Seth Godin’s new Small is the New Big promises to make for interesting reading. Godin provides an explanation for what makes an idea take shape and attain meaning. As he sees it, for an idea to be spread, it needs to be sent and received and both sender and receiver must have specific differentiated reasons to do so, and of course this needs to be done effectively and must be seen as having value to both.

Case in point: No one “gets” an idea unless:

1. The first impression is good and the necessary background is in place for them to understand the idea.
2. The sender is seen to be one of repute and if it is clear that time invested would be worthwhile.

In other words, the point to note is that success depends on the value to be perceived by the receiver and the form in which the information is packaged. No doubt as Guy Kawasaki says, this is like a polygraph test for web 2.0 entrepreneurs. Read this in tandem with the operational metric, so important for entrepreneurs.

Let’s examine the form part of it : Sensational wins have been traditionally centered around communication and miniaturization – the PC, iPod, Walkman etc. 

This is a book where Godin compiles entries from his popular blog. Many are only a few paragraphs long, although he also adds longer entries, from his Fast Company column, to the mix. As if it proves his idea in action, he arranges the articles in the book alphabetically rather then sequentially – making to easier for readers to access relevant articles.

As he sees it, the first key to successful marketing is to produce something remarkable and let it grow. "If your idea is great, people will find you," he advises. "[I]f your target audience isn't listening, it's not their fault, it's yours." He urges people to take control of their creative lives by taking responsibility for tough decisions and pushing themselves to make bolder choices.

Godin's writings are generally inspirational - the book is a huge bowl of ideas that you can gobble in one sitting or dip into at any time. As Godin writes in his introduction:

I guarantee that you'll find some ideas that don’t work for you. But I’m certain that you're smart enough to see the stuff you’ve always wanted to do, buried deep inside one of these riffs. And I’m betting that once inspired, you’ll actually make something happen.

This is quite relevant in the age of The Long Tail; as Chris Anderson points out in his book of the same name, small players can collectively make up a market that rivals the giants.