Hey there! Tonight I had a lot of fun speaking with PR students from Royal Roads University and University of Victoria at a CPRS student mixer called “Get Connected.” As well as me were three other PR pros – Katie Josephson, City of Victoria; Deidre Campbell, Tartan Group; and Marisa Adair, BC Public Affairs Bureau – and we had a great debate and discussion going about what it takes to be in PR, and probed the interesting and evolving world of social media.
I promised I’d post the name of two books I’m re-enjoying, so here they are to share.
The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use News Releases, Blogs, Podcasting,
Viral Marketing and Online Media to Reach Buyers Directly, by David Meerman Scott
Marketing to the Social Web: How Digital Customer Communities Build Your Business, Larry Weber
I look forward to hearing from you about what books you’re reading. I also would be pleased to continue our discussion, “What is PR about these days?”
Thanks for including my book. Larry’s book is great – good company indeed.
Maggie, I loved all the great discussions last night! Thanks for the book suggestions and I also received one recently from a PR friend in Vancouver:
“Getting to First Base: A Social Media Marketing Playbook” by Darren Barefoot and Julie Szabo, two Victoria/Vancouver-based professionals who specialise in social media. It is an entertaining and enlightening introduction to the world of social media. If you don’t know your tweet from a meme, this is the book for you.
You can purchase their book on-line at http://www.socialmediaready.com.
Looking forward to more enlightening discussions!
Thanks Deidre. It was great! And thanks for mentioning Darren and Julie. They are fantastic resources, and have a new book coming out in ’09. I’ll give them a plug when it does.
Thanks to you, too. we’ve had many a great discuss at Artemis around what you both say…
Maggie,
Thanks for posting this. It looks as if I might actually get a chance to read something of my choice over Christmas so I will keep these in mind.
I said I would post back a link to that study “Hanging Out, Messing Around, Geeking Out: Living and Learning with New Media”" an ethnographic study of what kids are doing online. The final report takes the form of a book and covers the gamut from ipods and cell phones to social networking and online gaming. At the link below you can read the research summary and access the book online for free.
http://digitalyouth.ischool.berkeley.edu/report
Thanks again for coming out to talk to us,
David
Hi,
Just stumbled on your blog, and loved the last two posts. I’ve recently been having a conversation (http://www.netfornonprofits.org/2008/12/16/social-media-job-description/)about good social media books, and the “Wealth of Networks” (http://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Networks-Production-Transforms-Markets/dp/0300110561) came up a few times. A little more broadly focused – it’s not just about PR – it still offers some great perspective on the broader impact of social media.
Thanks again for some great posts!
Sean
Thanks for the plug, both Maggie and Dierdre! I just finished Seth Godin’s “Tribes”. Godin inspires marketers (and everyone else) to think creatively and lead boldly. It’s a quick, decent read.
Thanks for your comments, Sean and Julie. The more I move forward, the more I find out how much we have to learn in this constantly evolving digital world. Seems the books are almost obsolete before we read them. Godin is such a thought leader – one I greatly admire.