As an individual and PR professional, I enjoy learning something new every day. Let’s be honest, who doesn’t want to learn something new daily? When I was given the opportunity to review the book, “Spin Sucks: Communication and Reputation Management in the Digital Age,” (Que Publishing) by Arment Dietrich founder and CEO, Gini Dietrich, I was excited. Gini has great respect in the PR/marketing/social media world. My only concern was that the book would be a collection of blog posts from her blog of the same name. I should have known better.
“Spin Sucks” is filled with enough information to not only be integral for the new PR pro, it serves as a great resource for experienced ones, as well. You’ll find “Spin Sucks” contains case studies, checklists, and solid techniques that are applicable to any pro.
One particular section of the book that really piqued my interest was “How Communication Has Changed.” Having seen this first hand (in television, radio, and PR), I was intrigued to read how Gini felt. We are no longer an industry where a PR team can control the whole message. Social media has taken care of that, as Gini mentions, “…all it takes is for one person to have a bad experience doing business with you, and you’re finished—both online and off,” she writes. “No amount of PR messaging can counteract that one person’s negative experience.”
An example Gini gives of this is from 2011, when Kenneth Cole sent out the infamous “spring collection” tweet during the uprising in Cairo, Egypt. The tweet and the fallout caused all sorts of PR issues for Kenneth Cole. It shows that despite him being in the business for more than 30 years, one tweet “created a reason for people to not shop there.”
While this isn’t a long and detailed review of “Spin Sucks,” I hope you’ll take my word for it – you will either learn something new, or have something re-affirmed by reading Gini’s book. I highly recommend getting a physical copy or downloading to have with you at all times. It’s that good.