The Facebook Effect

I’ve been considering the privacy concerns raised by the new Facebook Friendship Pages after having read “The Facebook Effect.” It’s a history and analysis of Facebook written by technology reporter David Kirkpatrick. Kirkpatrick was able to interview most of the players in the development of Facebook, including founder Mark Zuckerberg, but the book isn’t your usual “authorized biography” puff piece. Kirkpatrick doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to the controversies and missteps that have surrounded the social network.

Kirkpatrick’s access to those at Facebook’s higher echelons leads him to some fascinating insights. It turns out that many of Facebook’s strengths, but also many of the controversies the network has found itself in, are directly related to Zuckerberg’s notion of “radical transparency,” which is nothing less than a society where individuals don’t put on a professional face for some people, and a personal face for others. In such a society, nothing (or at least very little) is private. For those of us who are older, andused to being able to compartmentalize our lives, “radical transparency” feels threatening. But there is evidence that younger people are comfortable in a world where everyone knows everything about everybody, like an old-time small town but on a global scale.

The book was written in the early months of 2010 and published in June, so it’s already falling behind the most recent events, but “The Facebook Effect” is still full of insights about how what started as a student website may be changing our society.

Take Control of iPhone Basics, iOS 4 Edition

Since I don’t always feel like thinking about the future of civilization, I’ve also been reading something a bit more down-to-earth: “Take Control of iPhone Basics“, by tech writer Karen G. Anderson.

Per the title, this books covers the basics, and if you’re an experienced iPhone user, much of its content will already be familiar. But if you’re thinking about getting an iPhone for someone as a holiday gift, this book will be a great accompaniment. In fact, you might want to get the book early, as the author includes a useful “Decide What to Buy” chapter that helps you select the model and accessories that are right for you.

For the novice, this book goes through how to use the phone in clear, friendly prose, explaining everything from the difference between a touch and a tap, to how to use the iPhone 4′s FaceTime. I was pleased to note that the author has has laid out the book so that it can be read in sequence, or used as a reference if you need help with a specific issue.

The PDF e-book version takes advantage of its medium, with embedded links to the publisher’s website, where the author publishes a blog, and where updates and alternative formats (including EPUB and MOBI) can be downloaded. The MOBI version works very well on my Kindle.

And oh, yes, I’m also re-reading Roger Zelazny’s “A Night in the Lonesome October,” which I do every year around this time. It’s a slightly macabre fantasy that’s told from the point of view of a dog who’s… well, I don’t want to give anything away, but this is a great book for getting me in the mood for Halloween.

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When Amazon made the claim a few months ago that it owned a 70 to 80 percent share of the e-book market, we wouldn’t have blamed you for rolling your eyes. After all, the company has been criticized for its outlandish claims around e-book sales before; believing it owned such a large percentage of the market after the release of the iPad would require a healthy dose of salt for many.

Maybe, but according to one author who’s self-published his books across most of the e-book platforms available, and as I discuss this week at GigaOM Pro, Amazon’s estimates are pretty darn accurate.

In a blog post on Wednesday, mystery and horror author J.A. Konrath – who’s been one of the most proactive authors in self-publishing, taking the reins of his unpublished works by self-publishing in e-book format — revealed, in great detail, exactly how many e-books he’s sold and where.

What did the tally show? Quite simply, that his share of e-book sales through Kindle is exactly what Kindle claims for the entire market: About 75 percent.

The graphic above is a chart showing the distribution of Konrath’s 100,000 in e-book sales. Even after you factor in a bit of an advantage for Amazon compared to others since Konrath started to sell in the Kindle store earlier than other stores, a collective 3 percent of total e-book sales from Apple, Barnes & Noble and Kobo still shows the race isn’t close.

Say he’d been selling in iBooks, Kobo and Barnes & Noble’s storefronts from early 2009 onward, maybe the numbers would be closer to 6 percent. Heck, let’s be generous and say 10 percent.

A pretty small slice of the pie nonetheless.

