Bringing in A Second Opinion (Reading Reflection No. 2)

Reading Reflection No. 2 

Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs 

BY: Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah 

1) What was the general theme or argument of the book?

The general argument of the book is that the world of public relations and marketing has changed significantly in this new digital era. Oftentimes, the authors stress that since the landscape has changed, then the strategies must change as well. Halligan and Shah determined that today's shoppers have different concerns and can be mostly reached through today's social media, blogs, and Google. To continue, the general theme of the book is connected to understanding consumer habits and solving key issues in marketing campaigns by using inbound marketing. 

2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?

In my opinion, the themes in Inbound Marketing strongly support ENT 3003's core principle -- that you need to know who your customers are. In this class, we've learned that not all consumers are the same; people have unique lifestyles and issues that help explain what they will buy and what they will not buy. 

3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

I would design a regular customer survey exercise for everyone who has ideas for the products that they wish to develop and sell to the public one day. Taking into account the 80/20 rule, I think that it is important to emphasize that brand loyalty is what keeps most companies afloat after initially reaching out to them with effective marketing strategies. 

4) What was your biggest surprise or 'aha' moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

My biggest aha moment was when I read about the authors' comparisons of the social media campaigns employed by the 2008 presidential candidates. Halligan and Shah drew up comparisons from Barack Obama's social media campaign and from Hillary Clinton's campaign. They say that anyone can objectively measure the difference and that even though Clinton had more money to employ expensive outbound marketing tactics, Obama was able to target and engage with his following online in a better way. My aha moment made me realize that anyone has a shot of being successful with their entrepreneurial ventures. All it takes is recognizing the opportunity and seizing it.