The Art of Social Media: Book Report

The Art of Social Media is a book written by Guy Kawasaki and Peg Fitzpatrick. The two are seasoned professionals and are now the leadership for the popular tool, Canva. They wanted the book to convey realistic social media lessons that can be practically used. They did so by providing practical tips and tricks in the book. They say that social media is what will get your brand out there, and recognized by people. They think using social media as a tool is the smartest way right now to get your brand's name out there.

First, they went over how to optimize your profile. This chapter used good analogies to teach the importance of a profile. They explained that your profile should look like a resume of who your brand is and what you've done. It should entice people to follow you.

Then they discussed how to keep up with constantly finding new content. They gave some practical tips. First, they suggested to make a plan and use and editorial calendar. They even went over all the different platforms you can used for a content calendar. They also advised to use resharing features. Be in the know of what's popular in your industry and reshare those posts.

They also covered how to respond to comments. They explained its easier to see comments on other platforms, but for Twitter one should set up a saved search of their name and constantly check up on that. They advised when writing a comment keep in mind that everyone will see it, not just the person you're responding to.

Their section on how to gain more followers was a little weaker. They advised to purely share really good quality content to grow a following. They also explained you should try out new platforms as well.

They also covered how to optimize for each platform. Firstly, for Facebook, they explained to link your Instagram to your Facebook, use Facebook page insights, and to interact with other Facebook pages. For Instagram, they advised to keep it simple, use hashtags and filter, and to share your Instagram photos on Facebook. For LinkedIn, they advised to send personalized connection requests, focus on a niche and join groups. For Twitter, they suggested using graphics, and tagging people. For Youtube, they suggested completing your profile, creating a profile trailer, and using an intro and outro for each post. They also discussed Google+ and Pinterest as well.

I think some of the key takeaways of this book is to have an integrated approach to social media. They advise one should link their accounts, or post on multiple platforms, or reshare content on multiple platforms. I think this idea also feeds into their discussion of how to stay organized with a calendar. I think that's especially important, because it helps you be more consistent with content. I think another key takeaway is to be active in responding to followers and engaging with them. This helps build true connections.

Overall, I think this book was good for someone who doesn't know much about social media or is new to it. I don't think everything they say is absolutely groundbreaking, and because it's older some of it is a bit dated. I'd recommend it for someone who's new to social media, but if you're a seasoned professional or a younger, more tech-savvy individual, this may not bring forth any new ideas. I learned some good practical tips, so I'd recommend it.