Book Review: Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking - Revised Edition by Andy Sernovitz

Nicholas Kinports (follow him on Twitter @ADMAVEN) has worked in the interactive technology world for over 15 years. He is the Digital Strategy Lead and founder of Chicago-based digital marketing firm lonelybrand, where he directs the creation and execution of digital marketing programs that generate measurable signups, conversions and sales.

ADMAVEN RATES WORD OF MOUTH MARKETING: 4/5

It doesn't matter whether you're selling real estate, jelly, or jet engines. People will ask other people about you before they decide to buy from you. We turn to people we trust first - friends, family, coworkers, and other people like us - when starting to look for something to buy. Not ads, not brochures, not phone books. (Word of Mouth Marketing page xv).

I recently received an advance edition of Andy Sernovitz’s “Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking - Revised Edition”. Mr. Sernovitz is the CEO of Gaspedal, a Chicago based word of mouth marketing company, and editor of “Damn, I Wish I'd Thought of That”, a marketing blog and newsletter. I agreed to review the book for several reasons. Mr. Sernovitz practices what he preaches, and included a special edition of the manuscript that encourages direct feedback – good or bad – on Amazon and other social media outlets.

"Word of Mouth Marketing" espouses a word of mouth ethos – a roadmap in which to operate a successful campaign for any sized company (although the primary focus seems to be small and medium sized businesses) and includes a foreword by Seth Godin and an afterword from Guy Kawasaki.

Mr. Sernovitz writing is, if nothing else, enthusiastic, and discussed an excellent mix of guiding principles as well as specific “what you can do today” tactics such as:

1. Look on the web for people talking about you.
2. Assign someone to join these conversations. Start today.
3. Create a blog.
4. Make a new rule: Ask "Is this buzzworthy?" in every meeting.
5. Come up with one buzzworthy topic. Keep it simple.
("Word of Mouth Marketing", page 197)

Of note – the revised edition includes two new sections (business to business and negative word of mouth) as well as other minor changes.

"Word of Mouth Marketing" is a quick read at 205 pages, yet provides a realistic look at the challenges facing modern marketers and advertising agencies. I enjoyed the fact that Mr. Sernovitz injects much of his own personality into the writing, and does not make sweeping, unsubstantiated generalizations about marketing.

Of note: though the content is generally relevant and interesting, don't expect to find revolutionary or unexpected ideas if you are a seasoned word of mouth/social media advocate. Case examples such as Southwest Airlines and Sony have been analyzed many times in the past; despite the repetitive elements "Word of Mouth Marketing" is a must read for anyone interested in entering the social media or word of mouth space.

PEOPLE WHO READ THIS ARTICLE ALSO READ:

> Book Review: The Nature of Marketing: Marketing to the Swarm as well as the Herd by Chuck Brymer

> Book Review: Buyology by Martin Lindstrom

> Book Review: Groundswell - Published 2008 by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff

Book Review: The Nature of Marketing: Marketing to the Swarm as well as the Herd by Chuck Brymer

Nicholas Kinports (follow him on Twitter @ADMAVEN) has worked in the interactive technology world for over 15 years. He is the Digital Strategy Lead and founder of Chicago-based digital marketing firm lonelybrand, where he directs the creation and execution of digital marketing programs that generate measurable signups, conversions and sales.

ADMAVEN RATES THE NATURE OF MARKETING: 4/5

Chuck Brymer's The Nature of Marketing takes an unbiased look at the basic principles of social media and 2.0 advertising. At times preachy and overly enthusiastic, (it is written, after all, by the President and CEO of DDB Worldwide Communications Group Inc.) when taken as a whole Nature delivers a good representation of how the advertising industry got to where we are today and what the future may hold.

Premised on the idea that consumers now behave as flocks of social animals, moving to or away from brands as they collectively sense each others' reactions is an interesting take on the precept of social networking as a game changing factor in modern advertising. Though I did tire of the exhaustive use of, "flocking", "swarms", and others laced throughout the book, the message is accurate.

Unfortunately Mr. Brymer comes up short on case study material - citing stale examples such as Dell, Lego, and McDonalds. To be fair, DDB had a hand in all of the aforementioned social media endeavors, and they have a right to be proud. On the other hand, the connection is made far too quickly between social media and ROI. Little or no credit is given to brands themselves or economic forces.

Case studies aside, I fully endorse the sentiment and tone of the book. Rather than relying on catchy buzzwords or self-coined terms (of which there are a few), The Nature of Marketing presents more substantial thinking. The idea that, "our view is to serve a larger goal, which is to help people find what they are looking for and improve their lives within the context of a community that both seeks and deposits information in real time" (page 52) speaks to the fundamentals of successful social media campaigns, and reveals Mr. Brymer's experience as an advertising executive.

I recommend giving The Nature of Marketing a read - at 200 pages with pictures it is not a huge commitment - keeping in mind the book delivers on the big picture of social media and Web 2.0 advertising, but falls short on supporting details.

