Marketers must look to the Web for new ways of finding customers and communicating with them, rather than at them. From Facebook and YouTube to blogs and Twitter-ing, social media on the Internet is the most promising new way to reach customers. Marketing to the Social Web, Second Edition helps marketers and their companies understand how to engage customers, build customer communities, and maximize profits in a time of marketing confusion. Author and social media guru Larry Weber describes newly available tools and platforms, and shows you how to apply them to see immediate results and growth.

Rather than broadcast messages to audiences, savvy marketers should encourage participation in social networks to which people want to belong, where dialogue with customers, and between customers, can flourish. in Networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, and even Flickr are the perfect forums for this dialog; this book shows you how to tap into this new media.

In addition to the tools and tactics that made Marketing to the Social Web a critical hit among marketers, this second edition includes three entirely new chapters that cover recent changes in the field. These new chapters describe how Facebook will monetize its business and one day surpass Google; how companies can measure the influence and effectiveness of their social media campaigns; and how marketing to mobile social media will grow into an effective practice in the near future.

Marketing must reach out into new forms, media, and models. Marketing to the Social Web, Second Edition presents an exceptional opportunity to use these new tools and models to reach new markets, even in today's fragmented media environment.

Larry Weber has spent the last three decades building global communications companies, including Weber Shandwick Worldwide and the W2 Group. He is also the founder and Chairman of the Massachusetts Innovation and Technology Exchange, the nation’s largest interactive advocate association.

"In Sticks and Stones, Larry Weber presents a compelling look at the challenges of protecting corporate reputation in a world where company information can cross borders and gain momentum in an instant via the Internet. Drawing on his keen eye for communications trends, Larry offers practical advice for navigating this ever-changing environment. Corporate leaders would be wise to embrace his counsel."
—Ron Sargent, Chairman and CEO, Staples, Inc.

"Businesses no longer control their brands. At best, they can influence the communities of constituents who debate, shape, and refine their definition of what the brand means to them. Marketers and business executives can tap into these conversations to form incredibly rich and lasting bonds or allow themselves to be rolled by them. Larry Weber understood this dynamic long before most commu-nications thought leaders. In Sticks and Stones, he delivers not only bountiful examples of the best and worst practices in reputation management, but also practical advice that any leader can use to understand and shape reputation in this complex new world. This is a must-read book for the modern marketer."
—Paul Gillin, author, The New Influencers and Secrets of Social Media Marketing

"In today's interconnected world of social networking, 24/7 blogging and Twitter, a company's livelihood relies, in large measure, on its ability to build a reputable online presence. Sticks and Stones is a must-read for any leader in business, academia, or politics who wants to achieve and maintain a 21st-century, online competitive advantage."
—Deborah Wince-Smith, President, Council on Competitiveness