The book was quite good as a beginner’s guide. The language was quite simple and informal which would be good for someone just starting out in using social media in business. Any technical jargon was explained in full, so it was very easy to get to grips with it. It would be a good starting point for anyone looking to use social media (and evaluate the benefits of it) whether they are working on their own business or part of a bigger company.
The areas I found particularly interesting were the case studies and the last section about protecting your ROI. The case studies were interesting as they brought the theory contained in the book to life, and helped you to see the lessons learned by established companies. The last section served as a warning, as people can often forget that managing criticism is as important as promoting compliments.
I got a bit irritated that at the end of each chapter the author reminded you to sign up for his Linkedin group. There were about 7 reminders within a 5 chapter book, which kind of felt like I was being spammed by the book. One mention of it would have been enough. It categorically made me feel that I didn’t want to join the group!
I would give the book 8 out of 10, because I enjoyed reading it and thought it was well written, however there were a number of references to other books in the series which I hadn’t read. I got the feeling I would have got more understanding and context if I’d read the other two books first.