It’s also interesting to note exactly how well Konrath has done self-publishing through Kindle compared to his own print publishers. According to Konrath, his publishers have sold a total of 21,000 e-books, which accounts for 21 percent of his sales. Compare that, once again, to 75 percent of e-book sales coming through his own self-publishing through Kindle, and it shows the numbers aren’t close.

Sure, some will argue that Konrath can self-publish because he had a big print publisher build his name, but according to Konrath himself, his print publishers insist on keeping prices high and, as a result, sell fewer e-books as a result.

And what about other authors? While no one has released the numbers in such detail, others, like Lee Goldberg, have indicated they’ve had similar success on Amazon.

Read the full post here.

“Auntie,” you reply, “I know the perfect book for you to read. It’s called ‘Attract Visitors to Your Site: The Mini Missing Manual’ by Matthew MacDonald, and you can get it as an e-book from O’Reilly for only $4.99.”

As a web worker, there’s probably not much that’s new to you in this book. But it’s well-written, and at just over 50 pages, it can be read in a hour, and it provides a good introduction to some useful techniques for improving the visibility of web sites.

The author makes it clear that he’s written the book for the proprietors of both hobbyist and small business sites. His writing style is straightforward, and he uses a bit of humor to lighten up what can be a pretty dry subject.

MacDonald starts the book by emphasizing the importance of putting together excellent content, “shameless self-promotion,” and a promotion plan. The author’s idea of a promotion plan is very simple, though — it’s really more of a checklist, with items like “1. Build a truly great web site.”

Once past the introductory sections, the author moves into basic descriptions of what can be done (and not done) with with SEO. The final third of the book is taken up with discussions of how Google Analytics, Webmaster Tools, and AdWords work, and how to use them. These last sections are slightly more technical, but are still clearly written, although they do assume some knowledge of HTML.

The book is not without its faults. I’m surprised that, in 2010, there is no mention of how social networks like Facebook and Twitter can be used to drive traffic to web sites. And there are some sections, particularly near the beginning of the book, that feel outdated and could probably have been omitted. The discussion of reciprocal links and web rings, for example, seems to have come right out of 1998, although the author seems a bit embarrassed by the subject:

Sadly, the majority of web rings consist of gaudy, amateurish Web disasters. Pair up with these nightmares and your site will be deemed guilty by association. However, with a little research, you may find a higher-quality ring. Maybe.

On the whole, though, “Attract Visitors to Your Site” doesn’t do a bad job of providing an accessible introduction to a subject that is often covered in mumbo-jumbo. And at $5, it’s an investment that you can recommend to family, friends and customers with even the smallest of budgets.

How do you introduce friends and clients to SEO and search engine placement?

A broad book, its contents revolve around how to get prospects to find you through blogs, search engines and social media. Halligan and Shah also discuss converting customers and how to apply that to your business and web site.

The short first chapter explains what has changed in marketing, and how online technologies effected the change. The first part of the book provides little value with its brief coverage of your web site as a marketing hub and creating a remarkable strategy. Really, these first chapters set the tone for the rest of the book in that its contents are wide and shallow.

The bulk of the book rightfully focuses on “Getting Found,” with 100 pages devoted to the topic out of the book’s roughly 200. Despite that much coverage, it’s still elementary stuff. The section on converting customers only lasts for three chapters, and it needs more material than the five chapters of “Make Better Decisions.”

The “Make Better Decisions” section included a whole chapter devoted to picking a PR agency and another on how to hire the right people for your marketing team. The advice given on how to find marketers who are digital citizens, however, is outdated. For example, the suggestion to hire people based on their web reach recommends looking at how many followers they have in Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Most of us know that raw follower numbers have little value, with so many low quality users who know how to rack up the numbers.

The authors are also behind the Website Grader and Twitter Grader web sites, which they mention so frequently that at times it reads like a promotion. This book really is just a primer: You won’t glean anything new if you know the basics of search engine optimization, such as the difference between organic and paid listings, and you already know how to use social media tools and connect those tools with your business and web site. ”Inbound Marketing” does a good job for those who don’t have a clue about how to use social media for business and want to understand the bigger picture.

Have you read “Inbound Marketing?” Please share what you think in the comments.

