It also taught me how not to be overwhelmed. It gave me a sense of freedom. I now have fun with Facebook and look forward to seeing where this journey will take me - and my biz!

5 STARS - Highly recommend if you are looking to learn about social networking and why it is relevant to you., March 26, 2009 - By David Gusick "David Gusick"

I highly recommend this book to anybody trying to get their head around the concepts of social networking and why it may be relevant to you.

This book really clarified in my mind, why it is so important to put yourself out there and make growing your network part of your daily ritual along with eating a healthy breakfast and exercise. In all three cases, the benefits may not immediately felt, but over time the payback is indisputable!

Each chapter contains important lessons of how to leverage the tools that now exist so that you can establish and grow your brand online. The story of how Gary Vernechuck, a 22 year old, transformed his parent's wine business from $2 million a year to $45 million a year and became a mini-celebrity in the process is a lesson that can be applied by both individuals and corporations.

In today's down economy, creating a rich network of people that you can tap into is more important than ever before. Need a job? Need a recipe? Need advice on where to stay in the south of France? The more people who know you directly relates to the more people who can help you achieve your goals whatever they may be. It worked for Obama (he tapped into the social networking to raise huge amounts of campaign funds), it can work for you too.

The tools that Juliette gives you in this book can easily be applied by anyone regardless of your field. These are the ingredients you need to know in order to become a 'mini-celebrity'.

The book is both a practical guide for anyone looking to carve out a niche online and get their brand noticed.

5 STARS - Surprisingly good and informative, March 18, 2009 - By David T. Kim "Not another book!" (New York, NY United States)

I heard about this book from a friend and thought it'd be a snore or redundant. But it makes the case of something I've implicitly known for awhile: Success not only depends on the quality of the person, but it also depends on the quality of his/her contacts. You could have a potential hire that rates a 7 and a less-qualified 6 who comes with a "personal recommendation" from someone you know. 95% of the time, the 6 will be hired. Given that logic, the more people you know, the more attractive you are.
Juliette's book brings to one table the confusing mass of social networks and will take the clueless to knowledgeable and the knowledgeable to expert. Fine book and fun to read. And even though I've never met the author, I think she'd be one you'd love to sit next to on a cross-country flight. Good stuff.

5 STARS - Excellent Social Media <--> Marketing Primer, March 10, 2009 - By Robert L. Stinnett (Boonville, MO)

If I had a nickle for everytime I talked to someone about the social media landscape and how its changing the world of marketing and customer service I'd be rich. Granted, this is a fundamental shift in many areas of marketing and as we all know change never comes easy. However, there are certain people out there who "get it" and in 33 Million People in the Room the author, who not only "gets it" herself, does a great job of laying out the what and why of social media.

Through this very easy to read book (easily finished on 3-5 hour flight) you will understand what social media is and how it will affect (and probably already is affecting) your business. You'll learn how the world of marketing is changing form the old way of "talking to the people" to "talking with the people". Businesses big and small can no longer expect that by plastering their message across TV, billboards and radio they can attract customers -- they now must take their brand and start holding conversations about it. What do the customers like? What don't they like? How can we improve? Questions that focus groups were usually convened for, but nowadays can be answered by the collective voice of the many.

The book is an excellent way to understand the do's and dont's as you navigate into this new territory. For business people who have no exposure to the social media arena the author does an excellent job of talking about whats out there and how its primarily being used. Most of all, though, the author engages you to go and take part in these social communities -- it's one thing to read about it, quite another to participate.

You will also get a chance to read about success stories of how companies have put these new tools to use. From Best Buy (remember them from the book Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It: No Schedules, No Meetings, No Joke--the Simple Change That Can Make Your Job Terrific) to the Obama campaign you see innovation in action.

Overall, a great book for business leaders and ordinary folks who want to learn more about how social networking and other Web 2.0 technologies are changing our world.

