Book Review: Facebook Marketing

Did you know that if Facebook were a country, it would be the third largest in the world after China and India?  Facebook’s global growth is explosive and for many professionals, it’s difficult to find a book that captures the intricacies of Facebook without being overwhelming, offers the opportunity to learn how to create community through best practices and guides a reader through unfamiliar territory.  I found that book.  It’s Facebook Marketing: Designing Your Next Marketing Campaign by Justin Levy.

I guess I have a disclosure to make:  I was the “connector” between Justin and his acquisitions editor at Pearson. Justin was actually on his honeymoon when I reached out to him and asked him if he was interested in writing a book.  The rest is history….

I also want to note that Pearson sent me a review copy so that I could review the book and share my thoughts.

Facebook Marketing is a very helpful book.  Here’s what I liked the most: although Facebook can be intimidating, Justin walks you through easy steps from how to get started with your profile and setting up privacy settings to how you can effectively use Facebook advertising and Facebook Connect to enhance a consumer’s experience with a brand.

I also really appreciate a book that makes a point of reminding the reader that Facebook is just a tool and it’s what you do with it.  It’s up to us to discover functionality by experimenting and to commit ourselves to practicing the best techniques to build community.  These are the underlying principles for success and a very strong message threaded throughout the manuscript.

One of the most helpful parts was the privacy area.  I learned a few things myself about how you have different options for privacy and can control who can see your profile, post to your wall and who can interact with you on Facebook.  Justin also gave a very good explanation of the differences between the personal vs. professional profile and when to blend the two.  I’m finding many professionals are struggling with this question.

Overall, Facebook Marketing had excellent examples, however, if I were to offer helpful criticism with respect to this book (and this is really more so for Pearson and the production team), it would be to enlarge the graphics to support the great examples.  It was difficult for me to see the visuals, which were a bit too small to decipher.

I’m giving Facebook Marketing two thumbs up and calling it a “must read” for people who are new to Facebook or who have jumped into Facebook campaigns but haven’t taken the time to really explored all of Facebook’s unique possibilities.  This book will show you a better way!