Chris Brogan’s new book, “Social Media 101: Tactics and Tips to Develop Your Business Online,” offers bite-sized chunks that will allow you to make the most of social media, whether you fit into one of the categories above or you have a different set of problems. Each section is short — the book is 337 pages, divided into 87 different sections — but that structure elevates it from a how-to manual to a great reference book.

Sitting down and reading straight through “Social Media 101″ probably isn’t the best way to approach the book. Instead, since each section offers tips that you can take action on immediately, it may be best to dive into the sections you need right now and then get to work on implementing some social media strategy. Once you’ve got that section down, get into the next one.

The information covered in the book isn’t basic “here’s how to sign up for Twitter” stuff, though. Brogan has managed to condense discussions on topics like creating a community with a blog into something that you can act on. There’s a lot of big picture packed into this little book. That alone is enough to set “Social Media 101″ apart from the majority of social media books that have been coming out lately. It doesn’t hurt that Brogan actually takes the steps he discusses in the book — you can see how he’s implemented them on his own blog. He also points out plenty of people who are doing it right throughout the book, which allows you to take a look at case studies in action, not just the parts that Brogan wants to emphasize in his book. You can get a good overall picture of social media by reading the book, but if you look up who Brogan references, you can create your own master class in social media.

It is worth noting that “Social Media 101″ is geared to be an introductory-level resource. If you already spend your entire day plugged into social media, you may already be familiar with much of Brogan’s advice. Even though I’m active on social networking sites and in social media in general, though, I did find some interesting tidbits in the book. Brogan breaks out some tips for specific career paths, like real estate agents, that gave me some ideas on how other people are using social media, reinforcing the idea that it’s not just the platform that makes social media important.

I think that “Social Media 101″ may turn out to be a particularly useful resource when I’m working with someone who needs to get up to speed on social media — and fast. While I did receive a review copy, it’s a book that I would have picked up anyhow, just to have a copy to loan out to people who ask me social media questions. It’s worth taking a look at even if you’re at a more advanced level, though.

Have you read “Social Media 101?” Let us know what you think of it in the comments.

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The new edition of the book isn’t just a rehash of old content. Scott has extensively rewritten the book, updating it to accurately reflect the latest opportunities to connect with buyers online. When the first edition came out, Twitter didn’t exist and Facebook was still very limited — you needed a .edu email address to sign up. Scott has also pulled in new examples, many of which came from people who used his book to effectively market their projects online.

The book weighs in at 279 pages and is clearly written for individuals who already spend some time online but who want to take their marketing effort to the next level. I’d recommend against skimming the book, though. There is a lot of information to digest, and while Scott breaks things up with lists and even boxed conclusions that draw attention, it’s important to actually read through everything in the book. If you particularly need information on a certain topic, like how to create an online media room or how to write persuasive web content, you can start with that chapter and then move on to the rest of the book.

The book makes for an ideal guide for web workers: Scott mentions readers of the first edition who have used the techniques he writes about for everything from landing a new job to raising donations for a non-profit. You can easily apply the techniques to your work no matter what kind of web work you do.

Even if you already have a copy of the first edition of “The New Rules of Marketing and PR,” it’s worth taking a look at the new edition. If you’re just getting started with marketing anything on your web, from yourself to your web site to a product, you should read this book from cover to cover. “The New Rules of Marketing and PR” is published by Wiley and is priced at $19.95.

Have you read either edition of this book? Let us know what you think of it in the comments.

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O’Reilly Media was kind enough to provide me with a copy of its new book, “Open Government: Collaboration, Transparency, and Participation in Practice,” edited by Daniel Lathrop and Laurel Ruma. It’s available in print and as an e-book and is an interesting compilation of essays discussing the problems and successes that governments and citizens face as they struggle to catch up with the openness that we’ve come to expect in the era of social media, crowdsourcing and user-generated content. The snooze-inducing subtitle is actually taken from President Obama’s memorandum on transparency and open government, reprinted as an appendix to the book.

What do the authors mean by “open government?” As Tim O’Reilly puts it in one of the opening chapters:

[G]overnment is, at bottom, a mechanism for collective action. We band together, make laws, pay taxes, and build the institutions of government to manage problems that are too large for us individually and whose solution is in our common interest. Government 2.0… is the use of technology — especially the collaborative technologies at the heart of Web 2.0 — to better solve collective problems at a city, state, national, and international level.

