Introduction to Social Media

Reviewed by Kay L. Colley, Professor of Mass Communication, Texas Wesleyan University on 2/29/24

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This book, and this topic, are moving targets. It's very difficult to keep things current and fresh because social media changes constantly. With that fact in place, Lawson does a good job of looking at the timeless aspects of social media that focus on marketing. A more effective indexing of ideas would be great for this text as would a broader look at not just marketing but the communication basics embedded in social media and how it functions. Additionally, looking at how to create content would be a welcome part of this text.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

The book was accurate when it came out, but facts about social media usage are a little dated. Updates of social media usage and tools that include use of SEO and algorithms must be updated constantly to remain accurate and timely.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The focus on the business and marketing aspects of social media use is so important in today's world. Students often understand some basic scrolling tendencies, but they don't understand how to create or use social media for business purposes. This text helps them bridge that gap.

Clarity rating: 5

Very accessible textbook. Short chapters and common vernacular make it easy for students to understand. I appreciate that about this text, and so have my students.

Consistency rating: 5

This book is consistent in its design and use of terms. It's clear that Cheryl Lawson worked hard to make this book one that others would take seriously and use in their classes even though she created the book to support her own class.

Modularity rating: 5

While the chapters are short, it's easy to break things up within the chapters and pair them with outside materials, which is what I do for my own class.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The structure of the book makes sense for the most part. There are two things I would like to see more of in this text: 1. Information about communication and how social media is communication at its basic-level. 2. Information about design of social media posts and what makes them sticky.

Interface rating: 5

This text has great navigation. Some OER texts that I've used may have some navigation challenges, but Lawson's text works well. Additional graphics would make it more visually appealing.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

Great editing in this book, which is a huge plus!

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

Cultural relevance is an issue that does need more attention in this book. Using more variety would help engage a more diverse student population, an important element as colleges and universities continue to welcome more diverse student populations.

Comments

For a textbook that was specifically designed to support Lawson's class, this textbook has great depth and can be used for a variety of courses that focus on social media. With a few tweaks and additional exercises, it can definitely support courses in mass communication, public relations and journalism.

Reviewed by Patti McMann, Business Instructor, Klamath Community College on 11/18/23

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

The text covers the beginning of social media to present. It also covers basic marketing principles such as marketing strategy, analytics, metrics, target markets, engagement, competition, networking, ROI, content, marketing time management, and social media jobs. It has a clickable table of contents, but it doesn't include an index or glossary.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

Some of the information is outdated such as on p. 60: "Twitter is a microblogging network where users can write posts of up to 20 characters..." Twitter has permitted posts of 280 characters for a long time, Also inaccurate now is this statement on p. 83: "Facebook is populated mostly by adults of 25-34 years age group." This age group has moved to Tik Tok. One p. 90 this information is inaccurate: "The trends for 2020 are out now and marketers can develop a strategy for 2021 based on these statistics. Here is a list of top social websites along with the number of active users on these sites.
Facebook – 2,701 million" The correct number of active users on Facebook is 2.9 billion.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

As mentioned previously, some content is outdated. The text is written in such a way necessary updates will be easy and straightforward to implement.

Clarity rating: 5

The text is written in second person and is clear.

Consistency rating: 5

The text is consistent and easy to follow. The text will be helpful to students new to social media and marketing on social media.

Modularity rating: 5

The text is section well into short blocks of easy to read text.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The topics are well organized and easy to locate and understand.

Interface rating: 5

The interface is clean and easy to navigate.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The text doesn't contain any grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The text is sensitive to culture and includes everyone.

Comments

The is a great book for new social media users and people new to marketing on social media. It explains social media and basic marketing concepts well. It talks to the reader instead of at the reader. It's easy to follow and understand.