The Digital Handshake

Seven Proven Strategies to Grow Your Business Using Social Media

By: Paul Chaney

Narrated by: Scott Peterson

Length: 6 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

Traditional marketing tactics aren't bringing in customers like they used to, and even today's most successful businesses are suffering shrinking returns on their advertising and marketing investment. The Digital Handshake explains this phenomenon and reveals seven effective, proven strategies for using new media and online tools to find new customers and keep them.

Marketing is no longer a one-way street, but an engagement in a conversation with customers and potential customers. The Digital Handshake shows you how to introduce yourself to the online world and engage customers via new media tools like blogs, social networks, online video, podcasting, mobile marketing, customer ratings systems, and Twitter.

Using real case studies, social-media authority Paul Chaney shows you how to design a comprehensive marketing and advertising campaign that enhances traditional marketing efforts with an entire suite of new media applications. He provides practical Web 2.0 solutions for real-world business problems, including how to counter negative perceptions about your brand or company, reward those who speak well of you online, and generate brand awareness and positive impressions.

Social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn are growing by leaps and bounds, connecting people in profound new ways and changing the way communities and individuals buy. Tomorrow's best companies will be those who can most effectively use social media to connect with consumers, ramp up branding efforts, and grow their online presence.New technology can either undermine your marketing efforts or enhance them. Don't be left behind. The Digital Handshake is a tactical and practical guide for non-technical business leaders who want to leverage the new media tools to positively affect their bottom line.

©2009 Paul Chaney (P)2010 Gildan Media Corp

One of the top social media books to date...

I have been reading/listening to a large number of digital media and social media books and I found this to be one of the top books to date. Good read.

I'd buy this book again in a heart beat.

Mind blowing, relevant, worth listening twice! If you want to develop a Social Media program, listen to this book. The content herein looks at Social Media as a holistic component of your marketing program. I'd buy this book again in a heart beat.

Good panorama and some good tips

This book con be useful if you are trying to deploy your social media stategy but if you are lokking for technical details this is not the one you are looking for.
It's nice that the author is not trying to sell you his consulting services, just to deliver good info.

Big Picture For Executive Buy In

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

In my opinion this book is a great stepping stone to get C-Level leadership in on social media, but if you already have a solid understanding of the importance and intricacies of social media this may not be the best book for you.

It is not without value to the experienced, but may not be what intermediates are looking for.

Interesting conversation, but ALREADY out of date!

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I enjoyed the message, but I was half way through before I realised how out of date this audio book is!

Don't get me wrong - there's a lot of good stuff in this - and has served its purpose in helping me with my research into social media - the reasons to be interested in Social Media are still valid, and there are a number of "gems" in the form of quotes and references to multiple sources of info on social media...

But when they start talking about statistics from 2007, 2008 and 2009, and referencing how many hits MySpace receives, you notice how UNHELPFUL this also is.

Social Media is moving faster than any previous media, with Pinterest being the fastest-growing website of all time as an example of this (fastest to 10 million users - http://fox8.com/2012/03/23/pinterest-becomes-fastest-growing-website-ever/).

This book is in a HUGE need of a revision. If you're looking for an up-to-date handbook on social media, this is NOT it. Because I'm still researching SM, I can't say which book IS up-to-date, but this title leaves me with a taste of "how much of this is still valid?" in my mouth.

Would you ever listen to anything by Paul Chaney again?

Sure - only a recent release though!

What aspect of Scott Peterson’s performance would you have changed?

Scott's performance is ok, but not edited so well, with multiple points where an extra pause would have made a difference. Scott's slight lisp is annoying, but not a game-breaker.

So much promised, so little delivered

The introductory chapter(s) for this book seemed to be introducing me to EXACTLY the kind of book that I was looking for. I didn't want something academic about social media. I wanted practical advice on how to build my social media following. I had high hopes for this book after the first few chapters.

Unfortunately, the book failed to introduce me to new concepts. Here's how the book goes: part 1 is a sweet introduction that will make you think you bought the right book, part 2 is a lengthy explanation of why social media is important which I already know or else I wouldn't have bought the book, the the rest of the book is a painfully complete review of each of the major social networking sites and when you should use them.

That's not what I was looking for. This would be great for an older person who doesn't use social media and doesn't understand it, but if you already know what LinkedIn, Facebook, and other sites are used for.... you'll be bored to tears. Furthermore, almost all of the examples in the book are major corporations and rarely case studies from small businesses. I couldn't force myself to finish the book.

What I really wanted from this book was TIPS for using social media. For example, what kind of status update gets my followers to interact with my page best? What ideas for contests could help people to engage with me? What statistics can you show me for brands that have made changes to their social networking sites and seen positive results? Etc.

If you're searching for a good book to improve your small business, check out "The Lean Startup" "The E-Myth Revisited" and "How to Win Friends and Influence People." Those are the best business books I've read, and I've read a lot of them!