Book review - the New Rules of Marketing and PR
Here's an article I wrote for Hong Kong's Marketing Magazine (but with added hyperlinks! and a free set of steak knives). I lie, no steak knives. Enjoy!
We live, so they say, in an age where word of mouth dominates. Surveys extolling the influence of the so-called new, peer, social or Web 2.0 media appear on a weekly basis. Citizen journalism, it appears, is a rising force, with ‘someone like me' shaping opinions left, right and center. The scary thing for many marketers, is, that this is all true. To paraphrase the Cluetrain Manifesto, as communicators we have two choices: we can either hide behind our facile happy talk - or join the conversation.
But how? David Meerman Scott's The New Rules of Marketing and PR goes a long way to answering this question. His book takes the uninitiated digital immigrants by the hand as it helps them navigate this new landscape. Cleverly, it also gives those of us who vainly claim some authority a good smack in the chops, offering insightful commentary and case studies showing how Web 2.0 communication should be done.
Written in a self-confessed blog / conversational style, the easy-to-read primer covers a lot in its 258 pages. Scott splits the discussion into three sections covering how the internet has profoundly changed the rules of marketing and PR; how web-based communications can reach audiences; and a very practical approach on how to put these ‘new rules' into action.
What's especially interesting is that in covering a range of topics as diverse as ‘Blogs: Tapping Millions of Evangelists to Tell Your Story', ‘Reach Your Buyers Directly' and ‘The Virgin Mary Grilled Cheese Sandwich and Jerry Garcia's Toilet', Scott peppers his chapters with hypertext links and quotes from people who've actually put his rules into play.
One of Scott's central themes is the idea of using buyer personas to ensure marketers and PR people are talking with individuals as opposed to simply talking at demographics. He then advises communicators to think like publishers, using words used in real world conversation in communications as opposed to the marketing language that dominates our lexicon. Instead of focusing on generic, mass tactics such as press releases, Scott suggests developing focused content for buyers using the media they prefer. As he says, "You're writing for your buyers, not your own ego."
While the logic is clear, the rather idealistic extension of this idea - to create a vast array of customised content for a range of buyers - is beyond the reach of many Asia Pacific marketers and PR professionals. This is especially true given the frequently conservative environment in which many marketers operate and communications programs frequently designed to tightly control messages using one way ‘old rules'.
Idealism aside, there's undoubtedly something in this book for everyone. For the uninitiated, Scott goes a long way to demystifying gobbledygook terms such as social bookmarking, search engine optimisation and RSS with solid examples of how these tech terms improve communication. He goes well beyond the technology to explain how the Internet has changed marketing communications forever.
His rules are designed to tackle some of the challenges marketing and PR has created for itself over years of old school delivery. Speaking as an experienced media insider, for example, he blasts the focus on tactics ahead of audience, the dislocation between company business goals and marketing goals, and the ‘box checking' mentality of many marketing departments.
Scott's conclusion is that marketing is about participation and connection. He shows readers how to harness the power of social media to engage in conversations using a wide range of tools.
To quote my mother, the proof is in the pudding. I never knew exactly what that meant, but I figure the fact that I've extolled the virtues of The New Rules of Marketing and PR to my family, colleagues, competitors, clients, and strangers on the MTR reinforces Scott's core point. The nature of influence has changed with dialogue driven by word of mouth (and mouse) being the key weapons in the marketers arsenal. The New Rules of Marketing and PR is a must read for anyone wanting to understand the real power of communication.
We live, so they say, in an age where word of mouth dominates. Surveys extolling the influence of the so-called new, peer, social or Web 2.0 media appear on a weekly basis. Citizen journalism, it appears, is a rising force, with ‘someone like me' shaping opinions left, right and center. The scary thing for many marketers, is, that this is all true. To paraphrase the Cluetrain Manifesto, as communicators we have two choices: we can either hide behind our facile happy talk - or join the conversation.
But how? David Meerman Scott's The New Rules of Marketing and PR goes a long way to answering this question. His book takes the uninitiated digital immigrants by the hand as it helps them navigate this new landscape. Cleverly, it also gives those of us who vainly claim some authority a good smack in the chops, offering insightful commentary and case studies showing how Web 2.0 communication should be done.
Written in a self-confessed blog / conversational style, the easy-to-read primer covers a lot in its 258 pages. Scott splits the discussion into three sections covering how the internet has profoundly changed the rules of marketing and PR; how web-based communications can reach audiences; and a very practical approach on how to put these ‘new rules' into action.
What's especially interesting is that in covering a range of topics as diverse as ‘Blogs: Tapping Millions of Evangelists to Tell Your Story', ‘Reach Your Buyers Directly' and ‘The Virgin Mary Grilled Cheese Sandwich and Jerry Garcia's Toilet', Scott peppers his chapters with hypertext links and quotes from people who've actually put his rules into play.
One of Scott's central themes is the idea of using buyer personas to ensure marketers and PR people are talking with individuals as opposed to simply talking at demographics. He then advises communicators to think like publishers, using words used in real world conversation in communications as opposed to the marketing language that dominates our lexicon. Instead of focusing on generic, mass tactics such as press releases, Scott suggests developing focused content for buyers using the media they prefer. As he says, "You're writing for your buyers, not your own ego."
While the logic is clear, the rather idealistic extension of this idea - to create a vast array of customised content for a range of buyers - is beyond the reach of many Asia Pacific marketers and PR professionals. This is especially true given the frequently conservative environment in which many marketers operate and communications programs frequently designed to tightly control messages using one way ‘old rules'.
Idealism aside, there's undoubtedly something in this book for everyone. For the uninitiated, Scott goes a long way to demystifying gobbledygook terms such as social bookmarking, search engine optimisation and RSS with solid examples of how these tech terms improve communication. He goes well beyond the technology to explain how the Internet has changed marketing communications forever.
His rules are designed to tackle some of the challenges marketing and PR has created for itself over years of old school delivery. Speaking as an experienced media insider, for example, he blasts the focus on tactics ahead of audience, the dislocation between company business goals and marketing goals, and the ‘box checking' mentality of many marketing departments.
Scott's conclusion is that marketing is about participation and connection. He shows readers how to harness the power of social media to engage in conversations using a wide range of tools.
To quote my mother, the proof is in the pudding. I never knew exactly what that meant, but I figure the fact that I've extolled the virtues of The New Rules of Marketing and PR to my family, colleagues, competitors, clients, and strangers on the MTR reinforces Scott's core point. The nature of influence has changed with dialogue driven by word of mouth (and mouse) being the key weapons in the marketers arsenal. The New Rules of Marketing and PR is a must read for anyone wanting to understand the real power of communication.