What should I be reading?
I’m working out my 12 weeks notice before I start at Mandate in June. Being the bookish sort, I’m going for reading or re-reading 12 books in the 12 weeks to help get my mind in the right gear for the new job.
But what books should I be reading? You’ll notice some flaws with my current list below. Such as it isn’t 12 books long. And it is rather light on PR. So what should I add to the list or remove from it? Let me know your suggestions…
- Click: What We Do Online and Why It Matters by Bill Tancer.
- Crowdsourcing: How the Power of the Crowd is Driving the Future of Business by Jeff Howe.
- Groundswell: winning in a world transformed by social technologies by Charlene Li & Josh Bernoff; reviewed by me here.
- Here Comes Everybody: How Change Happens When People Come Together by Clay Shirky.
- Lobbying: The Art of Political Persuasion by Lionel Zetter.
- Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Take Hold and Others Come Unstuck by Dan Heath and Chip Heath; for some reason, the publishers gave up on the cover on an earlier version of the book which is much better.
- Make Poverty History: Political Communication in Action by Nicolas Sireau.
- The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use News Releases, Blogs, Podcasting, Viral Marketing and Online Media to Reach Buyers Directly by David Meerman Scott.
- Nudge: Improving decisions about health, wealth and happiness by Richard Thaler & Cass Sunstein.
- We-Think: Mass innovation, not mass production by Charles Leadbeater; reviewed by me here.
- What Would Google Do? by Jeff Jarvis; reviewed by me here.
Any of these real turkeys? Something vital missing? Let me know; thank you!
Groundswell is a great one to start with – full of brand case studies and good ROI
You must have read ‘Crashing The Gate’ in your past role? Loads of learnings in that for PR people
Check out a couple of e-books
Antony Mayfield
http://www.icrossing.co.uk/fileadmin/uploads/eBooks/What_is_Social_Media_iCrossing_ebook.pdf
http://connect.icrossing.co.uk/ebook-brands-networks_608
Todd Defren
http://www.shiftcomm.com/downloads/SMMarketingebook-SHIFT_Communications.pdf
Groundswell is a great one to start with – full of brand case studies and good ROI
You must have read ‘Crashing The Gate’ in your past role? Loads of learnings in that for PR people
Check out a couple of e-books
Antony Mayfield
http://www.icrossing.co.uk/fileadmin/uploads/eBooks/What_is_Social_Media_iCrossing_ebook.pdf
http://connect.icrossing.co.uk/ebook-brands-networks_608
Todd Defren
http://www.shiftcomm.com/downloads/SMMarketingebook-SHIFT_Communications.pdf
I’d recommend Influence by Cialdini and probably Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely (although there is some overlap between the two).
But I’d also suggest reading stuff not related at all because it will liberate your mind and just get you thinking about interesting things. Consider:
Barbarians at the Gate – about the biggest corporate takeover (then) in history
From Good to Great – what makes good companies better
The New East End – analysis of community in Tower Hamlets
Let us know how you get on!
I’d recommend Influence by Cialdini and probably Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely (although there is some overlap between the two).
But I’d also suggest reading stuff not related at all because it will liberate your mind and just get you thinking about interesting things. Consider:
Barbarians at the Gate – about the biggest corporate takeover (then) in history
From Good to Great – what makes good companies better
The New East End – analysis of community in Tower Hamlets
Let us know how you get on!
I’m not so keen on Groundswell – it had a couple of good examples but I thought was generally uninspiring.
Following up on Matthew Cain’s suggestion I’d suggest Yes! which is a compendium of 50 psychological experiments that Robert Cialdini put together.
I’m not so keen on Groundswell – it had a couple of good examples but I thought was generally uninspiring.
Following up on Matthew Cain’s suggestion I’d suggest Yes! which is a compendium of 50 psychological experiments that Robert Cialdini put together.
Unbelievably ten years old but I would have thought the Cluetrain Manifesto was still essential reading. The other book I would add is the brilliant Flat Earth News by Nick Davies (now in paperback).
I would agree with ‘Influence’ by Cialdini, and Davies if not already, and of course, Shirky.
I’m a big fan of ‘Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs’ by Carol Tavris & Elliot Aronson. It goes a long way to explaining the behaviour of the likes of Smith & Brown through cognitive dissonance – paving the way for how it might be used for more persuasive objectives.
A bit heavier going, but ahead of the game is ‘Storytelling Organisations’ by David M Boje – see http://www.amazon.co.uk/Storytelling-Organizations-David-M-Boje/dp/1412929776/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232214275&sr=1-1
Can recommend some of the stronger academic PR texts (L’Etang & Pieczka’s ‘Public Relations: Critical Debates and Contemporary Practice’) – but probably not to dislodge any from your eventual list of 12. I’ll keep thinking on that one.
Thanks for all the ideas. I may have to speed up my reading! But do keep them coming.
I would agree with ‘Influence’ by Cialdini, and Davies if not already, and of course, Shirky.
I’m a big fan of ‘Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs’ by Carol Tavris & Elliot Aronson. It goes a long way to explaining the behaviour of the likes of Smith & Brown through cognitive dissonance – paving the way for how it might be used for more persuasive objectives.
A bit heavier going, but ahead of the game is ‘Storytelling Organisations’ by David M Boje – see http://www.amazon.co.uk/Storytelling-Organizations-David-M-Boje/dp/1412929776/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232214275&sr=1-1
Can recommend some of the stronger academic PR texts (L’Etang & Pieczka’s ‘Public Relations: Critical Debates and Contemporary Practice’) – but probably not to dislodge any from your eventual list of 12. I’ll keep thinking on that one.
Another nice list of books on social media & web: http://twurl.nl/lbhq8c
Another nice list of books on social media & web: http://twurl.nl/lbhq8c