One of the things I like most about David Meerman Scott’s just-released book, The New Rules of Marketing & PR, is the fresh, conversational voice it’s written in. Yes, you can call it blog-like.
David is a friend and colleague so I’m lucky enough to be sitting here with my autographed copy in hand. He writes, wisely, in his introduction:
From the Introduction
“As the lines between marketing and PR on the Web have blurred so much as to be unrecognizable, the best media choice is often not as obvious as in the old days. But I had to organize the book somehow, and I chose to create chapters for the various online media, including blogs, podcasts, online forums, social networking, and so on.
But the truth is that all these tools and techniques intersect one another. Some things were difficult to place in a particular chapter, such as the discussion on RSS (Really Simple Syndication). I moved that section four times before settling on chapter 13.”
And he continues…
“As I was writing, I was wishing I could link you (like in a blog) from one chapter to a part of another chapter. Alas, a printed book doesn’t allow that, so instead I have included suggestions where you might skip ahead or go back for review on certain topics… You’ll notice that I write in a familiar and casual tone, rather than the formal and stilted way of many business books, because I’m using my “blog voice” to share the new rules with you.”
I suffered the same challenge in writing The Corporate Blogging Book (which David kindly mentions on page 202). It is indeed much easier to write “online” these days than to write a book so I like David’s frank admission of how he handled it.
A super useful read
This is a super useful read for any business person wondering why the heck he or she needs to understand blogs or podcasting or social media press releases or viral marketing. The answer is tied up neatly in David’s introduction. And then amply illustrated throughout with specific chapters on audio content, blogs, forums & wikis, going viral, etc.
There’s a Foreword by uber-blogger Robert Scoble which is really more about Scoble (and what he did at Microsoft) than about David. But it’s a good read too.
The book was officially published on June 4, 2007. Order your copy today on Amazon! It’s ranked #112 in book sales as I write — which is a fantastic achievement. Go David!
David’s special offer – valid through Friday June 8th
Purchase your copy of New Rules of Marketing & PR on Amazon by Friday June 8, 2007 and David will send you a CD of his audio seminar on Online News Releases. Details here.