Secrets of Social Media Marketing: How to Use Online Conversations and Customer Communities to Turbo-Charge Your Business!

As a graduate school digital media and communication professor at the University of Washington, I've made this book, and Gillin's previous "The New Influencers" required reading in my Social Production and Business of User Generated Content classes. Gillin "got it" before many other people in the business world. I quickly subscribed to his "New Influencers" thinking when many were still doubting the longevity of social media and "Web 2.0." It was the best decision I could have made: we now have record applications to our Masters' program (http://www.uwdigitalmedia.org). Our students engage in both conceptual thinking, and hands-on case study work with community-based "clients." "Secrets of Social Media Marketing" is their handbook: a practical guide to proven practices in the "real world." Gillin writes with accessible authority, providing credible examples and highly relevant perspective. Supplement the book with the "breaking news" from his blog, and you have an unbeatable combination for decision-making in this presently tumultuous world of business communication. I give talks nationally on the changing face of marketing, public relations and journalism. Gillin is always at the top of my recommended reading list.

Gillin writes as traditional broadcast (and print) channels produce poorer returns for marketers as mainstream media fades in importance. He points to Barack Obama's campaign as an example of decreased reliance on 30-second TV ads. Instead, the campaign narrowcast his messages through every conceivable electronic medium, every waking hour. Why should a company care about social media? Because customers are publishing their opinions of companies and products. Customers take their problems directly to the Web, whether through consumer advocacy sites like Consumerist.com, RipOffReport.com, or on their own blogs and social networks. Gillin says failure to listen will only be taken as evidence that the company doesn't care. On the other hand, repeating the message back to the source and delivering a well-reasoned response can go miles toward demonstrating concern. For example, the Southwest Airlines blog Nuts About Southwest has won awards and frequently been cited as a shining example of how businesses can use new media to create meaningful dialogue with their customers. Chapter 7 describes the opportunities and limitations of advertising in social networks, including MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Companies should monitor he conversations taking place there. But before marketers start to use social media channels, they need to decide if that's a good idea in the first place, Gillin cautions. For some businesses, it isn't. Not everyone is online-savvy. Your social media efforts will probably miss this audience entirely. Social media marketing demands a different approach to customer interactions. Engagement is in, interruption is out. The first thing you need to do is stop pitching, Gillin says. The new style of marketing is about engagement. It means forming a relationship with a prospect through the exchange of useful, meaningful information. In the future, Gillin says, success will result from continuous innovation and outstanding customer service wrapped around a continuous feedback loop.

This is a comprehensive overview of social media marketing, with enough detail to make it useful for marketing practitioners, yet not having so much detail as to confuse or overwhelm. It's an excellent starting point for small business owners and leaders, corporate executives, traditional media marketers and advertisers, SEO and SEM service providers, and public relations specialists. Using case studies, bios of power users, and drawing on his own experience as a tech sector journalist, Gillin makes a strong case for why - and how - social media works. He explains social networking etiquette, which tools to use and for what purpose, how to develop online relationships that support corporate objectives, how to effectively write, promote, and engage on the social Web, and significantly, how to measure results of social media activity. I found his detailed advice on podcasting, video, and image (photo) creation especially helpful, since there's comparatively little written on these topics. If you are trying to figure out what all the fuss is about blogs, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, this book is for you. If you're ready to launch your own social media program, this book will tell you how. Gillin gets into the nitty gritty, explaining such things as how bookmarking sites work, how to use YouTube for business, how to promote your blog, why blogs improve search engine visibility, and why talking to customers increases customer loyalty, attracts business, and accelerates new product/service development. Like all books on social media, it's best to read this one now. A year from now, a good bit of the information is likely to be out of date, as Gillin himself points out. In his closing chapter, Gillin points out that the social Web is not just for marketers. Employees at every level in a business will be directly engaging customers online - it's already happening. And already, customers are talking about companies on Twitter, Facebook, and the like, whether companies participate in the conversations or not. Gillin's conclusion - social media is not a fad, it's a permanent sea change in how business communication takes place. Nobody in management can afford to be in the dark about these developments, which is why I think "Secrets" is a genuinely important book.

I just started reading this book and am absolutely convinced that it is the best resource you'll find regarding social media marketing. Get it and I guarantee you'll continuously refer to it for honest insight that is so well written that even a caveman can now do social media marketing. I have some colleagues waiting to borrow my copy but that's just not going to happen -- they'll have to get their own as I'm not lending this one out.

I liked this book very much. I read the author's first book on this subject back in July, 2007. And now he has a second great book out on the subject. It includes the following 16 chapters: 1. Making the case 2. Making choices 3. Ear to the ground 4. Courting online influencers 5. Corporate soapboxes 6. Customer conversations 7. The social network gorillas 8. Niche innovations 9. Learning from conversations 10. Basics of social media content 11. Picking your spot 12. Telling stories with words and images 13. Engagement through interaction 14. Promote thyself 15. Measuring results 16. Celebrating change The book was very easy to read. It is full of great content. And it is very well researched. I found each of the chapters to be packed full of cites to Web sites that are critical players in the social media marketing realm of things. And I've read quite a few books on this subject. I can tell you this book is not simple fluff or something merely written in order to capitalize on the current popularity of the subject matter. There are real world examples cited throughout the text. And I found them to be very good additions to the points being made in the main body of the book's content. So the numerous cites to Web sites and the inclusion of real world examples makes this book a goldmine of information for anyone hungry to learn about social media marketing. I had one problem with the book - its organization. When I completed it and sat down to write this review I said to myself: "There are 16 chapters in this book. How can they be broken down into three or four "parts?" I had hoped it would be easy for me to eyeball the parts. Unfortunately, it wasn't that simple. Below is how I think the book probably should have been organized to be a little more easily digestible. 5 stars! [I] WHY PRACTICE SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING? 1. Making the case 14. Promote thyself 8. Niche innovations [II] HOW DOES SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING WORK? 10. Basics of social media content 12. Telling stories with words and images 5. Corporate soapboxes 4. Courting online influencers 6. Customer conversations 13. Engagement through interaction 3. Ear to the ground 9. Learning from conversations 16. Celebrating change 15. Measuring results [III] SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING OPTIONS 2. Making choices 11. Picking your spot 7. The social network gorillas