I just finished reading What No One Ever Tells You About Blogging and Podcasting by Ted Demopoulos, which he graciously sent me.

Ted stole my book idea.

If I was going to write an introductory guide to the benefits of blogging and podcasting, I would have written Ted’s book. Ok, so technically Ted didn’t steal anything from me, he just beat me to the punch.

Although I was already a strong believer in blogging and podcasting, I still found a ton of great examples in Ted’s book about how people in a variety of industries are using blogging and podcasting successfully. Real estate? Sure! Small business? Absolutely! Sploggers in Russia getting drunk on vodka? Sign me up!

Ted takes a humble approach, which is smart. Blogging isn’t going to revolutionize the world. It’s not going to save starving children or cure any disease. It’s not even about replacing other forms of communication, throwing websites into the Internet trash heap or eliminating the need for traditional PR. Blogging and podcasting are evolutions of what marketers, salespeople, CEOs, small business owners and entrepreneurs have been doing for years. It’s a great evolution, one that’s way more accessible to a wider audience, but too many evangelists do get carried away. Ted doesn’t. He uses real world examples, admits that no one is an uber-expert and lets the people he interviews express themselves openly.

I’d recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about blogging/podcasting or has just started. I’d also recommend this book to any experienced bloggers that feel burnt out, or feel like they’re starting to lose their focus. What No One Ever Tells You About Blogging and Podcasting is a quick read, an easy read and inspirational.