Book Review: Engagement from the Start!

A few years ago, my friend Mary told me about Guy Kawasaki.  She explained that he's a front-runner, a guy who is making things happen.  She also told me we should write a book highlighting Guy Kawasaki's theories and methods.  Alas, we never wrote the book and now someone else has.  Frankly, I wouldn't have been the right person to write the book anyway.  But, it did get written.

Danny Iny, of Firepole Marketing, put together this book, Engagement from Scratch!: How Super-Community Builders Create a Loyal Audience and How You Can Do the Same! He approached the movers and shakers, like Guy Kawasaki, and asked them how to go about building a loyal audience.  Then he compiled their wisdom into this quick, easily-read book.  I was interested for several reasons.  First, I am thinking about the future, when I will hopefully need to build a loyal audience for the young adult books I have written. Second, I am with many others who wish their blog attracted a more steady audience of readers.  And finally, I was interested in reading the advice in preparation for teaching my workshop on blogging in May.

The book did not disappoint.  I read the whole thing this morning (it took not quite two hours) and gleaned quite a bit of useful tips.  Here are a few of the nut-shells:  From Brian Clark - "If you want to build an audience, teach people something valuable or entertain people. Preferably both."  From Guy Kawasaki - "The three pillars of enchantment are 1) likeability, 2) trustworthiness, and 3) quality." From Steve Scott - "12 Steps to Getting an Audience: 1) Have a Game Plan (or a focus), 2) Be Real, 3) Think About the Reader, 4) Find Others (interested in same things), 5) Be Everywhere, 6) Always Reply, 7) Be Likeable, 8) Good Content (try to be link-bait), 9) Social Media, 10) Be a Content Curator, 11) Find a Tribe/Community, 12) Gain Feedback and Adjust Accordingly."

If you are interested in building a larger audience for your blog, books, or products, this is a book to read.  It is full of tips and encouragement for along the way.  You will come away with several key ideas to jump-start your efforts.  While it may not grow my own audience immediately, it has provided me with plenty to think about for the future. You can purchase the book here, or download it for free, as I did, here.