More Than 100 Bloggers Worldwide Collaborate on e-Book to Benefit Charity

More Than 100 Bloggers Worldwide Collaborate on e-Book to Benefit Charity

DES MOINES, Iowa, July 16 /PRNewswire/ --

In what may be a first-of-its- kind online collaboration, 103 marketing professionals have joined together to write The Age of Conversation, a book being released today. The book is available in a downloadable e-version and in hardcover and softcover. All proceeds will be donated to Variety, the international children's charity.The book has an unusual story behind it, involving online connections between people around the world who have never met each other.

Drew McLellan, who heads McLellan Marketing Group, an advertising agency here, has been writing a blog online since last September. His blog, http://www.drewsmarketingminute.com/ is among the 25 most-read marketing blogs. McLellan's partner in this adventure is another marketing blogger in the top 25, Gavin Heaton, Interactive Director at marketing agency Creata, in Sidney, Australia. Heaton blogs at http://www.servantofchaos.com/.

In March, McLellan wrote about Wharton University's effort to create a collaborative book and Heaton suggested online that they get a few bloggers to try it."Three e-mails later, we had named the book and the charity. It just fell into place," McLellan said. "The Age of Conversation was the perfect topic. The marketing industry is abuzz about how the citizen marketers are changing the landscape. This book captures that new phenomenon."McLellan and Heaton, through their blogs, invited other marketing professionals to commit to writing essays about conversation. They set what they thought would be an impossible goal -- 100 bloggers. Within seven days they had commitments from 103."What began as a comment online has grown into a major collaborative effort by bloggers from 24 states and eight other nations," said McLellan."We've been amazed at the variety of approaches that have been taken, and with hardly any duplication or overlap," said Heaton. "This book explores the art of conversation and how it is changing the face of marketing from virtually every angle possible.

"The Age of Conversation is available in all three formats. Prices are: e-book: $9.99 ($7.99 going to charity)paperback book: $16.95 ($8.10 to charity)hardback book: $29.99 ($8.55 to charity)

Orders are being taken online at http://stores.lulu.com/ageofconversation. Source: McLellan Marketing Group CONTACT: David Reich of Reich Communications, +1-212 573-6000,david@reichcommunications.com, for McLellan Marketing GroupWeb site: http://stores.lulu.com/ageofconversation http://www.drewsmarketingminute.com/ http://www.servantofchaos.com/