We all know that social media has made a big splash. But businesses are asking how it can be profitable, and not very many have found a way to measure the return on investment of social media. Gary Vaynerchuck has written The Thank You Economy to answer those skeptics.

The premise of the book is that the relationship between company and customer has shifted. A business (or a non-profit) must be closer to the customer than ever, and must respond faster to complaints and praise. As Vaynerchuk says in the opening, “If this were 1923, this book would have been called “Why Radio is Going to Change the Game.”

I listened to this book on my iPhone, and the audible.com version is about a year newer than the print version. Vaynerchuk ad libs part of the audio book (he does the reading himself) and it’s fun to hear him point out how something he predicted in the 2010 print edition has already proven true. He is a compelling advocate for social media as a business tool and it was definitely an education to hear his ideas.

A good book to read if you operate in this realm. Certainly if you are in marketing or, like me, wear a marketing hat (among many others) for a small business.