A quick one this.
You want to understand social media better? Forget about the toolkit for the moment and learn the phrase “It’s all about the people”. That’s it.
It’s not about the technology. People are, and always have been, social animals. They have shared, communicated, discussed and recommended to their social groups since the development of language - No hang on, since even earlier - I’m sure that certain neanderthal grunts and fingerpoints at poisonous berries could be considered a 0 out of 5 star review.
The tools available online now aren’t creating new behaviour, they are simply supercharging behaviour that’s always been there. It’s this behaviour that matters. How can you shape it? Contribute to it? Sustain it? and do all this long term? Well, roughly speaking you do this by developing solid strategic objectives and exploiting the tools that are currently available, as they become available.
So, from the outset, don’t start by thinking about Twitter and Facebook, start by thinking about people and then incorporate the tools as appropriate to the job at hand.
Crush It. This is the new book from Gary Vaynerchuk. If you're a follower of GV already then you may not find anything new, but it's a good roundup of his point of view.
The Cluetrain Manifesto. There are some real 'Aha' moments in this book. Some people have taken their worship of The Cluetrain Manifesto (now a decade old) to ridiculous heights and I'm not one of them, but it's still a good read. Get down and read it like it's 1999. Updated.
Naked Conversations. Contains blogging's 6 pillars and other pearls of wisdom. Loads of case studies and examples that are relevant for anyone planning, or writing, a blog.
