Over springbreak I read the book The Dragonfly Effect written by Jennifer Aaker and Andy Smith. The basis of the book talks about ways to use social media to make a change using the power that they all possess. It didn't give tutorials on how to use sites such as YouTube, Facebook and Twitter, it gave specific examples on how these sites have been used to make a difference in the world. Brands such as Gap, Groupon, Starbucks, Nike, and eBay were all featured in the book.
Each excerpt in the book contained a concrete goal that both individuals and companies were trying to achieve. Goals such as bone marrow donors, electing the current President of the United States, and raising money for cancer patients were all done via these particular social media sites.
I think this book is etremely beneficial to read. Not only does it provide ways to go about utilizing these social media sites, it talks about the successes and
failures that people have ecountered along the way. It teaches readers that there are uses outside of contacting people; if used correctly these websites can save lives. Some of the campaigns that are written about are truly inspiring and it goes to show how easily you can "spread the word" about different issues over the internet.
