#qualman

When this class started and I found out we had books assigned, I was not excited to read a book over the summer. I am not a guy who uses social media daily, but I know about different aspects of it. But after reading this book, I am glad I did. I learned so many things about social media, technology, people, and businesses. It was interesting to learn about how social media and businesses work because I did not realize there were so many connections. Qualman is a very good writer, and I enjoyed his writing style. Reading books like these are sometimes hard because they can become old-fashion easily with our growing society.

Next, I will mention some of my favorite points of Socialnomics.

1. Spending time on social media makes you more productive.

2. Effective companies and people embrace critical feedback.

3. By engaging votes, social media has had a positive impact on voter turnout.

4. Marketers jobs have changed from creating and pushing to one that requires listening and engaging.

5. It’s better to live a social media life making mistakes than living a social media life doing nothing.

6. The younger generation's interpersonal communication skills are starting to suffer as a result of overdependence on nonverbal and non-face-to-face interactions. Read this article to learn more.

7. There are so many social media experts that you can continually learn from.

8. Culture, not content, is often king when it comes to your overall social success.

9. ‘Influencers’ are people whose job it is to run their businesses social media account.

10. It is six or seven times more expensive to acquire a new customer than it is to retain an existing one.

11. Commitment, consistency, audience, momentum marketing, finable, shareable, searchable, mobile, and contributors are key to a successful blogger.

12. Blogs need to have content to keep followers interested and engaged.

13. There are so many social media tools out there for people to utilize.

14. Making a viral video is not a sound strategy- making a video that provides value to the viewer is.

I just got done reading Erik Qualman’s book and I admittedly wasn’t expecting to like it because it’s my text book for class. But I was surprised to have actually read all of the chapters, learned a lot about the way society uses social media, and enjoyed what I learned. 

First off, as a reader, I really appreciated the way this book was formatted. Qualman had good chapters with interesting titles and then within those chapter had easy-to-read sections that broke down big ideas and made them easy to comprehend. He also made it easy with all of his logical analogies. I enjoyed when he compared big concepts to something small and relatable. This makes learning easier. This makes learning fun. Thanks Qualman. 

One chapter that I think really generated a good discussion was towards the beginning of the book, chapter 2. I think my peers and I agreed, for the most part, with Qualman that Social Media = Preventative Behavior. This chapter lead us into a discussion on whether or not social media has the power to control personal and/or corporate behavior. One of my classmates even brought up (what used to be) a popular twitter account among our student body that drove preventative behavior, Blackout Bobcat. Accounts like this one and other things similar to it on social media can easily backfire and give someone a bad online (and even, offline) reputation. 

While this is true i think, for the most part, as a generation we recognize this and that’s what makes social media = preventative behavior. We know that our grandmothers are stalking our Facebooks and that our potential employer will probably google us to check out our online presence. Well, it’s proably a little much to say this is recognized by our entire generation, but at least it is by the people in #GCWeb16 thanks to Qualman. The guy really knows his stuff!  

Book Review of Digital Leader: 5 Simple Keys to Success and Influence by Erik Qualman

This book covers a variety of topics and I would gladly recommend it to any of my friends not just for the social media aspect, but also because it actually made me re-look and evaluate myself as a person. Qualman takes a unique approach to describing some do’s and don’ts of social media as well as how it impacts a person and their life. The three highlights of the book that I would like to point out are the stories and examples that Qualman uses to correlate the topic to the reader, his use of ‘digital deeds’, and the main lesson of the book: STAMP.

Qualman uses many techniques to capture and retain the reader’s attention in this book, and his book is more than just a how to or step by step novel, it is an insight on social media and how it can affect marketing and yourself greatly. He uses many stories and instances of ‘Digital Deeds’ which usually provides useful information or insight about the main point he is trying to hit in each chapter. The overall main idea of the book, the five keys to success and influence, are broken down into an acronym called STAMP which Qualman tackles throughout the entire book. He tackles the importance of each acronym and how each one of it plays into the overall STAMP module and our personal lives.

