Marshall Sponder is a passionate thought leader who consistently asks the right questions and never holds back his views for anyone. Having been an avid reader of WebMetricsGuru.com for years, I highly value Marshall’s opinion and proven expertise in the field. This book comes at just the right time and doesn’t overextend itself at all. It provides a much needed wake-up call for both the skeptical gatekeepers and shiny-object bandwagon riders. Additionally, it is a great place to start for those just looking to jump headfirst into measuring the effectiveness of emerging technologies.
Providing in-depth case studies with well-articulated examples, Marshall showcases why the real power exists in the minds of the analysts rather than simply the tools being utilized. He shares his best practices for how to identify the precise data to pull, filter out the signal from the noise, and extract the relevant intelligence aligned with strategic/business objectives. He thoroughly examines some current challenges facing this dynamic frontier and offers his predictions on the future state of affairs with adequate rationale. The age of the Chief Analytics Officer is rapidly approaching and it is critical to be prepared for the evolving landscape.
With a detailed account of several prominent tools as well as some lesser known players, Marshall conveys the importance of crafting a tailored approach for the task at hand and empowers you to sift through the false claims of vendor sales pitches. This includes valuable methodologies for everyone from heavy enterprise users to SMBs.
A very easy read, I strongly recommend this book to anyone looking to remain relevant when it comes to digital strategy. It is much less of a how-to guide and probably more of an eye-opener for most. Having been deeply engrossed in social media monitoring and measurement for years, this book really helped to validate my understanding of the space as well as spark new ideas to explore.
Buy it here and feel free to let me know what you think about the book. What were some of your major takeaways?
kramerERIC 
Thanks for the Review Eric – very helpful and be curious what your readers think as well.
~marshall