"How does social media work into this campaign?"

"Can we get some social media in this campaign?"

"Why don't we have social media in this campaign?"

People feel like they are on the cutting edge when they throw the "s & m" words around. Social media has its place, but does it have to be all over the place? Before you haphazardly force fit just any new marketing into your work, you may want to gather your team and discuss trends and tactics over a "meatball sundae."

That's Meatball Sundae: Is Your Marketing Out of Sync? by Seth Godin.


When it comes to new marketing, I'm like many — I'm drinking  the Seth Godin Kool-aid. It just goes down easy. The book refers to old products as "meatballs." It's "average stuff for average people, delivered straight from the store to you." And it's supported by old media — TV, radio, print and telemarketing, which is lessening in impact by the minute. New marketing is like sundae toppings, plenty of tasty stuff to get you all excited, but when you combine the old and new - meatballs and sundae - the results aren't always appealing.

Meatball Sundae asks us not to get all crazy with the new stuff. Don't just throw it on a brand and hope it sticks. (I know melted ice cream gets sticky, but it's not the results we are looking for.) This book is a good reference for talking about the "birds and the bees" of new marketing with your clients to find what really fits for their brands.

Although Meatball Sundae is an easy read, it's written in a way where you almost don't want to read it from cover to cover. Godin constantly goes back to how brands have to build from the ground up to better integrate new marketing. Old brands built on old tactics will have a tougher go at it. You may find yourself saying, "Ok, I get it." But in Godin's defense, he does say the book is written where you can jump around to the chapters that immediately interest you. In fact, I recommend starting with page 53 and the "14 trends no marketer can afford to ignore."

Grade: B-

Cheers!