Some of “Open Government,” especially its earlier chapters, will probably be of more interest to policy wonks than to most web workers. But later in the book, readers are presented with detailed case studies of web sites that are improving interaction between citizens and their government. In these chapters, I found some really good ideas (and some cautionary tales) that I think many web workers will find interesting and thought-provoking. I found the story of the state of Utah’s web presence of particular interest, as it leverages its own resources by taking advantage of social media and user-generated content sites.

This book will be of particular interest to those working in and with the public sector, but much of its content will be enlightening to anyone who cares about public participation in all levels of government.

How do you think that governments can improve their accessibility using web tools?

Fortunately, it is a skill that can be learned. “The Blogger’s Guide to Effective Writing,” a new e-book from Ali Hale, offers a guide to sharpening your writing skills and improving your ability to get important information across in a blog post.

While Hale doesn’t dispute the importance of the need to practice blogging to build up skills, she works hard to demystify the art of blogging. She offers the background necessary to help writers of every level speed up the writing process, write effective posts and even improve the quality of the blog as a whole.

What sets “The Blogger’s Guide to Effective Writing” apart from other writing instruction manuals is that while it includes general writing tips, it also explores the specialized needs of blogging. For instance, where you might write a memo or an article and expect it to stand alone, a blog post is expected to relate to the rest of the content on the site. Blogs also tend to be written with an end result in mind. If you’re running your own blog, that goal can be something like keeping readers coming back, so that you can land advertisers. On a company blog, that might be convincing readers to purchase a new product. Individual posts have to support that overall goal.

Of course, Hale doesn’t skimp on explaining the mechanics of writing for a blog. She digs into details like tips for improving on the standard how-to post with images and resources, as well as an upfront explanation of why it can take significantly longer to write a how-to post. She also gets into how to effectively create each section of a post, devoting a chapter each to writing a post’s introduction, middle and conclusion.

The e-book is also full of links to further resources, from examples of how to implement Hale’s instructions to research that backs up her suggestions. She draws on successful bloggers of every stripe to create an educational book that should help.

“The Blogger’s Guide to Effective Writing” is available for $29. It’s 82 pages long, and comes with a set of templates for different types of posts, including a look at how a few particularly successful blogs construct their posts.

Have you read “The Blogger’s Guide to Effective Writing”?

Instead, I set my sights on January. The merriment is over, and I’m ready to get a grip on my work world again. The only problem is that my inbox is so backed up, and my to-do list has grown so long, that it takes me most of the month to process through the open items that have congregated while I was mentally away for the holidays.

So here I am in the beginning of February, finally ready to knuckle down and work on my business plan for the year. A process that — while I’ve gone through it dozens of times over the years — is always a bit daunting at first, but greatly worthwhile.

I find that my productivity during the year is always enhanced when I have a road map to follow in my business. Even if all the gaps aren’t filled in or the fine details sorted out, just knowing the major stops along the way, and how I plan on getting there, empowers me to be more on purpose and more productive during the year.

Now that I finally have the breathing room to sit back and reflect on my business plan for 2010, I sought assistance from my client Christy Strauch in her new book titled,”Passion, Plan, Profit: 12 Simple Steps to Convert Your Passion into a Solid Business.“ Here’s her take on creating a business plan.

Karen Leland: First off, why did you write this book?

Christy Strauch: I wrote this book for creative types (like web workers) who are in the business world, but haven’t necessarily had a peaceful relationship with making the business side of their business work. Because of that, the first step in any business plan process is to connect with your purpose for being in your business — whether you’re self-employed or working for a company. It’s easier to persevere through some of the challenging times if you have a purpose to pull you through.

Karen: Well, once you know your purpose, then what?

Strauch: You need to determine who your perfect clients are. Take the knowledge that you already have about who hires you and who works with you, and then talk to your clients to gather the rest of the information. You need both the demographic information about them (things like their age, where they live and their level of education) and psychographic information (what they like to do for fun, their attitudes about technology, what they read, who else they go to for help and so on).

