Months ago, I requested and received from Forrester Research a review copy of the book “Groundswell” by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff. Little did they know it would take me months to get around to finishing it, or that I would try (and fail) to post my review via phone, limiting me to about 100 words. Like I just said, that failed, and this review will be slightly longer.
I’m not going to judge the quality of Groundswell. It’s pointless; this is an excellent book. I have always admired the work done at Forrester Research, and this book follows suit in thoroughness, though it reads much better than a research report. It’s not nearly so dry (ok, define “dry” but I didn’t get bored). Most of the authors of these too-many books on social media are pretty smart and make good cases. So rather than publish a book review, here are just a few observations:
Note: turns out I devolved into nitpicking below. Let’s just say Groundswell is an excellent book to dive into and use a basis for making the case for social media in your company. It brings as good a pack of case studies as any of these social media books, and has the credibility of Forrester Research behind it. And frankly, listing out the things I liked in the book is no fun beyond what I just wrote. So enjoy my nits– they’re more social media nitpicks than criticisms of the book anyway. Feel free to have at it in comments.
I do wish Li and Bernoff they had been more explicit about how to sell social media inside a company, and what chunk of a business social media might represent. Sure, one size doesn’t fit all, but people needing to sell social media need to figure out how to show how it’ll move the needle. Will case studies alone work? I think they might, but I’m not now in the position of having to try that. In short, recommending changes in entrenched corporations we all can agree is smart, but it just isn’t easy. I guess I’m looking for a manual rather than a narrative.
I was astounded at the estimated cost- -$283,000 for the first year – of starting an executive blog. If I presented that as a potential budget item, I’d probably be shipped off to the Presque Isle office (the epitome of the frozen outpost- a reference from my retail days– ok, just say “Siberia”). That sounds like a lot of lettuce. If I’m selling, I might limit my pitch to materials costs (using internal IT, emphasizing inexpensive blogging platforms, selling the enthusiasm that the blogging executive had better bring to the endeavor), as well as the benefits also laid out in the book.
OK, gosh, I’m picking nits– but while I’m at it, how are the BlendTec ads “conversation?” They’re commercial spots. Mr. BlendTec man is not dialoging with his customers, he’s starring in an extremely entertaining one-to-many video. That’s not the innovation, the media they chose to distribute was innovative and the ability to let people share the videos was ingenious– though I guess it’s old hat now.
(Gratuitous insertion of BlendTec video. Mmmm, guacamole….)
Really. I liked the book a lot. I can just get grouchy sometimes.
One last one: the vision of the “future” in Groundswell seems to rely on “push” technologies. I would argue that the fractured media audience is evolving towards more “pull” – on-demand viewing/reading/whatever. Of course, this may reflect a personal preference.
Technorati Tags: blendtec, groundswell, forrester, socialmedia, bernoff, charleneli
“I was astounded at the estimated cost- -$283,000 for the first year – of starting an executive blog. ” What…kind of bullshit is that? Blogs are free, except for the time…idiots..people like simple..all you need to do is write once a week, once a day and talk about what makes your company great…
You raise a good point with the BlendTec thing. For some reason, we’ve come to believe that videos and podcasts are social media vehicles. I suppose the fact that anyone can set up a video is what puts the power in the hands of an individual, and that’s why it has the potential to be social.. but it’s a stretch.
..although, now that I think about it, it may be s subtle point about what is required in social media: something interesting that is worthy of people communicating about. It’s the “hook”.
In some of my client engagements, they know that they want some of this social media juice, but they don’t really realize that there needs to be something for people to discuss.. it’s not enough to throw a “forward to a friend” link on a website. Blendtec wasn’t a platform that enabled people to talk, but it was SOMETHING for them to talk about, in a simple package that could be easily shared.
I think video is the least social of the “social media.” It’s too much work to consume. Blendtec launched a lot of conversations, but Blendtec itself wasn’t necessarily part of that dialogue– nor did it have to be.