February 2009. Do you know what is special about that particular month? It’s the month this blog, Behind the Scenes with Taylor Studios, launched. A few months after that February, I met Gini Dietrich at a seminar she gave in Indianapolis about social media called, Social Media Boot Camp: Making Sense of it All. Gini is the founder and CEO of Arment Dietrich and the brains behind “Spin Sucks” a PR blog aiming to change the perception of public relations. As Gini says, “we’re all spin doctors, liars, party planners, club hoppers, and magicians.” She told me when we met she had a goal of writing a book. While it’s taken a little longer than I think she anticipated, (in her defense she coauthored another book, survived a recession, reorganized her company, and grew the “Spin Sucks” blog to one with over 45,000 monthly readers) her book, Spin Sucks: Communication and Reputation Management in the Digital Age, is here!

A few weeks ago, I volunteered for and was accepted into a small group of pre-launch “brand ambassador” book readers. I was thrilled to be accepted into what felt like a secret society. While I’m not as vocal as many of the other Spin Sucks ‘Crazies’ as the blog followers have been dubbed, I’ve enjoyed the antics and updates from the other ambassadors as we read through the book. Spin Sucks’ official launch date was March 29 and I’m happy to say my hard copy is on its way and my highlighter is ready!

Now, I’m sure many of you are wondering how a book about business communications applies to museum and nature center folks. Well, here are my five reasons you need this book:

1.  Spin Sucks is not just for PR or communications professionals. As the leader of your museum or manager of your nature center’s social networks or curator of your exhibits, you need to know how the marketing and advertising world is changing, how the changes Google implements behind the scenes affects how people find you, and how to manage your reputation and grow your fan base ethically.

2.  It’s not your typical business book and it certainly doesn’t read like a text book. The same tone from the blog is carried throughout the book making it an interesting read. Some in the ambassador group have likened it to a novel and I agree. Gini talks about history, current events, and interesting case studies and weaves the stories seamlessly through to encompass actionable advice you can start using as soon as you begin reading.

3.  Gini teaches the fundamentals of content marketing and PR so even if you’re new at this and haven’t yet embraced this new world we find ourselves in; there is something in here for you. Perhaps it will give you the push you need to start building your online communities and creating sharable content.

4.  The advice! It’s full of step-by-step tips to implement in order to tell your museum’s story, create valuable content for you nature center’s blog readers, deal with criticism, and much more. Keep in mind, creating engaging content and building a community is a marathon, not a sprint. Gini talks about ways companies use black hat tricks to sprint to the finish line, but they won’t work in the long run.

5.  Spin Sucks should be a go to book for anyone who touches your website, blog, social networks, etc. It’s a reference book they’ll pull off the shelf again and again.

Go order your copy now, I’ll wait…OK, in the meantime, while you wait for your book to arrive (unless you bought the digital version), tell me about a book that has had a significant impact on you – personally or professionally. I can always add another book to my mile high “to read” pile.