By Marylene Delbourg-Delphis @mddelphis
Books related to social media marketing keep coming out. The truth is that even if Internet and social media marketing aren’t new, the information needs for marketing managers are huge: the more they read, the faster they will get the immersion feel enabling them to move from a tactical use of social media to a strategic management of social media campaigns.
Not all books are equally valuable, though. Count Facebook Marketing an hour a day by Chris Treadaway (@ctreada) and Mari Smith (@MariSmith) among the great ones. Unpretentious and practical, it takes you by the hand and shows you how Facebook can work for you, as an individual with a personal practice, or as a social “editor-in-chief” for your company. Even if you believe that you already “know” a lot, read this book as it’s quite possible that you might not yet be taking full advantage of what you “know.”
The first chapter is one of the simplest and best written short history of Internet Marketing I have seen in a while; it summarizes how customer targeting is quickly evolving towards building up coherent sets of motivated and intention-driven social commerce addressees, and takes you to the second chapter on what Facebook is: a platform that brings people to real or virtual places or stores based on who they are, what they like, or what they are looking for. In other words, people who have described themselves in their own terms. Based on this understanding of the potential of Facebook as a sales and marketing platform, you are able to define your “social media product,” because “the social media presence is, in effect, an interactive online product.” Promoting or positioning this “product” requires a structured view of your social media project, so start with the beginning: Create a campaign. Facebook Marketing is one of the few books reminding you of this simple, yet critical concept of “campaign”: it’s what kicks off the entire work process and your operational plan.
Chapters 4 to 7 take you through a month-by-month (as well as week-by-week and day-by-day) planning and execution plan. This is yet another real plus of this book: the authors are hands-on practitioners sincerely willing to transfer their own experience and turn you into empowered, rather than dogmatic, professionals. Because measurable success will not come overnight. It’s the result of an iterative process composed of a collection of adjustments, experiments, and reassessments. “Remember,” the authors warn, “these projects involve a lot of trials and errors.” So, generally speaking, no matter how convinced you may be that you are cutting edge, always temper your own expectations, don’t over-promise, and measure impact and results like crazy.
The last three chapters offer a variety of tips and advice – from leveraging Facebook apps to picking up the right people and vendors – and invite you to remain on the look out. Facebook has quickly become a marketing power-kingdom. Continued learning will be part of your continued success. Incidentally, keep abreast with the authors’ sites and wisdom.
Note: The authors mention a few software products at the end of the book, including ObjectiveMarketer, a company for which I am a Board Member. The platform specifically focuses on the end-to-end management of social media campaigns- from the planning stage across a team to the distribution across multiple media channels, all the way to the analytics evaluating the effectiveness of messages.
16 responses so far ↓
1 Excellent practical guide: Facebook Marketing, an hour a day by … | marketing and business // May 31, 2010 at 2:27 pm
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2 Tweets that mention Excellent practical guide: Facebook Marketing, an hour a day by Chris Treadaway and Mari Smith -- Topsy.com // May 31, 2010 at 3:45 pm
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by amitapaul, objectivemarketer. objectivemarketer said: RT @amitapaul Book Review by @mddelphis: "Facebook Marketing an hour a day – by @ctreada and @marismith" http://om.ly/klJI […]
3 Todd Fonseca, author of The Time Cavern // May 31, 2010 at 4:24 pm
Great review! I appreciate the detailed chapter comments. Very helpful. Have you put anything you learned into practice yet? Any thoughts on effectiveness?
4 Mari Smith // May 31, 2010 at 7:10 pm
Wowee, Marylene – what a fantastic review. I love how helpful and detailed you made this. Thank you so much!!!
As Facebook is changing so rapidly, Chris and I offer a coupon at the very back of the book for a series of free online workshops where we go deeper into some of the teachings of the book and also cover the latest changes~! (Whew, a non-stop process to keep up with Facebook.com!)
Cheers,
@marismith
5 Alex Tagus // Jun 4, 2010 at 11:34 pm
Well comprehensive review and it drives me to purchase this book. Since I want to start my own firm and I think a good way to start is to market my business through Facebook. Keep it up!
Regards,
Alex Tagus
6 Alex Posicionamiento Web // Jun 14, 2010 at 11:02 pm
Marketing could be done in many ways that is why a lot of marketers are finding different ways. One way is through Facebook and other social media sites. But it won’t be that easy because it will depend on your target market, strategy and outsourcing abilities. This article is really great because it could help you on those aspects and you don’t need to find other articles just to market well through Facebook.
Thanks a lot!
Alex
7 Blog Interviewer // Sep 3, 2010 at 6:44 am
Interview With Chris Treadaway Author of Facebook Marketing an ……
We’ve linked to you on BlogInterviewer.com . Could you put a link back to us?…
8 Sandra ley de atraccion // Oct 9, 2010 at 4:38 pm
thanks for sharing this information i´ve recently started my own business and i am really looking forward to learn more abour marketing. i found your post very useful.
Regards,
Sandra
9 Maria Dolores - Ropa ciclistas // Feb 1, 2011 at 2:06 pm
Since I wanted to start my own firm and it becomes true I thought it would’t be possible.
I had not any guide of “how to”.
This article can help you on those aspects and you don’t need to find any other.
Very helpful.
Regards!!
10 Erick - Plantas Electricas // Mar 12, 2011 at 7:01 am
Although Facebook now seems an established fixture of the net, the company is more fragile than it appears. Companies powered by a network effect tend to wilt as quickly as they flower. Concerns about privacy have plagued Facebook for the past few years; if another social networking universe were to come along with a credible guarantee to protect our data, it could wither as quickly as did Bebo and Friendster before it. The company now finds itself sandwiched between the sensitivities of its users and the commercial imperative.
11 artes plasticas | revista de arte // Mar 23, 2011 at 8:41 am
Thanks for the info is very helpful for people who started our own business. Thanks for sharing the information and from here I would encourage all entrepreneurs to follow the way of your intuition. It is a very valuable information for online marketing.
12 Liz Boda // Jun 28, 2011 at 9:57 am
Thanks for sharing this information i´ve recently started my own business and i’m really looking forward to learn more abotr marketing. i found your post very useful.
13 Ivon Paginas Web // Aug 31, 2011 at 1:11 pm
This book is a good contribution to the media that we can come nigh to achieve a good sales strategy and through this social network leads us to a more detailed understanding of how we can make no doubt I will buy a prune thanks for sharing of so far this.
14 Patricia |Cazare Sinaia // Jan 11, 2012 at 10:38 pm
Great review! I appreciate the detailed chapter comments. Very helpful.
This article can help you on those aspects and you don’t need to find any other.
15 Dani | Fontaneria Castellon // Jan 15, 2012 at 12:27 pm
Thanks for sharing this information i´ve recently started my own business and i’m really looking forward to learn more abotr marketing. i found your post very useful.
I read much your blog .
Congratulations on everything
16 The New Relationship Marketing by Mari Smith: High Tech and High Touch // Feb 27, 2012 at 6:08 pm
[…] Smith, probably the ultimate Facebook guru (see my review in March 2011), is also the author of The New Relationship Marketing that came out last […]
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