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11th out of 12 books
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3 voters
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add to my books
Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies
by
Charlene Li (Goodreads Author)
Corporate executives are struggling with a new trend: people using online social technologies (blogs, social networking sites, YouTube, podcasts) to discuss products and companies, write their own news, and find their own deals. This groundswell is global, it's unstoppable, it affects every industry -- and it's utterly foreign to the powerful companies running things now.
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Hardcover, 286 pages
Published
March 25th 2008
by Harvard Business Review Press
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Nearly everything I do in marketing has to do with the groundswell, the current movement of everything Web 2.0, blogs, viral, social networks and more. Or simply put, people + technology.
I also happen to live at ground zero for all this stuff, so when I spotted the spiraling lime-and-wasabi colored book at work and asked to borrow it, I knew it'd be an investment in timeliness and relevance.
What I like best about Grou...more
Nearly everything I do in marketing has to do with the groundswell, the current movement of everything Web 2.0, blogs, viral, social networks and more. Or simply put, people + technology.
I also happen to live at ground zero for all this stuff, so when I spotted the spiraling lime-and-wasabi colored book at work and asked to borrow it, I knew it'd be an investment in timeliness and relevance.
What I like best about Grou...more
Groundswell: Winning in a world transformed by social technologies, by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff, is the definitive guide to how businesses are grappling with the social media revolution. The revolution is still in its early stages, and the old order still clings tenaciously to power — we're living in the throes of transformative change, which can be at once exhilarating and disorienting.
Li and Bernoff provide a framework for describing these fundamental changes, which they call "...more
Li and Bernoff provide a framework for describing these fundamental changes, which they call "...more
Practical insights into how and why people participate in social technologies and how traditional companies can leverage this undeniable phenomenon.
Most valuable is the discussion around how social computing can help businesses. Groundswell breakups the possibilities in to five categories - listening, talking, energizing, supporting and embracing. In reality, there is much overlap among these categories and one can often lead to the other. Still, the recommendation to focus on a sin...more
Most valuable is the discussion around how social computing can help businesses. Groundswell breakups the possibilities in to five categories - listening, talking, energizing, supporting and embracing. In reality, there is much overlap among these categories and one can often lead to the other. Still, the recommendation to focus on a sin...more
Expert analysis of the newest internet tools and how to exploit them
Do you visit a social networking site at least once a month, like "one in four online American adults"? Do you read an online journal or blog, like 52% of online Japanese? Social networks, blogs, wikis, tags, online reviews, support forums and widgets are all part of the latest online revolution, a "groundswell" that is transforming not only the internet but the way the world works. Companies tha...more
Do you visit a social networking site at least once a month, like "one in four online American adults"? Do you read an online journal or blog, like 52% of online Japanese? Social networks, blogs, wikis, tags, online reviews, support forums and widgets are all part of the latest online revolution, a "groundswell" that is transforming not only the internet but the way the world works. Companies tha...more
While I'm sure that this book as informative to those not already familiar with Facebook and Twitter I did not find that it told me anything really new. I came away with the feeling that it was full of valuable argument content for convincing our unknowing associates that social networking has value and that it works.
Unfortunately I was looking for information geared to the entrepreneur / small businessperson rather that the multinationals that were used in the book as examples. The ...more
Unfortunately I was looking for information geared to the entrepreneur / small businessperson rather that the multinationals that were used in the book as examples. The ...more
This book explains the confounding problems of how the online world can help or destory a companies image. The type of technology a company uses to communicate with its customers and employees is crucial to understanding what areas need to be improved upon and what areas need to be enhanced or taken away.
There are some great points and examples the authors make about what a company needs to know about how to go about creating this change in the company to understanding the groundswell. Ma...more
There are some great points and examples the authors make about what a company needs to know about how to go about creating this change in the company to understanding the groundswell. Ma...more
This book is great...if you're not from the Facebook generation. The first couple of chapters were almost snoozers for me. The only thing that really saved it was the real-life stories the authors included. The stories managed to hold my interest long enough for me to move on to the next chapters.
What I mainly gathered from this book--and you could gather this on your own if you don't live under a rock--is that media and marketing are moving more and more toward the consumer. Tha...more
What I mainly gathered from this book--and you could gather this on your own if you don't live under a rock--is that media and marketing are moving more and more toward the consumer. Tha...more
This is the first book I've read that is targeted at corporate workers. Its main thrust is about how to take advantage of social media to expand the success of a company, not only in terms of profit but also in terms of being a good place to work where employees can feel meaningful.
But aside from its thesis, the book works just well as a collection of anecdotes about how technology is being used. It's fascinating reading about Dell's response to laptops that erupt in flame, or how Di...more
But aside from its thesis, the book works just well as a collection of anecdotes about how technology is being used. It's fascinating reading about Dell's response to laptops that erupt in flame, or how Di...more
Overall, an insightful read into social media strategy and how to sell the value to those uninvolved in the groundswell.