Karen: How does knowing who your perfect clients are help you to build a business plan?

Strauch: If you understand how people find you and why they are drawn to you, you can better determine the best way to reach out to them. Is it through a networking event, advertising, cold calling or writing articles? People often choose web workers because a colleague has recommended them.

Karen: In the book, you talk about the importance of looking at the competition as part of your planning process. Why is that so important?

Strauch: Well, to begin with, you need to figure out what you’re best at. What is unique about you? What do you offer that is distinct from your competitors? By taking a look at your competitors, the economy and your own business, you can find a way to position yourself to your clients. That positioning becomes part of the strategies for your business that you pick and put in your business plan.

Karen: Do you recommend any particular tool for this analysis?

Strauch: Yes, I suggest every businessperson do a yearly SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis. It will help you, along with knowing your purpose and your customers, to choose business activities that make the most sense in the current year — to serve your current customers and attract the right new ones.

Karen: How important is including financial information in your business plan?

Strauch: It’s critical. At a minimum, you need to have a forecast of your income for the next 12 months and projected expenses for the same period. You also need to choose three or four measurements that you can watch regularly to make sure everything’s on track in your business.

Karen: Is there anything else people should do to stay on top of their business plan after it’s written?

Strauch: Yes. Do a monthly and quarterly review process. Because things begin to change right after you remove your pen from the paper, these reviews help you keep up with (or even stay ahead of) the inevitable changes that happen to all businesses.

Do you have a business plan for this year?

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In his new book, “The Backchannel: How Audiences Are Using Twitter and Social Media and Changing Presentations Forever,” Cliff Atkinson provides an example of the effect that a Twitter-enabled backchannel (an online conversation between audience members) can have on a presentation. At last year’s South by Southwest Interactive festival in Austin, Tex., Pam Slim led a panel discussion titled, “From Blog to Book Deal.” The panel consisted of Hugh MacLeod, Guy Kawasaki, Stephanie Klein and Kate Lee. Kawasaki turned to the topic of getting book deals without having to write a proposal. Lee started to respond that not everyone has that opportunity when Kawasaki interrupted. Moderator Pam Slim studied the tone and body language of the panelists and determined that Kawasaki didn’t overstep his bounds.

But audience member Whitney Hess saw it differently. “She felt that Guy was being chummy with the other male panelist, and now he was aggressively taking over a female panelist who was not challenging him on it,” writes Atkinson. Hess tweeted that Kawasaki started taking over the panel when he told Lee to let him finish talking. Demonstrating the power of the backchannel, Kawasaki was monitoring Twitter from his laptop and saw Hess’ comment. “I want to know who Whitney Hess is, because she just said I’m being a total dick. What is this?” he asked.

Atkinson defines the backchannel as follows:

A backchannel is a line of communication created by people in an audience to connect with others inside or outside of the room, with or without the knowledge of the speaker at the front of the room. Usually facilitated by Internet technologies, it is spontaneous, self-directed, and limited in time to the duration of a live event.

The backchannel can either be a good or bad thing, depending on how the presenter and the audience use it. Presenters can use the backchannel to extend a presentation and engage the audience inside and outside of the room. The backchannel can also destroy a presentation when the audience posts negative feedback online for the world to see, or changes the mood in the room entirely.

Atkinson’s book covers in details the risks and rewards of the backchannel, explaining the different types of backchannel that can affect a presentation. These help the presenter understand what they are getting into when they join or discover a backchannel. He demonstrates how to prepare for a backchannel, and how to integrate Twitter-friendly ideas into a presentation, such as creating a hybrid of presentation and conversation, taking “Twitter breaks” and involving the audience through Twitter and the Internet.

He also shares a variety of real-world examples and how the speakers handled them. Atkinson tells Chris Brogan‘s story of having to deal with an unruly backchannel from the presentation prior to his. Brogan changed his introduction to post the backchannel on the screen. He opened with a few lines of rap and managed to loosen up the audience with laughter.

