Review: Likeable Social Media by Dave Kerpen

Likeable Social Media: How to Delight Your Customers, Create an Irresistible Brand, and Be Generally Amazing on Facebook (And Other Social Networks)

Dave Kerpen

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071762345/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER

 

Dave Kerpen’s book focuses on social media marketing, primarily through Facebook and Twitter. He elaborates on a number of strategies and general rules of social media etiquette, using personal experiences as a marketing professional and case studies of companies to illustrate his points. Kerpen emphasizes that social media is an efficient means to be in direct communication with consumers. Companies can hear what customers are saying and have the opportunity to address their feedback. Facebook and Twitter have the potential to establish relationships on a more personal level, thus it is important for companies to take advantage of this by engaging the customer and to be authentic online with a voice corresponding to the brand’s identity.

 

Kerpen’s book certainly provides useful information for companies looking to develop their social media marketing strategies. He points out functions of Facebook and Twitter that the regular user may not be aware of, such as targeted advertising through Facebook and being able to use Twitter essentially as a tool for tracking trends and other market research. His advice for how companies should present itself on social media and how to effectively interact with consumers sometimes seems obvious from the perspective of a frequent user of social media. Consumers are much more likely to engage with a brand that seems approachable and human rather than one that seems aloof. Likeable Social Media, though, would undoubtedly be helpful for brands just starting to shape their online identity.

 

Overall, the book does prove that a social media component is essential to any successful company’s marketing plan. Consumers are used to conducting relationships online, and it is becoming more natural for them to seek a relationship with the products and services they use through online media as well. By taking advantage of the capabilities of social media, companies can interact with their customers on a more direct and frequent level. This additional connection allows brands to get a better sense of what their customers are thinking and to provide a deeper level of customer service. Kerpen also encourages marketers to come up with innovative ways to keep their customers engaged with the technologies that social media affords them. For instance, a customer of Uno Chicago Grill posted on the company’s Facebook page that she would be going to one of the restaurants for her birthday; the location where she had a reservation had a birthday cake waiting when she arrived. In turn, the customer shared her positive experience through all of her own social networks, providing the company with invaluable word-of-mouth publicity.


-Cindy H.