While you'd never know it from Seattle's grey skies, Summer is here. If, like me, you're the type that likes to better your career while you kick back with a book, here's one that will fit the bill.
This past weekend, I was doing some work for a client on social media strategies. I had purchased Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff's book Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies a while back but had not found time to read it, so this work gave me the long overdue excuse. Not only did I read it, but I dog-eared just about every page.
While more than enough books and articles been written about social media and social technologies lately, little of it, in my view, has yielded in practical advice and real world case studies. Finally, Li and Bernoff have given us a real resource for navigating this new world.
While I've criticized Forrester in the past for being too "academic", this is an area where a little schooling makes sense. Far too many companies are leaping into this sandpit without a strategy. The book does a great job of breaking down and distinguishing the types of consumer behavior that drive social media, the types of social media objectives that companies can develop based on business goals, and the current appropriate social technologies and applications based on those objectives.
While the technologies that enable people to connect and get what they need from one another will continue to evolve and change, the discipline of developing a clear strategy based on who your customers are and what you are trying to accomplish should stand for all time. As a follower and proponent of social media, I confess I've been frequently confused by how to best use it and measure effectiveness. I'm sure I'm not alone. E-commerce companies busy with running their day to day businesses will greatly benefit from the clarity Groundswell will provide.
While Li and Bernoff don't provide all the answers (and who would expect them to at this stage of the evolution?), they do get us all to start asking the right questions and considering the consequences of the potential answers. What Summer romance novel can do that?
If you still want more after reading the book, you can participate in the Groundswell conversation at www.forrester.com/Groundswell
Now, if Seattle, could just get some sun!
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