MORE ON THE NATURE OF MARKETING: MARKETING TO THE SWARM AS WELL AS THE HERD:

Amazon

Forbes

PEOPLE WHO READ THIS ARTICLE ALSO READ:

> Book Review: Buyology by Martin Lindstrom

> Book Review: Groundswell - Published 2008 by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff

> Social Media - Discussing Ideas With People In Communities

Book Review: Buyology by Martin Lindstrom

Nicholas Kinports (follow him on Twitter @ADMAVEN) has worked in the interactive technology world for over 15 years. He is the Digital Strategy Lead and founder of Chicago-based digital marketing firm lonelybrand, where he directs the creation and execution of digital marketing programs that generate measurable signups, conversions and sales.

ADMAVEN RATES BUYOLOGY: 2/5

Neuromarketing, as defined in Martin Lindstrom's Buyology, is the science of understanding the unconscious decisions our brains make when we encounter advertising. According to Mr. Lindstrom, these decisions are responsible for approximately 90% of consumer behaviors, therefore "the time has come for a paradigm shift [in advertising]" (Lindstrom, Page 195).

I'm not so convinced.

Though Buyology reads at an excited pace, and at 205 pages is entirely manageable in a weekend, it did not strike me as particularly insightful or game changing.

The purported "seven-million-dollar neuromarketing study" on which the book is based is loosly referenced throughout the text, and leaves out key details which may be useful in validating some of Martin Lindstroms more, how shall we say, extravagant claims.

Of particular interest are Mr. Lindstrom's back-analysis of expired campaigns using the neuromarketing framework. Take for example, Nationwide Annuities as detailed on page 198: "Another ad, debuted by Nationwide Annuities [during the 2006 Superbowl], starred the indomitable Kevin Federline, Britney Spears's ex-husband." You may remember the "Life Comes At You Fast" tag line that made this TV spot a huge success both on television and more so on the Internet, quickly going viral and spreading the Nationwide brand name via social media outlets. Unfortunately, Buyology does not care about that - nor does it touch on the groundswell of viewers who took time to share the Nationwide brand name. As Lindstrom states, "the brain scans revealed information of incredible value to GM and Nationwide Annuities: that their $2.4 million commercials not only weren't working, they were scaring people away."

In general, I feel any marketing book that purports to be a game changer or claims to know - without a doubt - what the future holds is by it's nature flawed. Neuromarketing has value, of that I have little doubt. As to whether neuromarketing represents the key to the future of advertising I am significantly less sure.

Topics Lindstrom did not touch on, and something that would be of much more interest and utility in today's world, is how social media affects the areas of the brain responsible for communication, collaboration, and identification with a product, service, or brand. Does socializing online and participating in communities allow us to be more or less subconciously receptive to brand messaging, and if so, in what ways?

MORE ON BUYOLOGY:

Amazon
Martin Lindstrom
Martin Lindstrom discusses Buyology on The Today Show (Thanks to @MelissaBP for pointing it out)

Book Review: Groundswell - Published 2008 by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff

Nicholas Kinports (follow him on Twitter @ADMAVEN) has worked in the interactive technology world for over 15 years. He is the Digital Strategy Lead and founder of Chicago-based digital marketing firm lonelybrand, where he directs the creation and execution of digital marketing programs that generate measurable signups, conversions and sales.

Groundswell: A social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions like corporations.

Earlier this year the blog community was abuzz with the impending release of Groundswell - the "how to" book for all things social media. Promising a system of planning and executing social media campaigns and tying them to measurable results, expectations were high.

Fast forward six months - has the Groundswell lived up to its promise?

Fundamentally, I enjoyed the book because it helps solidify social media as a valid and usable marketing/advertising strategy. The most useful portions of the book are the case studies detailing the trials and tribulations of various large companies attempting to enter the social media space (or being run over by it). Don't expect formal case study material - references are lacking and the studies themselves read as narratives as opposed to true analysis, however you may find some similarities between your experiences in social media and the foibles of those put under the microscope.

Authors Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff are veterans of Forrester Research, Inc. and it shows. They consistently lace the text with drivers to their website and blog, which is nice the first time but gets very old very fast. Additionally, the entire Groundswell strategy hinges on research, which although important, is certainly not the best solution for social media execution in every scenario.

Functionally, Groundswell delivers a very basic understanding of what social media is and how to use it in some very specific situations. In terms of providing a framework for planning, measuring, and executing a social media campaign Li and Bernoff simply suggest that through proper research and understanding of the target audience your strategy will usually succeed; a simplistic view of a very complicated process in my opinion.

In addition, Groundswell does not provide a true tool or metric for comparing campaigns against competitor initiatives, nor does it provide a quantifiable method for execution. The reader is simply told that each client is so unqiue you must make a significant investment in research up front or risk missing the mark and getting steamrolled by masses of dissatisfied or unconvinced customers.

If you are completely new to social media or need a good understanding of what a properly executed social media campaign looks like, this book may assist you in that endeavor. Take care to not get lost in the process of research, research, and more research.