The Dragonfly Effect Quick, Effective, and Powerful Ways To Use Social Media to Drive Social Change

Marketing gurus (and married couple) Aaker and Smith turn Aaker's popular class at the Stanford Graduate School of Business into a handbook on using the power and popularity of social media to do good in the world. They employ real-world examples--an e-mail campaign to register bone marrow donors for hard-to-match patients, a Colombian engineer who used Facebook to organize a protest against the Revolutionary Armed Forces, Obama's grassroots campaign, the microlending site Kiva--to illustrate their mantra F+GET: "Focus, Grab Attention, Engage, Take Action." This is the "Dragonfly Effect," named for the insect's ability to move in any direction when its four wings work together. Specific, practical advice teaches readers how to translate anything--a product, service, community concern--into a powerful narrative that invites participation, how to communicate with potential supporters, how to craft a compelling video, and more. A fascinating, comprehensive guide for how to take your cause and compassion viral. (Oct.) (Publishers Weekly, July 26, 2010)