I met Deltina Hay at her book signing and talk on the Social Web at BookPeople this past July. I really enjoyed her presentation and how openly and honestly she spoke about her writing process for this intensive project.
NOTE: Video below shows some excerpts from Deltina’s presentation.

There is no shortage of social media books at my house, (ie My LibraryThing)  so of course I had to get a copy of “A survival guide to Social Media and Web 2.0 Optimization: Strategies, Tactics, and Tools for Succeeding in the Social Web” to add to my geek library. I’ve been reading it off and on for the past several weeks, and must say, I am both shocked and impressed at how much valuable information is contained within its almost 400 pages.

Most people are well aware of the term SEO (Search Engine Optimization), but many haven’t heard of and/or don’t understand SMO (Social Media Optimization). Deltina talks about the Social Web and explains why interacting, collaborating and sharing is vital to your social media online presence. The book is extremely detailed and perfect for anyone who is ready to take their social media understanding to the next level. It is an instructional textbook that even includes a companion cd with forms and resources to help you get both organized and optimized. Here is a downloadable pdf containing Chapter Seven complete with forms.

I have been actively studying social media tools and strategies since 2007, so most of the book’s content is not new to me. That said, I am quite sure I will use this book weekly, not only as a handy reference guide, but also at a consultant’s companion. Much of what I do is about empowering and educating others so they can understand and better utilize social  media in their businesses. I work with all levels and much of my time is spent explaining concepts, tools, and strategies. I have already started recommending this book to my clients. For a sneak peek you can check out chapter seven in it’s entirety, as supplied by Dalton Publishing below.
Social Media Book Teaser

After listening to Deltina I’ve decided that she is a definitely a SMOP (social media optimized personality) and she is running two very successful SMOBs (social media optimized business) here in Austin, Texas; Social Media Power and Dalton Publishing. Hint: One of the best ways to learn about social media optimization is to study what other SMOBs and SMOPs are doing. Following Deltina on twitter is one place to start. @SocialMediaPWR

This book will not only help you survive, it will help you thrive in the Web 2.o world. If you are new to social media, this survival guide will undoubtedly save you time and anguish. And if you are an advanced Web 2.0 user, it will help you flesh out a solid strategy to harness your own social media power. And the added bonus is,  when you are really busy and your friends keep asking you social media questions like “What’s an RSS feed?” etc…, you can just hand them the book and say, “Chapter 3!”

Now, please excuse me, I have to go tweet this, write a review on amazon.com, add this book to my LibraryThing and my reading list on Linkedin, and double check that my RSS feeds are successfully filtering this post to my facebook page and subscribers. Perhaps I’ll even add an image of this book cover with a link to this book review to my Social Media Therapist Flickr account! It’s all about being an authentic SMOP after all.
___________________________________________________

Amazon link: A Survival Guide to Social Media And Web 2.0 Optimization by Deltina Hay

Publisher link: A Survival Guide to Social Media And Web 2.0 Optimization by Deltina Hay

If you want to support indie publishing and get a discounted price, click the Buy Now button below, or the publisher’s link above. Dalton Publishing offers an affiliate program discount so that everybody wins. More dollars go directly to the independent publisher, you save a few dollars, and I even make a buck or two! :) Of course it is your choice, get the book at your local book store, at Amazon.com, or buy it right here for $18.95 including shipping!