The internet will change everything / word of mouth
Remember all the claims of how the world would change with the dawn of the Internet? Remember the claims of the rise of the individual? One victim is traditional advertising and public relations. Word of mouth in on the way to reigning supreme.
The old way was to buy your way in to markets or beg your way in through PR. Companies had faceless prospects, and company ego rules the marketing. Would Apple's 1984 commercial succeed today? We would collectively roll our eyes, and hit the fast forward on the DVR. The classic bait and switch doesn't work anymore.
The back button is the 3rd most used web feature.
As professionals we no longer have faceless buyers, we have an audience with unique personas. Buyers have the expectation that they find meaningful help in every step of the process. As professionals, we have to be useful.
In turn, people will tell the story of your product or service. People are empowered by the Internet, and they will carry you with them. Social media is the new PR, but it has a new voice. The voice of the buyer. To be successful, speak in their language not the typical PRish rhetoric of the past.
