Reactions to Groundswell

This past summer I had an internship at a small, independent production company called Artigo/Ajemian Films. When I started the internship, we were in the midst of releasing their latest film BoyBand. One of the main things I was in charge of was social media marketing. After the premiere in June, the rest of my summer was spent keeping buzz going about the movie. The main way I attempted this was through BoyBand's Facebook fan page, Twitter account and Blog. However, this proved harder than I had originally thought it would be.

After reading the first six chapters of Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff's book Groundswell it has become very evident to me that not only garnering a presence on the internet but maintaining one as well is an endless job.

What struck me in chapter one was the story about the DVD code posted on Diggs.com. The fact that once something hits the internet that regardless of rules and regulations it truly belongs to the public is something that I was aware of but not to this magnitude. Although people can fight to have something removed, once something has gone viral there is no stopping it no matter what the law is.

Although I was familiar with some of the material in chapter two, it was nice to be reminded of the various social media outlets that can be used to market. Furthermore, being informed as to how certain social media elements can be used to market proves quite beneficial.

As an active participant in social media, it is often times hard to remember that different people associate with social media in different ways. Groundswell does a good job of breaking social media members into various categories: creators, critics, collectors, joiners, spectators, and inactives. In order to through a successful marketing campaign, one must keep all these categories in mind.

Reading chapter four would have been incredibly helpful this past summer in regards to promoting BoyBand online. Chapter four provides strategies for reaching your target market as well as reminding the reader of the pros and cons. It is good to be reminded that once something is on the internet it is on there for good and that there is no going back.

Both chapter five and six are helpful with providing detailed examples, reasons and strategies for listening as well as talking with one's target market. One thing that I really took away from these two chapters is that one should be open to change. For example, if a corporation starts up a blog with the intention of talking to the customers, they may find that the format is actually better suited for listening or vice versa, but if the company is unwilling to adapt then problems may arise.

Groundswell is an easy read, it is incredibly informative and helpful but since it is not a textbook it is easier to read and comprehend.