In a discipline as hyped as social media marketing, it could be all too tempting to dismiss a book that promises to teach you how to make money off it. How to Make Money with Social Media by Jamie Turner and Reshma Shah, however, is the real deal, and will help you do just that.

The book is a thorough guide on how to use new and emerging media to grow your business, and runs the gamut from clearly explaining what social media marketing is, to describing specific ways that you can integrate it into the fabric of your business and brand strategies.

The book briefly covers all the important social media platforms (Linked In, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc.) and for the sake of clarity divides them in three groups, depending on what their main purpose is: networking, promoting or sharing. It then teaches you how to use them all in conjunction, to generate what the authors call "circular momentum", a state of flow that when achieved will maximize the effectiveness of your social media strategy.

I particularly like the parallels the authors draw between social media platforms and places or situations in the bricks and mortar world (i.e.: Facebook is like a pub, LinkedIn is like a trade show and Twitter like a cocktail party). Another handy feature of the book is the lists of takeaways at the end of each chapter, which summarize the most important points and suggest action steps to put them into practice.

The authors' style is casual and humorous, and will put even the most novice or skeptical reader at ease and in the best frame of mind to learn.

I find this book relevant to both beginners and more advanced users, and applicable equally to the small business arena or the corporate world. Beginners will find it very clear and easy to follow, while more advanced users will want to keep it handy as a reference guide to help them refresh social media marketing's most important concepts.