5 STARS - Loved this book, March 2, 2009 - By Robin Keyser (Nashville,TN USA)

Juliette Powell's book is a breath of fresh air in a new surge of books on social networking. This is my 5th book on the subject this month and easily the most informative. I was especially liked her call for ethics and authenticity and it's importance in the success of any business using the internet for marketing purposes. I will reference this book often as I navigate the sometimes intimidating world of the social network. Thanks Juliette!

5 STARS - 33 Million good reviews from Marshall Sponder, February 20, 2009 - By M. Sponder (Brooklyn, NY)

I've been reading 33 Million for over a week and it's gotten me to think deeply about the problems in employing Social Media along with the success stories of those who have been or are successful in it.

I found the book easy to read with a mixture of material that's easy and difficult to grasp at the same time - and the book has yielded a few blog posts at Webmetricsguru.com, some of my best work, I think.

This book fills a gap needed between the hype of social media and the action of putting a social media campaign in place.

I look forward to having several lively discussions on the topics within 33 Million People in the Room, for some time.

5 STARS - Thought Verified By Experience, February 19, 2009 - By S. Pilot

This book is a masterful assemblage of new and edifying ideas to inspire ambitious entrepreneurs eager to expand their existing business and social networks in an era where cyber communication and networking are fundamentally crucial to business success. Having worked with Juliette for 15+ years, reading 33 Million In A Room was much like reading her personal diary of codes and concepts that she has shared with me throughout the years. Prior to it's release, I had the privilege of regularly reading drafts for the book throughout Juliette's writing process. Juliette has learned the concepts and patterns behind building social and cultural capital by working with visionaries such as Wikipedia founder Jimi Wales (who wrote the forward), Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte, MuchMusic / City TV founder Moses Znaimer and Global Business Network co-founder Napier Collyns. The value of 33 Million In A Room lies within the lived and learned nature of its content as outlined by the author's own life and career experiences. If wisdom is knowing how little we know, we owe much thanks to Juliette for bestowing us with her insightful and enlightening ideas.

4 STARS - Fun, informative and useful, February 18, 2009 - By Michael Spencer "Mikey Spice"
(New York, NY United States)

I love discovering books that I can read quickly and that both entertain and educate. This book has all that. What was especially relevant to me is that I am starting a project and need to inspire others to participate and invest. This book has a lot of practical advice about how to leverage my relationships and influence others that I am already putting into practice. Great stuff.

5 STARS - this book deals with something that is fundamentally human, February 13, 2009
By E. Crandall

As humans we have evolved an elaborate dance of connecting with each other to do collectively tasks that none of us could do individually. Over history numerous social mechanisms have been created to aid these interactions. Some work better than others, but the distance between the right people has been critically important. Some people are more adroit at using these fundamental social tools but you usually had to travel to places with high densities of the "right" people. Historically this has been tricky, expensive and not always inclusive. Groups like the Royal Society, "Skull and Bones", the Homebrew Computer Club, the Summer School for Theoretical Physics at Aspen ... thousands of groups that reduced the mean free path between minds to a short enough distance that people could collaborate. These organizations changed the world.

But there is something new. First with real mail delivery, then moving to the telegraph and now to an Internet where we can inexpensively reach huge numbers of people. Many forms of communication have been tried, many have failed and a few have succeeded. The hottest area involves small linkages, but from all over the planet and among groups that you may have been unaware of. As in all forms of social communications there are subtleties that are not obvious to all and this is where Juliette shines.

If you have been lucky enough to have met her, you realize she is a deep connector. She understands how to connect with a variety of types and how to spread connections amongst them. She creates groups from nothing and is a weaver of minds. She knows how to do this dynamically. She knows how to do this online. And she knows how to explain what she is doing.

Reading her book will not insure success, but will probably give you the insights and the sense of adventure and play required to work out how to do this yourself. I'm not fond of most of the Web 2.0 books and even the term "Web 2.0". There is something very old and deep going on here that many of them miss. Juliette is a master of connections and understands permanence, the ephemeral, and what lies between. This is *really* important stuff. Buy the book.