Beginning with the first highlight of Digital Leader, I would like to start with are the story lines and examples that Qualman strategically weaves throughout the book to incorporate case examples or relevancy to the topic that is being spoken about. Digital Leader is a book about balancing personal life and social media. How to market yourself and your company in a proper way through social media, and how to become a digital leader by integrity, example, simplicity, and empowerment. Within each chapter Qualman uses either personal stories or stories from relatable figures that are known to most Americans such as Ronald Reagan, Steve Jobs to well-known companies such as Ford and IKEA. Qualman also uses examples to his advantage throughout Digital Leader, making sure to back up all lessons that was ‘taught’ with an example, or a guiding example. Qualman’s examples can range from once again personal experience or general ideas that he has come across to even step-by-step proposed ideas. For example in one of the chapters Qualman explains instead of reading instruction manuals to take short-cuts such as guided videos on YouTube or reviews on google to help with the assembly of furniture to save personal time. Examples like this help Qualman show the importance of let’s say time management and usage of time of the Digital Leader in reference to social media outlets and other distractions or ‘noise’.

The second topic that I would like to bring up from Digital Leader is probably one of my favorite parts of the book, the ‘Digital Deeds’ that one can find sporadically throughout Qualman’s book. These deeds highlight and shed light on the important factors that Qualman is trying to bring to the reader’s attention to accomplish with social media that is not necessarily part of his ‘STAMP’ idea. These Digital Deeds include items such as: saying thanks to your family via email, how to control and announce your ‘digital voice’, how to be more efficient in tasks such as multitasking (with great reference to Microsoft’s 4D’s in chapter five), and activity toolboxes. These deeds are usually suggestions on how to improve oneself on becoming a better digital leader and overall a better person. I have bookmarked many of these deeds and have returned to them multiple times even after reading the book.

The third topic I would like to speak about from Digital Leader is the main focus of the book, STAMP. An acronym standing for Simple, True, Act, Map, and People. This acronym refers to the personal stamp on our lives and others. What we do and how it makes a domino effect. I believe this is an important read for any leader, not just digital, because Qualman takes all of these principles and lays out the meaning behind each one. Simple relates to simplification of life and focus. Not having to stress over the little things, how it can affect the human body (giving such data like being overly stressed is more harming than drugs. Also that texting is more hazardous than marijuana!). Truth refers to being true to yourself. Being the leader you want to be and not conforming to societal expectations. Find your true passion and explore it endlessly never giving it up. Being true to yourself about items such as time commitments, the ability to say no to others, and putting yourself first. Act is one of my favorite points that Qualman points out. Without action, there is nothing. No reaction. Don’t be afraid to take the first step, to make a couple of mistakes, or even to explore and take risks. Map is to set goals and have visions. Without these you will not get far- or will continue to travel an aimless road. People is the last part of STAMP which concludes that success is not a solo thing. It can occur, but to have true success means to have it and share it with others. My favorite quote from Digital Leader is ‘Success doesn’t happen alone’.

Taking these items from STAMP and combining them with our new digital world and all of the social aspects that is included with it, Qualman flawlessly guides us through the book to make us a digital leader in an online AND offline world. Qualman takes each individual acronym and not only teaches a valuable lesson but lays its out in an easy to follow manner backed by examples or situations that Qualman has been in or a recognizable and well-known figure has described. Throughout the journey of Digital Leader I have discovered that this is just more than just an insight on basic social media concepts. I was expecting items that I did find such as privacy and what to post on social media accounts (i.e. pictures, tweets, etc.) that was basic knowledge to me, but I also found items that really made me sit back and re-think and re-visit some situations I’ve encountered in the past and know that I will encounter in the future. Being a digital leader isn’t just about having a clean social media slate, it is about knowing and having the knowledge to compete and be culturally, socially, and personally aware at all times- online and offline.

In conclusion, I would like to say that Qualman has presented an impressive piece of material with his book and has given a simple, yet resourceful insight on the 5 keys to success and influence through his STAMP method. Utilizing examples and creative stories that many Americans or younger generations can relate to, Qualman sets the reader in a setting which he can fully capture and retain his audience. By offering his ‘Digital Deeds’ at various inputs of the book Qualman just adds on to his lessons or highlighted points that are deemed critical in becoming a true digital leader in the new era. Digital Leader has been a book that I have read, revisited, and bookmarked upon purchase back in September. It is one that has made me reevaluate myself, social media, as well as general approaches to life and business.

Social Media Revolution. Many of you have seen this video. If you haven't, you should. Keep in mind that it is now statistically outdated as SM is changing every day, but the message is still very much there.