“The Backchannel” targets presenters more than audience members, although audience members can also benefit from the book’s insights. The next time you make a presentation or join a panel, you can either be prepared for the backchannel or let it take over. If you want to be prepared, “The Backchannel” gives you the guidance you need.

What is your experience with the backchannel?

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The book is divided into sections on blogging; Twitter and microblogging; social networking; media sharing; social news and bookmarking; ratings and reviews; forums; and virtual worlds. In each section, Zarrella provides very short descriptions of leading web sites in the particular category, together with quick discussions of how they work, and how businesses could benefit from using them.

The book’s author dedicates it to his grandparents, which is appropriate, since this is the sort of book that I’d give to someone older and less computer-savvy. It sometimes gets a little technical for this audience, but the writing style is clear and friendly.

The book feels like a bit of a departure for O’Reilly Media (who kindly provided the book to me). I tend to think of O’Reilly as publishers of dense software and programming manuals. I was amused to note that the book is listed in O’Reilly’s catalog as “First Edition.” The book will need updating frequently if it’s to stay relevant — some of the screenshots are already out of date.

“The Social Media Marketing Book” is a little book. At 239 8″ x 6″ pages (in paperback or as an e-book), with lots of illustrations and white space, the content is frankly limited. But it’s well-organized, easy to understand, inviting to flip through,and approachable. I doubt that many WWD readers will learn anything new from this book, but it might be useful for lending to clients, family and friends.

How do you explain social media to clients?

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Those in corporate jobs that come with a daily commute get a few chapters’ worth of advice on how to convince the boss to let you work from home. The authors only address this for a small part of the book, so if this is important to you it may be better to borrow the book from your library. It probably would have been helpful to split the book into two: one for corporate employees looking to work from home, and another for those who want their own businesses. The two groups have different needs and requirements, and Lister and Harnish concentrate more on the latter in this book.

The book gives you most of the information you need to figure out the whole “work from home” thing. Unfortunately, the book barely touches upon how to deal with health benefits, a big concern for many self-employed folks. The contracts and proposals chapter are also lacking detail.

If you’re a regular WWD reader or already work from home, you probably won’t get a lot from this book, unless you’re thinking about switching gears and starting your own business. But if you’re thinking about becoming a web worker, “Undress for Success” is a well-rounded beginner’s resource. Visit the book’s companion site at undress4success.com.

What tips do you have for people looking to dive into web working?

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“97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know,” edited by Barbee Davis, pulls together useful project management tips and insights from working project managers without the dry academic style found in many project management books, making it a great instructional read for web workers seeking to hone their PM skills.

The format of the book includes 97 tips; here are some takeaways the book has for web workers:

• “Use a Wiki” reinforces the need to centralize access to project information. While this is pretty standard for many web workers, there are employers and clients who still need reinforcement on this point. This tip provides two solid pages of wiki advice and tips that should even be digestable and and understandable to even a non-technical decision maker.
• “We Have Met the Enemy…and He Is Us” should ring true to readers who have been on projects fraught with too many meetings, multicultural/multilingual project teams, conflicting work styles, and methodologies. The advice to keep an open mind in these situations is simple yet speaks volumes as to how a web worker can survive and even thrive in these situations.
• “Aggressively Promote Communication in Distributed Projects” boils down the reality of  communications challenges that may present themselves in geographically dispersed project teams including time overlap management, communications strategy and logistics.
• “Every Project Manager is a Contract Administrator,” while directed at working project managers also provides useful advice to web workers for mitigating such contractual issues like undocumented changes and the need to control changes within the specifications of the contract.
• “9.7 Reasons I Hate Your Website” made me chuckle but reminded me of how some companies don’t understand the differences between software development and web development.

These are just a few of the standout tips in the book. While it is directed more towards a software development audience, I recommend it to any web worker who wants to be more conversant in project management and its challenges.

The book is available directly from O’Reilly Media or from Amazon.com.

Share your favorite project management tips below.

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While the prospect of working from home (or maybe by a swimming pool, or by a beach hut somewhere exotic) sounds very enticing, it can also bring its challenges. How do you stay motivated when you’re not surrounded by your colleagues? What do you do if a critical piece of hardware fails? What are the best applications to use to stay productive? How do you make sure that you maintain good work/life balance?

