MARKETING IN THE ROUND: HOW TO DEVELOP AN INTEGRATED MARKETING CAMPAIGN IN THE DIGITAL ERA

I read a lot of marketing books, but mainly about content marketing (my field) and social media. I wanted to step out a bit and read something that would be a bit more holistic and inclusive to help me see how what we do can fit in in the big picture for our clients. This book didn't really give me that. It did give me a lot of buzz words and some repetitiveness--I read several pages over again because my mind wandered off, I couldn't tell if I had actually read the page previously, or I couldn't quite get what the author was saying due to the jargon.If I was an aging senior executive in a large organization holed up in my particular marketing or PR silo, I might have received an eye-opener. But most of what was written about here isn't anything terribly new--old concepts with new words. It could be the book is geared to this group, but I strongly suspect if someone was so staunchly unaware of the general concepts this book attempts to put out, they would most definitely find the book incomprehensible.I didn't completely dislike this book. It did make me think a bit outside of my own little box. I didn't come into my current role via a marketing degree, so the superficial overview presented here did raise some questions for me to dig deeper on and learn more about from other sources. As someone running a very small organization catering to much larger businesses, it did give me some perspective as to who some of our potential clients are, and gave me some insight as to what some of our battles would be with certain client segments. And it made me put my critical thinking hat on.

A book equally as effective as this one could be written in half the number of pages or less. The authors repeat the same thing over and over in multiple chapters, and I can only assume they did that to increase the number of pages because it wasn't done to increase retention. I did learn from this book, and i enjoyed the examples but hardly any of it was insightful. This book is for beginners learning about marketing in 12th grade high school. All of the content is extremely vague, and there aren't many examples at all, and the examples they did have weren't in detail.Although reading this book wouldn't be a "waste of time," I believe there is a high opportunity cost because there are far better marketing books (and articles) out there that address the same issues for less time and money. I'd pass.Oh yeah, if you're younger than 35 years old, and have taken an introductory marketing course, then you probably know 80% or more of the material in this book.

I really, really enjoyed this book. Easy to read and full of great case studies, charts and activities.There are dozens of marketing and business books released every week. Many of them, dare I say, repeat the same messages. The same case studies. The same conclusions.Not this book. For real. It was refreshing to read about different case studies (Kellogg's, Tupperware, Babybel), different approaches (what? Not everything is social media!?) and different conclusions (you aren't done when you think you're done).What makes Marketing In The Round special, though, is the thoughtful way it's put together. It is not linear because we don't live in a linear world any longer. Instead, the idea of the "marketing round" is flexible, dynamic, and responsive, all the qualities we need to succeed in today's world. Integrated communications is the tip of the iceberg. We all know we need to do it, but HOW?Each chapter ends with exercises for you to conduct. Reading this book is not a passive activity. Prepare to take action and get results. Highly recommended!

The media could not be loaded.  When I heard that friends Gini Dietrich and Geoff Livingston were writing a book together, I was happy for them. Throughout the process, I knew that Marketing in the Round would be good, but did not think that it was going to be something that would take readers out of their comfort zone.Now don't think that means that they are going all controversial. Rather the duo pushes readers to step back and look at their marketing in a more holistic manner. Sure social media may be the cat's meow right now, but that does not mean that marketers should drop everything for it. Traditional methods still work.The book itself takes you through the steps of getting a more rounded marketing structure and outlines some of the work that needs to be done. The tail end of each chapter offers worksheets for the reader to fill out, so it can be a learn while you read tool as well.

Just finished Marketing in the Round and found it to be incredibly helpful. I'm making it required reading for any hire or intern entering the Marketing/Communications field. The book beautifully balances itself between BIG PICTURE theories and more day-to-day how to advice and examples. Simple common-sense charts, tables and questions help you think through your situation and come up with an executable strategy.Dietrich and Livingston break down the pros and cons of each discipline (Advertising, Web, Public Relations, Social Media, SEO, Content, and Direct Marketing)and illuminate the importance of cross-departmental collaboration. Their years of experience shine through and would serve as a much-needed reality check for those who don't know why they're not getting the results they want from their marketing campaigns.For example, the section discussing starting up an online community starts out "This is not the Field of Dreams. If you build it, they will not come." Of course, the paragraph goes on to helpfully explain how to participate in existing online communities, where to find them, and how best to engage them.A must read for anyone currently in Marketing and PR (at least those who plan to be in the business a year from now.)