Books on the Corporate Table: the cluetrain manifesto

A powerful global conversation has begun. Through the Internet, people are discovering and inventing new ways to share relevant knowledge with blinding speed. As a direct result, markets are getting smarter—and getting smarter faster than most companies.

Officially published by Perseus Books Group in 2000, the cluetrain manifesto, the end of business as usual, by Rick Levine, Christopher Locke, Doc Searls, and David Weinberger — four guys who have been called ringleaders, provocateurs, even renegades for their dynamic and human-centered take on business and marketing.

It begins with the words

if you only have time for one clue this year, this is the one to get…
we are not seats, or eyeballs, or end users, or consumers,
we are human beings — and our reach exceeds your grasp.
deal with it.

Then begins the introduction to the 95 Theses — statements about markets, organizations, and customers, how they are changing as people realize that they have a powerful voice as consumers.

The book itself is organized into seven chapters, each written by one or two of the respected renegade authors.

The point? Marketing is about trust and human beings. People like to talk to people who tell the truth about things. Companies who tear down their firewalls and trust their employees to interact with customers will thrive. Companies who do not will not. End of story.

The business minds who have endorsed this book are beyond listing here. If you’ve not read it, you’re well behind. It’s here. If you have, I bet you’re thinking, you might pull it out and have a look at it again.

Now you can read the entire book online.

the cluetrain manifesto is still that important.

Liz Strauss