If you’re an avid blog follower, you’re probably familiar with Chris Brogan, one of the most widely read bloggers today. In fact, Brogan is a true pioneer in the social media field. So it’s with that background that I eagerly read his new book, Trust Agents, hoping to glean many truths from his wealth of knowledge. He did not disappoint.
Brogan (and fellow author Julien Smith), delivered a first-rate business book on how to maximize your online efforts by connecting with others. This book is not about the tools but rather about the connection. Their conversational writing tone makes it an extremely easy read.
One of the key points they make is, “attention is and will continue to be our scarcest resource.” That is so true; let that fact sink in. No matter what product or service we are promoting we are trying to get someone’s attention. How do we do that in today’s world of diversified news channels, social media and a never-ending supply of how people fill their time?
Brogan and Smith claim the best way is to connect with your honesty and to provide value. In other words, to be a trust agent. It’s simple but very true. As they say in the book, “When people ask Chris how he got to where he is in social media, his answer is always the same: be helpful.”
Both Brogan and Smith practice what they preach. If you’re not following them on Twitter and reading their blogs/newsletters, you should.
They identified three rules of the new game:
1) When you treat people well, they treat you well back.
2) The wider your network, the easier it is to get things done.
3) The more personal the relationship, the more straightforward you can be
Trust Agents offers real and practical suggestions about how to have more influence on the Internet. In other words, it’s not just theory. For example, they make the point to promote others 12 times as much as your promote yourself.
A standout quote in the book was “it’s not who you know, it’s who knows you.”
One of the best business books I read two years ago was Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferazzi. It seemed like I underlined half that book and listed tons of action steps for ways to improve how I do business.
Trust Agents falls into a similar category: it is by far one of the best business books I’ve read in the past 12 months. It makes my business book Hall of Fame.
Comments