The Best Social Media Manual… Ever! A Book Review of David Meerman Scott’s The New Rules of Marketing & PR

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The_New_Rules_of_Marketing_and_PR_250“What’s the best book I should read to get started with this whole ‘social media’ thing?” When I asked my good friend @mikefixs this question last year, he strongly suggested I read David Meerman Scott’s The New Rules of Marketing & PR, originally published in 2007 with an updated paperback published in 2009. This may represent one of the best pieces of advice on the subject I’ve ever received.

Why?

To begin, just take a look at the author’s subtitle: “How to Use News Releases, Blogs, Podcasting, Viral Marketing & Online Media to Reach Buyers Directly.” What else can I say except, “It works.”

Here’s how.

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Six Things I Discovered From My Twitter Experiment

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3251106353_5e938c592f_o_Twitter_Logo_Bug-Eyed_Bird_250Have you ever read a book that offered a great idea and wondered if it really worked? That’s precisely what I felt after I read Twitter Power by @Joel Comm (here’s the book review). In the book the author outlines a 30-day plan for “dominating Twitter.” So from November 14, 2009 through December 13, 2009 I conducted an experiment. In the process, I discovered these six critical facts about my Twitter use. Has your own Twitter experience revealed similar eye-openers?

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Final Tally – Midnight, December 13, 2009 – Did It Really Work?

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Start of Day Twitter Stats: Follow: 172 Followers: 194 Listed: 9

Missed yesterday? Go here to read what happened on Day 30 – December 13, 2009 (Sun): Have Fun!

twitter_power_joel_comm_150Above you see the final tally as of Midnight, Day 30. In fairness, if I used the same criteria as in all other previous days, the number would have been reported as of the following morning: 202 followers. Who estimated the closest? @mikegastin, who guessed 207. If you’re interest Mike, I hit 207 late on the 31st day. Now, before anyone says anything, Mike was also the first person to guess – on Day 13 – so he really did do the best job.

@mikegastin wants a free trip to Aruba as a result of his grand prognostication. Unfortunately, I didn’t have anything the budget for prizes, so the notoriety of the mention represents all I have to offer. Hopefully, it’s good enough. On the other hand, Mike might be pleased to know Continue Reading “Final Tally – Midnight, December 13, 2009 – Did It Really Work?”

Great Idea. Great Design. But Will It Fly?

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twitter_power_joel_comm_150I’ve got this great idea. Joel Comm outlines a 30-day plan for “dominating Twitter” in his book Twitter Power (here’s the book review). Wouldn’t it offer a great experiment to actually follow his plan for thirty days, blog it live and see what happens. Well, that’s precisely what I intend to share with you.

Does Joel Comm’s 30-day plan really work? Or, was it merely a hook his publisher wanted him to use to bait readers into buying the book? All those with the slightest bit of scientific curiosity will want to know.

My prediction: I’m a skeptic. If I get 100 followers I’ll be happy but not impressed. If I get 1,000 followers I’ll be impressed but not sold. If I get 10,000 followers, not only will I be sold, but I’m sure Joel Comm will sell a heck of a lot more books (and much, much more).

Here’s Day 1 – November 14, 2009 (Sat): Sign Up and Settle In

How many followers do you think I’ll have after 30 days? Click here to enter your guess on my Survey Monkey survey “Chris Carosa’s 30-Day Plan to Dominate Twitter Experiment.” There’s no prize, but the fan who guesses the closest correct number the earliest will “win” and I’ll mention you if you want me to.

Get It While It’s Hot! – A Review of Joel Comm’s twitter power

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twitter_power_joel_comm_250There’s nothing like piping hot pizza right out of the oven. The juicy smell of the tangy tomato sauce makes your mouth melt, while the tasty texture of the toppings delightfully dissolve as they pass through your smacking lips. Yep. There’s nothing like a piping hot pizza right out of the oven.

So it is with twitter power, Joel Comm’s aptly named best-selling guide to all things Twitter. It’s hot. It’s less than a year old. And it’s fast going out of date. Still, it delivers beyond what it promises and you simply must read it if you’re about to embark on a journey through Twitterville. How do I know this?

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It’s Déjà Vu All Over Again

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A lot of people had Veteran’s Day off. Not me. Not only did our office remain open (we’re open whenever the market’s open), but my day overflowed with meetings and conferences. I spent the bulk of the day at the Rochester Memorial Art Gallery participating in the Social Media Today conference with easily a couple hundred other folks interested in the latest happenings in the Web 2.0 world. Graciously organized by Ana Roca Castro, who did a wonderful job despite forgetting to include bathroom breaks in the agenda, the event exceeded her expectations and deservedly so.

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Oddly, it didn’t take long for an eerie feeling of “haven’t I been here before?” to course through my ancient synapses. No, the presentations didn’t tell me things I already knew (quite the contrary). Hmm, how can I describe it? More like teetering on the eager cusp of undiscovered opportunity. (The last time I felt this way occurred nearly 25 years ago in the German House, but that’s a story for another day.)

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A Spoonful of MSG – A Review of Seth Godin’s Tribes

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Somewhere in the middle of Tribes, Seth Godin writes of the blog msg150.com (under the heading “Three Hungry Men and a Tribe,” pages 62-63 in my 2008 Portfolio (Penguin Group) 10th edition). As the author puts it, “This blog is obsessively chronicling every restaurant in a sixteen-block square of Seattle.” Leaving aside the unnecessary use of the passive, let’s focus on the meat of this particular reference. It turns out, most of the restaurants covered by msg150.com carry Asian cuisine. And you know what they say: Chinese food fills you up quickly, but, a half hour later, you’re hungry again.”

I can think of no better epitaph for the book Tribes, the eleventh book by the bestselling author of Purple Cow and The Dip.

Tribes CoverNow, don’t get me wrong. I’m not here to disparage the book. Far from it. I consider Tribes a must read for reasons I hope to make clear. More to the point, I’m not going to begrudge someone born five days before me, possibly even in the same hospital. Quite simply, I’m merely going to follow his instructions (“Fear of Failure is Overrated,” pp 46-48) and offer some constructive criticism.

First, if you’re new to the whole Web 2.0 and social media thing, Tribes represents perhaps the easiest entrée into the embracing concept behind this innovative world. It’s easy to read. I finished it in just a few hours despite the many interruptions and distractions of a relatively free Saturday (let’s see, that would include one Boy Scout Training class, Saturday Mass and my daughter’s high school drama production). The book contains very little jargon – or at least very little of the kind of jargon that might scare neophytes away.

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