk

“Vaynerchuck is passionate about his business and has used the web skillfully to grow it significantly. He imparts his experience in this short, easy-to-read, motivational book that’s packed full of useful insight.”

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“Launch: An Internet Millionaire’s Secret Formula To Sell Almost Anything Online, Build A Business You Love, And Live The Life Of Your Dreams“ by Jeff Walker

“For those who want to make their entrepreneurial dreams come true by selling online, this title delivers a blueprint that could help do just that. An entertaining read, it provides confidence for those looking to launch and build an online business.”

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“Customer Persuasion: How to Influence your Customers to Buy More and why an Ethical Approach will Always Win“ by Chloë Thomas

“This title simplifies ecommerce marketing and communicates how to implement a lifecycle of customer engagement that will engage and persuade your target audience to be advocates for your brand. I value the step by step approach it takes.”

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“Ecommerce Evolved: The Essential Playbook To Build, Grow & Scale A Successful Ecommerce Business” by Tanner Larsson

“This book helps readers to understand and navigate the big changes in the ecommerce industry — educating them on how to evolve their approach to ecommerce and stand out in a competitive marketplace. It’s clear the author has many years of practical ecommerce experience as he provides interesting, future-proof advice that will help websites to sell more.”

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“DotCom Secrets: The Underground Playbook for Growing Your Company Online” by Russell Brunson

“Packed full of actionable information, this book provides marketing funnels and scripts that have been tried and tested to help businesses trade online. It’s well written, concise, and comprehensive — by someone who’s worked in ecommerce for many years.”

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5 Favorite Blogs

Interesting Engineering

“‘Interesting Engineering’ has a mission to share daily a new idea, technology, or engineering breakthrough. It provides an interesting crossover of ecommerce and the web in general. I log on every day to keep abreast of developments.”

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Charged

I visit this blog for my dose of retail technology news — such as articles on retailers using artificial intelligence, augmented reality, virtual reality, mobile, progressive web apps, robotics, and chatbots.

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The Drum

“Packed full of the latest global marketing news, analysis, and insight, The Drum is one of the most important sources of information I access during the working day.”

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DigitalArts

“There are always new things to learn in digital and web design. DigitalArts keeps me on top of the new trends.”

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Fast Company

“This global media brand publishes thought-provoking, future-gazing articles on all areas of technology, design, and business. It’s always a valuable read.”