Published by Angus on 02 Sep 2009 at 04:03 am
Finally, ‘The’ book on Social Media
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We have read a lot of books over the last year that aimed to be the “go to” source for understanding Social Media. Finally, one stands out. Here we review, ‘The New Community Rules’ by Tamar Weinberg – probably the single most important book to read this year if you are involved in marketing your organization or cause on the web. |
Practical, readable and accessible to those just getting starting out in this area, ‘The New Community Rules’ is sure to become the social media “bible”. It starts off with a brief introduction to what social media is, follows with how to set goals, gets into the specifics of what to do, and finishes off with how to measure your results. Tools touched on include: blogs, microblogging, social networks, social bookmarking, social news, Q&A websites, photography, video, and podcasting. At the end, there is a nice ‘Ultimate Social Media Etiquette Handbook’ that spells out the dos and dont’s of using some of the more popular social media sites.
Some points specifically stood out for me. First, Tamar makes it clear that you need to pick and choose which tools to focus on based on your goals and target community – something strangely absent from many other social media books. Then she goes further by spotlighting niche sites that cater to specific audiences, making the point that you can get a lot more exposure with a lot less effort if you use them. WiserEarth, for example, would fit into that category. Second, she goes into a lot of details on what she calls ‘Informational Social Networks’ like Wikipedia, Mahalo Answers, and Yahoo Answers which get a lot of traffic and can generate significant ongoing referrals. Finally, since I’ve never really been able to understand StumbleUpon, a social bookmarking service that we use to great effect at WiserEarth, it was a revelation to read the description in the book.
Besides this book, we recommend a number of other social media “must reads”:
- We Are Media – a community effort lead by Beth and NTEN to put together an online curriculum for nonprofits using social media. Since its a wiki and frequently updated it won’t be obsolete like a book!
- Mobilizing Generation 2.0 by Ben Rigby – a nice summary of social media tools with specifically tailored strategies for the activist / nonprofit community.
- Here Comes Everybody by Clay Shirky – an oldy (in social media terms) but a goodie, this book is filled with great stories that illustrate the power of social media. It’s a helpful frame for starting you web 2.0 exploration.
- Taking On the System: Rules for Radical Change in a Digital Era by Markos Moulitsas (Daily Kos) – lots of great anecdotes and practical advice from one of the smartest digital activist bloggers around.
Book information
- Amazon: The New Community Rules
- Author: Tamar Weinberg
- Publisher: O’Reilly Media, Inc.; 1 edition (July 23, 2009)
- ISBN-13: 978-0596156817
- ISBN-10: 0596156812
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Tags: Book Review, How-to, social media
10 Responses to “Finally, ‘The’ book on Social Media”
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The social media scene is too new and changing too fast for a “bible” or any real “gurus,” but a process of constantly building better definitions and getting fresh perspectives on the power and potential of growing and new venues is so important for us all. It sounds like this book is a strong contribution to that evolution. Thanks for bringing it to our attention!
Hey WiserEarth guys, thanks for reviewing the book. Glad you liked it.
Gary, you’re absolutely correct and this is one obstacle I often grappled with while writing the book — so much is outdated so quickly! In fact, I submitted the entire book’s manuscript in February, but I had to add new tools that arose in the meantime (su.pr, TweetDeck for iPhone, etc) and I also had to remove other tools that already died (ma.gnolia, etc.) in order to make this as timely as possible. It’s a challenge since the digital landscape is constantly changing.
Still, though, as much as this likely will see second and third editions (I’m already scared at the prospect), the community-building ideas for these sites are still the same — and while it’s not a book that will live forever, similar rules will apply on new sites and new communities.
@Tamar – is there a blog where you are collecting input and sharing ideas for your book and its revisions? By the way thanks a lot for writing this book, it will make our lives a lot easier.
@Gary – Completely agree. As soon as a book is published in this field it is out of date but for …
Tamar – Great job! Can I get a copy?
The only problem that I have with the above, is that there is a “Social Media Bible” already! I think the book would be a great “Social Media Guide” like the Mashable web site!
I kind of disagree with it’s obsolescence. With my book the value of video over text, the way a podcast is created, why blogging is so important, how people search for photos, how to do a SWOT analysis hasn’t changed at all. In three years the content of The Social Media Bible will be every bit as valueable as it is today. Yeah, some of the players / technologies will change, but the basics, the strategies, the techniques, the psychology will all still be the same.
Way… To… Go… Tamar -Lon
Hey Angus, I don’t have a blog but you can always use my personal blog as I’m collecting data: http://www.techipedia.com/contact. Also, the “official” page for the book is at http://www.newcommunityrules.com but it really is just an aggregate of reviews.
Lon, I’ll email you.
@Tamar: Thank you for the info. Best, Angus
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