Forrester social profiling showed how to target the approach on the level of involvement in social media. The book included relevant case studies from orgs that successfully played to their demograhpic, and others that missed completely. The big take-away item is to be most successful, any social media campaign has to get the audience and how they utilize social me...more
Forrester social profiling showed how to target the approach on the level of involvement in social media. The book included relevant case studies from orgs that successfully played to their demograhpic, and others that missed completely. The big take-away item is to be most successful, any social media campaign has to get the audience and how they utilize social me...more
I learned that listening to my customers was far more important than anything I otherwise thought I was doing. There are many impulses that drive people to participate: to keep up with friends/colleagues, to make new friends, social pressure, to pay it forward, altruistic impulse, prurient impulse, creative impulse and affinity impulse.
The biggest challenge in the groundswell isn't whether I mastered the technology or whether I have annoyed or delighted my customers. It is whether I ...more
The biggest challenge in the groundswell isn't whether I mastered the technology or whether I have annoyed or delighted my customers. It is whether I ...more
Very good introduction to social media as applied to business. The best part was how it was pretty much all told through cases, which I guess Forrester can do since they consulted so many big businesses on how to do exactly this kind of work.
Definitely inspired me to want to set up blogs, reviews, communities, and all the rest of possible social networking technologies.... but at the same time I'm learning in the real world how much time that takes. Lots.
Farmland Trust ...more
Definitely inspired me to want to set up blogs, reviews, communities, and all the rest of possible social networking technologies.... but at the same time I'm learning in the real world how much time that takes. Lots.
Farmland Trust ...more
Groundswell is a great book to help people understand the revolutionary social technology changes that are occurring, why they are happening, and how to tap into it and transform your business. It’s a very interesting read with good information, much of it familiar though, particularly for those already actively involved in social media.
The authors explain that people utilize social media to connect, collaborate, react, organize, and accelerate consumption. They give numerous exampl...more
The authors explain that people utilize social media to connect, collaborate, react, organize, and accelerate consumption. They give numerous exampl...more
For those who proclaim this book holds nothing new if you are already familiar with Facebook and Twitter, good for you. I too am very familiar with social media. What this book does is explain -- with data and anecdotes -- why assumptions about social media are either wrong or right. If you are attempting to make a case for social media use in your company, this book will help make the case with facts. If you find yourself as the only social media "expert" in your company, this book wi...more
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This is the first book that I have read by non-technical authors that really "get" the social web. The discussion is framed around four key areas: listening, talking, energizing and embracing. Instead of focusing on isolated technologies, the authors highlight the importance of understanding the target audience (through social technographics profiles), clarifying objectives, developing a strategy, and evaluating the consequences of engaging online. This is a sensibly written book, that...more
This book would be great for someone currently not immersed in social media. It's a very thorough outline of technologies and strategies, complete with case studies. Good info, but a tad boring if you've heard them before.
I like that this is a quick read, and even though a lot of the information was not new to me, I will keep this book as a reference. It will be especially helpful in explaining Web 2.0 or social media or whatever you want to call it to people who "don't get it....more
I like that this is a quick read, and even though a lot of the information was not new to me, I will keep this book as a reference. It will be especially helpful in explaining Web 2.0 or social media or whatever you want to call it to people who "don't get it....more
When this book first came out in 2008, it was portending a megatrend. It was definitely a glimpse into the future. The authors got it so right that even 3 years later, the book remains relevant. I would recommend it to anyone wanting to learn or understand the social media "groundswell", which is becoming more fully integrated into the mainstream and less of a phenomenon with each passing day.
The book provides a great overview, supplemented with some pertinent case studi...more
The book provides a great overview, supplemented with some pertinent case studi...more
I'm a writer. I'm not a techie. I'm not an entrepreneur. I'm just a girl who hates grammatical mistakes and improprer use of punctuation and enjoys snappy prose.
Well, Groundswell isn't written for people like me, but it was still an interesting read. Charlene Li does an excellent job of examining the ways in which companies and brands are able to build a groundswell of support for themselves on the internet.
What it really boils down to is listening to your online community an...more
Well, Groundswell isn't written for people like me, but it was still an interesting read. Charlene Li does an excellent job of examining the ways in which companies and brands are able to build a groundswell of support for themselves on the internet.
What it really boils down to is listening to your online community an...more
The groundswell is a spontaneous movement of people using online tools to connect. Groundswell was one of the first, and best documented, books chronicling the social media phenomenon.
