Trust Agents

I’m currently reading Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith and just came across a passage I really loved (although this is going to be posted later, it really is 12:37AM and I decided to write this post. By the way, I already took out my contacts and don’t feel like getting my glasses, so I am REALLY close to the computer, and will be editing this post a lot haha.)

Anyways, first the quote (okay its a few paragraphs) then why I love it:

It seems that since the 1950s, marketing and advertising have continued to mechanize and automate in line with the industrialization of products and services. Since we developed the ability to push out more widgets efficiently, we also decided to push out more messages in a relentlessly rising volume. Along the way, we lost the humanity and connectedness that comes with being a good salesperson. Because marketing can be measured, and because the only acceptable way numbers can go is up, marketing evolved into a much more mechanical process.

Imagine the irony, then, that this rehumanizing of the Web brings to the story. Now, with advances in technology that promote communication, we have tools that allow us to form online communities to exchange ideas and share experiences. Into this breech charge the marketers and advertisers who have followed the evolution of the 1950s into the modern day- but they do not stand a chance.

These few paragraphs make me really happy to be doing what I’m doing. I’ve taken a few sales courses, and my favorite part about them have been the relationship of sales. How you work with the client to find a solution for their issues, but you must first focus on building trust with them.

BUT I feel like since I understand these skills well, the world of marketing has that relationship feel to me, too, and I’m excited to see how my understanding of both sales and marketing translates into the bigger picture.

What do you think of this excerpt? Do you think marketing should be like sales?