This 33-page e-book should help answer those questions. It contains advice on what tools you need to use; what traits successful web workers have; how to set up your home office; planning and budgeting; how to avoid loneliness; and much, much more. If you’re a new web worker, or are thinking about becoming one, it’s worth checking out — download it here.

Let us know what you think of “Web Work 101: How to Escape the Cubicle” in the comments.

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The guidance offered in “Friends with Benefits” is clearly tailored towards large businesses. There are repeated references to structures such as your company’s legal department, “marketing VP”, company intranet, IT department, and communications department. Bootstrapping small business owners (who are most likely to need a “self-help” book like this) may feel a little left out of the practical aspects of the advice offered here, although most of the general concepts apply to all companies, no matter what the business size.

“Friends with Benefits” tries to be a Social Media 101 class. It starts out with discussing what the potential benefits are of using social media in marketing (and how to measure those benefits), and then moves into the practical aspects of how to use the most common social media marketing channels. The practical instructional advice starts at the most elementary levels by assuming that readers don’t even know what the service being discussed is or does. For those familiar with social media, large sections of the book will seem unnecessary. But the book would make a good resource to pass on to a client or executive you are working with who needs to learn the value and basic practicalities of social media marketing.

Information is sometimes offered out of logical order, so I do recommend reading the entire book before implementing any of the strategies in it. On the other hand, one of the better features about the book is the organization of the latter half of it, where each chapter takes on a different social media platforms in detail.

One of the best things about the book is one of those particular chapters. Although I’ve understood in theory for some time the dominance of YouTube and its potential value in marketing, it has felt to me in many ways like YouTube marketing success was an art or even just luck. The YouTube chapter in “Friends with Benefits” gave me a real practical grounding in the process to use to be successful in that channel. After reading it, I felt like I understood what YouTube could do for my business, and what I needed to do to derive that benefit from it. It also instilled in me that video is the future of both the web and SEO in a way that cannot be ignored. Many people are more comfortable with the essentially text-based channels of the web such Facebook and Twitter than they are with the videos of YouTube, so I think this chapter will prove invaluable to many people.

Pros:

• Excellent YouTube chapter
• Excellent discussion of using targeted Facebook advertising
• Very practical basic instructions for those who need them
• Good real-world examples make lessons translatable to actual use
• Nice emphasis on blogger outreach

Cons:

• Poorly organized
• MySpace chapter doesn’t emphasize enough that site is only relevant to certain demographics
• Extremely corporate in emphasis — often won’t directly apply to small businesses
• Too limited in practical advice for many who use social media already

What question would you want answered in a book about social media marketing?

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Too many technical writing books and periodicals take an academic approach to the subject matter, which isn’t useful for readers who need real world advice to get their job done. Gentle’s practical approach opens the book up to anyone seeking to engage with their potential and existing customers online.

The book has lessons for all web workers, whether they are technical writers or not. That’s because the future Gentle paints for technical documentation isn’t just going to affect writers, but everybody who supports their customers via the web and social media. Her view of the future deftly shows how social media can take the place of tired old documentation standards — like print user guides — with planning, concise writing, and design skills aiding in the transition.

As well as being an excellent introduction to social media technologies in general, if you’re contemplating moving content to a wiki you’re going to find a lot of value in this book. The book’s coverage of wikis built upon the author’s real-life experience with the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Project and working as a senior technical writer inside a major technology corporation. The is a highlight of the book, because she nails down the challenges of using social media — and wikis in particular — for writers and other content creators through real-life experience, versus the academic pontification that sometimes weighs down technical writing books. She also makes smart and appropriate usage of examples, focusing on well-known wikis.

The other element I liked about the wiki coverage is the author’s attention to the planning and management aspects necessary for a successful wiki implementation. Based on my own experience with wikis, these elements can be more integral to the ongoing success of the wiki, rather than the technology itself.

The fresh insights in this book transcend the technical writing profession; many web workers could learn something from it, or be challenged to think further about the role of the social web in engaging and supporting customers.

Have you read “Conversation and Community: The Social Web for Documentation”? Are you using the social web for customer documentation?

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