Citizen Marketers: When People Are the Message

by Jackie Huba, Ben McConnell

""A solid... insightful explanation of how the Internet has armed the consumer—which is to say, everyone—against the mindless blather of corporate messaging attempts. Drop everything and read this book.""— The Wall Street Journal   The woman next to you in the coffee shop, typing madly on her laptop, just might be determining the ending to next year's block-buster film or how quickly the hottest new PDAT hits store shelves.  In homes, dorm rooms, waiting rooms, planes and trains around the world, millions of people are exercising enormous influence on what we buy, even though they have no official connection to those products and services.    Who are they?  What motivates them?  Marketing experts Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba explore the ramifications of social media in Citizen Marketers .  As everyday people increasingly create content on behalf of companies, brands or products, they are collaborating with others just like themselves and forming ever-growing communities of enhusiasts and evangelists.  From the rough to the sophisticated, the ""user-generated media"" of blogs, online bulletin boards, podcasts, photos, songs, and animations are influencing companies' customer relationships, product design, and marketing campaigns, whether they participate willingly or not.    Citizen Marketers is the first book to document this phenomenon, examining some of the early winners and losers in this new genre, as well as some of its most noted constituents.  With their exceptional knowledge of brands, products, companies and industries, the citizen marketers are democratizing traditional notions of communication and marketing, even entire business models.      

Genres: Business, Nonfiction

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Jackie Huba is the author of the new book Fiercely You: Be Fabulous and Confident by Thinking Like a Drag Queen, which helps people become more self-assured and fearless at work and in life. She translated the book into an unforgettable TEDx Talk in Vancouver in 2015. Making TED Talk history, her presentation “Unleash the Power of Your Inner Drag Queen” was the first ever TED Talk to be done by a female drag queen. She author of three previous books on customer loyalty, including Monster Loyalty: How Lady Gaga Turns Followers into Fanatics. A sought after keynote speaker and consultant, Jackie has helped leading companies such as Discovery Communications, Whirlpool, and Dell create more loyalty in their customer base. She lives in Austin, Texas.

Reviews

[Tommy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfortunately this book is pretty useless.

First off, it lacks a specific purpose. It's basically a bunch of case studies and cautionary tales of PR how to/not to deal with bloggers, fans and fads. This is all well and good, but a little behind the times. Most smaller businesses already get this. The only ones trying to keep too strong a grip on the brand image and message in this were large corporations that inherently are slower to adopt new media and change quickly regarding circumstance.

I think better new marketing reading would involve understanding what causes trends or fads to blow up like Gladwell's books, or what new media best meets your target audience and how to implement it.

Ultimately this book is too obvious and lacks any real solutions for implementation. Pass on it.

[Chainsaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy read regarding how "new media" (blogs, vlogs, YouTube, etc) are resulting in democratized "everything" and enabling a small active percentage of the population to generate disproportionate effects. As one individual who is quoted in the book states, "We are in a new era of 'seller beware.' Now when you screw your customers, your customers can fight back and publish and organize." In other words, thanks to online tools & the communities they help create, everyday individuals can wield power that used to be reserved for the traditional media giants or corporate powerhouses. Plenty of interesting vignettes as well as an easy-to-follow discussion of online community dynamics. Worthwhile reading that won't take you too long.

[Alice]

Reading this for my Public Relations class.
It's interesting, not Earth-shattering ideas, but a good bullet-pointed synopsis how word of mouth is the authentic marketing of the digital age. Companies need to pay attention to blogs and message boards, stay connected to the consumers. They basically argue that citizens who post commentary on the web can make or brake a brand. Not sure if I completely buy it, but I think companies need to respect the reach and respect of social media.

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so interesting in the statistics it uses to prove the success of web-marketing and the power of one voice. Your voice. Through your website, your BLOG, etc. It is the new way of marketing...very enlightening book!

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a good introductory read for those interested in social media - right up there with Groundswell and Here Comes Everybody (though don't read all three at the same time, you'll find them very similar and could get bored).

[Emmanuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Practical and realistic update to what marketing means with all the different media and social changes happening on the web and in the marketplace.

[Matt McKee · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want to learn how your business or church can embrace word of mouth marketing then this is a must read.

[Rachel Holt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dated but has interesting case studies

[Lori Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

An optional-read book on buzz/word-of-mouth marketing for the knowledge worker, manager, executive, or entrepreneur.

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

ok.