Here’s an outline of the book’s content.
What sounds most interesting? What sounds least interesting?
What parts sound like they would help you most in your job?
1. Introduction
The shift towards a social web
How the social web is changing marketing and advertising
How technology doesn’t change many aspects of human behavior
How technology does change some things
Why people need to focus on human behavior, not technology
2. The Real Life Social Network
How offline behavior influences online behavior
How real life social networks are structured
Strong, weak and temporary ties
How people use different communication tools
Mapping the real world social network to online social networks
3. Influence
How people make decisions
How people influence each other
Who influences us the most
How to identify who influences who
How to calculate influence
4. Identity
Why identity is a critical part of the evolving social web
How people shape their identity online
How people have multiple identities
How people’s identities are shaped for them
Social status and why people post seemingly trivial mumblings
5. Privacy and Trust
The ‘public paradox’: How people are and aren’t becoming more public with their information
Respecting the information you have about people
Why maintaining trust is more important than anything you can do with people’s data
6. The Business of the Social Web
How customers are talking to each other
Why you can’t build bad products anymore
Behavioral advertising
Why word-of-mouth marketing is the best strategy for the social web
Marketing to communities of people
7. Understanding your customers
Using social media to do research
Using social media to build better products
8. Conclusion
Sounds very interesting. I would very much like to read your section on the Business of the Social Web. A compelling outline!
Hmm…lots more on how we justify/quantify the social web. Why and how to calculate returns. What are some of the metrics used? How do we (as business users) know we’re succeeding?
I’m particularly interested in the section on influence and the business of the social web. I’d also be very curious to hear some of your predictions about the future of social & the web. I’ve recently written a couple of pieces about how social media is playing a part in the future of the semantic web if you’re interested – it would be great to hear your thoughts:
http://www.great-seo.co.uk/future-web-connected-apis/
http://www.great-seo.co.uk/seo-semantic-web-rdfa-html-5-impact-search/
Book sounds clean, clear and relevant. Focus on behavior always makes me wonder what comes first – changes in engagement, feelings, human motivation or behavior. Social networking often seems to feel like listening to the squeaky minority – how representative are they of the silent majority? Good marketing means knowing how your customers segment in terms of loyalty, who they are within each segment and how to migrate targeted customers into more loyal segments. What are the possibilities for segmentation online by neuro-linguistic programming groups, optimism/pessimism … and the implications for customer relationship communications?
Hi Paul,
Interested in the identity section. I’ve got a paper in the European Journal of Marketing on how people create identity through consumption. Probably some good references in the bibliography for you.
Or drop me a line if you fancy a meet in London.
Al Cox
Head of Strategy
Collective
The Market Building, 72-82 Rosebery Avenue, London, EC1R 4RW
E | al.cox@collectivelondon.com
M | 0781 332 4240
T | 0207 843 3563
Hi Paul. This outline looks very interesting. For sure each one will pick the sections more suitable to his owns interests and situation. For me, the influence, identity and, of course, business, are the most appealing. In my very personal opinion, social networks allow all of us to surpass the time and space barriers (even cultural ones), providing us the opportunity to meet with people that otherwise we will never meet. I’m not sure if this idea is on your book, but just consider this.
On the human side of social networks I think they can not be more human than humans are, and I do agree on your idea about focusing on human behavoir instead than on technology. In this way of thinking I would recommend that you read the book “Homosapiens”, written by Octavio Vélez. This book is about “evolutive psicology” and shows how much our decisions and behavoir are determined by our human nature as an species, like any other species are.
Best regards.
Francisco Henao.