A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of interviewing one of Businessweek’s Top 25 Under 25 Entrepreneurs in North America, Shama Hyder, on the subject of social media (interview accessible here).
We talked about her new book, The Zen of Social Media Marketing, and since she was kind enough to send me a copy before my copy from Amazon.com arrived, I thought I would give you a quick review.
The book is a great primer on social media for the beginner and intermediate user. I personally found some great tips that I was not aware of (especially since I am fairly new to Twitter). Here’s what I think you might like about it:
-It sets the stage for what you need to do before you engage in social media (i.e., know your brand, customer and messaging!);
-It is written in a very straightforward, easy to “consume” style;
-It has tips and insights peppered in along the way from lots of great experts, including Chris Brogan (who wrote the forward), Mitch Meyerson, Suzanne Falter-Barns, Michael Martine, Pam Slim, Jonathan Fields, Nancy Marmolejo and many others);
-It has pictures with captions to help you navigate the major sites like Facebook, Linked In and Twitter;
-It touches on etiquette with helpful do’s and don’ts;
-It is chock full of recommendations, insights, FAQs; and
-It is a “living book”, so continuous updates will be available online as the social media landscape evolves.
Like most good books, there was so much relevant content that mine is covered in sticky-note markers and I intend to read it at least twice to make sure that I am getting the most out of what is presented.
If you are not making the most of online tools yet, this is a book that should be on your business bookshelf. It is available at http://zenofsocialmedia.com/ or your favorite business bookseller.
