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Mike Carleton's Bookshelf

The Business Bookshelf

These are the 14 books behind how we build brands at Forty-Second Street. Mike Carleton has spent 30+ years building brands, and our team works with businesses across Tampa Bay, Wesley Chapel, and beyond. If you only read one, start with $100M Offers.

As an Amazon Associate, Forty-Second Street earns from qualifying purchases. It costs you nothing extra, and we only list books we use.

Offers & Leads

Get more people to say yes.

$100M Offers

by Alex Hormozi

How to build an offer so good people feel silly saying no.

Use it for:Pricing, packages, and guarantees.

See it on Amazon

$100M Leads

by Alex Hormozi

The four ways to get new leads: warm reach-outs, cold reach-outs, content, and ads.

Use it for:Filling your calendar with sales calls.

See it on Amazon

Brand & Positioning

Stand out instead of blending in.

Zag

by Marty Neumeier

When everybody zigs, zag. A short playbook for being different on purpose.

Use it for:Picking what makes you the only choice.

See it on Amazon

The Brand Gap

by Marty Neumeier

Your brand is what customers say about you, not what you say about yourself.

Use it for:Closing the gap between your plan and your look.

See it on Amazon

Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind

by Al Ries & Jack Trout

The classic. Own one simple idea in your customer's head.

Use it for:Choosing the one thing you want to be known for.

See it on Amazon

The Brand Flip

by Marty Neumeier

Customers now run the brand. Build it around who they want to become, not what you sell.

Use it for:Turning buyers into fans who sell for you.

See it on Amazon

Marketing & Attention

Be worth talking about, then show up where people look.

Purple Cow

by Seth Godin

Boring is invisible. Be remarkable or be ignored.

Use it for:Finding the one thing people will tell friends about.

See it on Amazon

This Is Marketing

by Seth Godin

Pick the smallest group you can serve, and serve them better than anyone.

Use it for:Choosing who your business is really for.

See it on Amazon

Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook

by Gary Vaynerchuk

Give, give, give, then ask. How to post on social without sounding like an ad.

Use it for:Your social media plan.

See it on Amazon

Crushing It!

by Gary Vaynerchuk

Your name can be your best marketing. Show up, share what you know, every day.

Use it for:Building a personal brand as the owner.

See it on Amazon

Messaging

Say it so people listen.

Building a StoryBrand 2.0

by Donald Miller

Make the customer the hero and your business the guide. The framework behind the websites we write.

Use it for:Homepage words, ads, and emails.

See it on Amazon

Sales

Win the deal without the pushy stuff.

The Challenger Sale

by Matthew Dixon & Brent Adamson

Teach, tailor, and take control. The sales approach that works on careful buyers.

Use it for:Sales calls and proposals.

See it on Amazon

Time & Habits

Run the business so it doesn't run you.

Buy Back Your Time

by Dan Martell

Stop trading hours for dollars. Hand off the work that drains you.

Use it for:Hiring, delegating, and getting your evenings back.

See it on Amazon

Atomic Habits

by James Clear

Small habits, done daily, beat big goals.

Use it for:Building routines your team will actually keep.

See it on Amazon

Find out what's costing you jobs.

Want to know why your competitor shows up first and you don't? Book the free 30-minute visibility call. We'll pull up your Google Business Profile, your map ranking, and what ChatGPT says when a homeowner asks who to call in your town. You keep the notes either way. Month-to-month if you hire us, so you can stop at the end of any month.
Book a Free Call

How it works

Four simple steps to a phone that rings.

  1. Plan your projectPick a time for a 30-minute call with Mike. Phone or video, your choice.
  2. We look firstWe check your website, your Google profile and what AI says about you. You get a plain-English plan and a clear price.
  3. We build itYour website, your marketing, or both. Done in the order that gets calls fastest.
  4. You see resultsA simple report every month that counts booked calls, not clicks.
Plan My Project →No long contracts. No pressure. Just a plan.
Serving Tampa Bay Businesses Since 2010
Main Office: (813) 564-0500
Phone
Tampa, FL · (813) 564-0500
Office location
Wesley Chapel, FL
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Knoxville & Maryville, TN
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