Since the book was published in 2008, it would be easy to dismiss this research-oriented guidebook as dated. After all, a technology called Twitter is relegated to single page. The authors conclude as follows: "Twitter is likely to find its place among other groundswell technologies, and compani...more
Since the book was published in 2008, it would be easy to dismiss this research-oriented guidebook as dated. After all, a technology called Twitter is relegated to single page. The authors conclude as follows: "Twitter is likely to find its place among other groundswell technologies, and compani...more
Groundswell is basically the idea that customers are now able to share information rapidly and easily and in order for a business to succeed they need to tap the ideas and opinions of their customer in order to thrive and remain competitive.
The authors define "groundswell" as: a social trend in which people use technologies to get things they need from each other rather than from traditional institutions."
The authors detail how a company can embrace the "...more
The authors define "groundswell" as: a social trend in which people use technologies to get things they need from each other rather than from traditional institutions."
The authors detail how a company can embrace the "...more
This book is geared toward helping larger companines and organizations develop strategies to deal with web 2.0 applications. For that reason, it might not be for everyone. I'll still gave it a good rating because it does an excellent job of describing the dynamics of these new communication models as well as the challenges they create. In preparation for a recent program, I had the chance to browse a number of "new media" marketing books. I found this one to be the most helpful.
JP Seabury
marked it as to-read
Written by two Forrester analysts and based on actual research with real companies of all sizes, this book introduces you to the world of social media and online communities.
* Why Read This Book: Social Media isn’t going away. This book shows you how to weed through the morass of social media tools using a 4-step process to build a social media strategy for your business.
* Key Take-Away: Start a blog and build a customer community around your product or service.
* Why Read This Book: Social Media isn’t going away. This book shows you how to weed through the morass of social media tools using a 4-step process to build a social media strategy for your business.
* Key Take-Away: Start a blog and build a customer community around your product or service.
I'm not involved in business; yet, I found this book incredibly fascinating. While much of this book seemed aimed at business wanting to succeed in the current socially networked world, it illuminated my understanding of just how difficult managing a business is in this environment ie controlling their reputation online. I liked the bottom line that social networking successes come through creating new ways to develop/keep relationships. Once again, we are social beings.
A great book for those corporate marketing types who have no idea what people do on the internets. I expected more from the authors who clearly have a firm grasp on the research (the authors are Forrester analysts). I think the reliance on the smae structure for each chapter limited the book. It worked for talking about blogs and wikis, but did not work for chapters on forums and ratings and reviews.
The first chapter is worth reading for anyone who deals with online content. It ...more
The first chapter is worth reading for anyone who deals with online content. It ...more
This book is a must read for anyone involved in a company that either has a web site, or that develops products, or that sells products, or that has customers, or that wants to expand their business. It's a great overview of many of the approaches and methods possible today for improving your business using the newly evolved social networking tools. If you don't want your business to be left behind, you better listen to this book.
I highly recommend this book. "Groundswell is about relationships, not technologies." A great point for those trying to understand and implement the dizzying array of social networking tools. The 7 lessons from great Groundswell thinkers are: 1. Never forget that the groundswell is about person-to-person activity. 2. Be a good listener. 3. Be patient. 4. Be opportunistic. 5. Be flexible. 6. Be collaborative. 7. Be humble. I wonder if the authors are listening to the feedback their b...more
An easy read but not because it's superficial - just well written. A great introduction to the business benefits of Web 2.0 patterns applied by enterprise customers with some excellent case studies and even better advice on strategy and tactics and sequencing. I wish there was more depth on the "internal groundswell" patterns but I plan to talk with Charlene about that.
Social technologies are fundamentally changing the way people get information. This book is advice for businesses on how to adapt to this change. A broad analysis of various kinds of social media, various types of participation in social media, and ways that businesses use social media to connect with their customers in every phase of development -- research, marketing, support, and feedback.
Notes:
- Types of participation: creators, critics, collectors, joiners, spectators
...more
Notes:
- Types of participation: creators, critics, collectors, joiners, spectators
...more
I highly recommend this book. If you're trying to make sense of Social Media, this is a great place to start. It includes great information on what Social Media is and how it's used, lots of examples of companies who have succeeded and failed in joining the Social Media craze, and it's all laid out in a way that's easy to read and impossible to put down.
You know, I expected to be amazed by this book, but if you've been living and breathing social media and marketing, it's not all that new. If not, it's a fantastic primer that will automatically catapult you into a new understanding and level of knowledge that surpasses all but we web/SM geeks - by default at least 90% of the population.
I enjoyed this book. The examples given in the book are pertinent and would make sense to executives who have never even heard of Facebook.There were a few gaps though. The measurements for success in the book, primarily the 2nd half, stopped short of what I think most companies would consider justification for Groundswell strategies. I also would have appreciated some counter arguments. The other thing that turned me off was the pimping of consultants and vendors. It was completely rampant but ...more
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| How are you going to use the book? | 1 | 19 | Jun 29, 2008 11:18pm |
