Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies

The Changing Face of Business

Groundswell characterizes the Internet and the behavior of crowds which make up the Web. This book provides an interesting discussion on mediums such as blogging and social networking and how they are changing the face of business, the economy, and the world. Although this is written from a corporate perspective I believe this is a worthwhile read for any business owner as the topics discussed are certainly relevant. Highly recommended for those interested in developing their business strategy around the Internet and social technologies.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Can't talk about the book as BN downloaded version not formatted for iPad

Be careful when ordering this book. Even better. :30 seconds to buy incorrectly titled book on BN site; 60 DAYS for refund. Gotta love technology. @bnbuzz #fail

Great for Businesses and Comsumers

I found this book really interesting. From the business point of view, it provides a primer on how to tap into the groundswell created by the consumers. The examples and case studies were fascinating. From a consumer point of view, it shows how some companies are listening to their customers and why it is worthwhile to contribute to the groundswell. If you are not currently participating in social media, this is a good reason to start.

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 that lack the vision to join this groundswell will soon be dinosaurs. Forrester Research analysts Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff explain the groundswell, why it is occurring, what its principal tools and applications are, and how your firm can exploit them. getAbstract finds this book timely, comprehensive, insightful and instructive. It is ideal for readers who want to know what they can do for their companies in the sometimes daunting online environment.

Great business tool

I bought this book on a recommendation as I was looking at ways to use social media to better my company's social media presence. Provided great insight into how to understand and then organize a social media communications plan, including how to identify the audience, develop objectives and strategies and what technologies tend to work well for what audience/objectives. There are also points about evaluating the effectiveness, which can be challenging to do in social media. Great and informative read for any public relations, marketing, or communications professionals.

IBM Competitive Edge Book Club Selects Book in Q2 2008

The IBM Competitive Edge Book Club is open to all Sales professionals at IBM. Groundswell was our Q2 2008 book club selection. Overall feedback from the members was great. In the feedback from the members, we ask them the question - "What will you do differently in your job since your study of this book?" Some of the replies directly from the members included:

- "This book has provided a much better outline/business impact on social computing. It provides a great framework to augment discussions around the Lotus product set."

- "Personally, I'll work to engage with partners and clients in different ways through networking technology. This also is a great discussion point at the executive level as companies try to connect to newer people within their organization."

- "The book has given me new insight in to the new technologies and how they may be relevant to my clients."

- "The ideas in the book provide great insight to help with our discussions and opportunity generation ideas with our clients."

- " As a coverage software rep, I will be better able to provide specific examples to how IBM's own technologies can enable a customer who is endeavoring to move in this direction - I have already recommended this book to 2 clients."

This book was the first we did after we had established the IBM Competitive Edge Book Club as an on-line and social networked club. It was very timely, appropriate and a highly rated book and discussion with Josh - thank you for being apart of our club and for setting the stage of social networking for our IBM team.

Best Regards,
Brien Convery
IBM Global Workforce Partner and Competitive Edge Book Club Leader

This Is A Must Read For All Social Media Enthusiasts

I found this book an easy to read, easy to understand book. I think that small and large companies should make their marketing departments & anyone making decision compulsory reading. I'm re-reading it again just to make sure that I didn't miss out something the first time and have encouraged many people to read this book. Great book!! Don't forget to also read "Marketing In The Groundswell.

Highly informative.

Walks the reader through not only the importance of social media but learning, embracing and energizing the groundswell. The shift has been created from "Word of Mouth" to "Word of Web".

Finally! An approachable explaination on Social Media applications fro Non-IT Folks!

I highly recommend this read for Business Students, And Managers that are involved with Customer Realtions, Business Development, Marketing and Support.

Book includes some great tools and consideartions that can be immplemented quickly.

Good Book

Enjoyed reading about the emerging social technologies and how this will affect the future of business.

Must Read

This is an excellent book and a must read for anyone in marketing or marketing communications.

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