The changing role of marketers

Check out this article in btobonline.com called Techs turn to Web 2.0 written by James M. Connolly.  It talks about a truism in online marketing, but some businesses are still missing it. "In a survey of 512 IT professionals, IDC found that 27.5% valued information from their peers more so than from any other information source."  Customers are much more interested in talking to one another about your product than talking to you.  And they want you to listen. Web 2.0 technology makes that incredibly easy.

Forget about controlling your message to the point where it doesn't seem authentic.  Tell your customer what's great about your product and listen to what they say back.  Sharing customer reviews, blogging and forums are increasingly important.  If you are afraid to hear what's wrong with your product, you'll be the only one who doesn't know.  Your customers will know and tell each other.