Leading with Content

The subtitle of Trust Agents is "Using the web to build influence, improve reputation, and earn trust". These are some of the same goals behind using content marketing to build business, but the book focuses on the complementary personal side of reaching those goals by becoming a trust agent.

Trust agents have established themselves as being non-sales-oriented, non-high-pressure marketers. ... (They) use today's web tools to spread their influence faster, wider, and deeper than a typical company's PR or marketing department might be capable of achieving, and with more genuine interest in people, too.

What It's About

The book is directed towards you as an individual becoming a trust agent, although there are some suggestions about how to apply the idea within a corporate setting and how to work with trust agents instead of becoming one yourself.

The bulk of Trust Agents goes through the six interrelated behaviors that trust agents show. Each person shows all behaviors to some degree, but emphasizes them differently according to their strengths.

• Make Your Own Game or Stand Out
• One of Us or Belonging
• The Archimedes Effect or Using Leverage
• Agent Zero or Developing Access
• Human Artist or Developing Understanding
• Build an Army or Developing Mass

Each idea is explored further with examples and action boxes added in. The book ends with a conversation about ways to look at the changing face of community and how to add value as you participate in it.

Readability

There is great balance between narrative and advice in Trust Agents.

You could read the introduction, then flip through looking at each of the visually set-apart action boxes, which suggest specific next-steps for using the principles being discussed.

Or you could read the main text and immerse yourself in the philosophy and examples. There are some headings here, but it is mostly set-up to be read, not scanned.

How It Relates to Marketing with Content

Depending on your industry and your place in it, you may not be able to run an extremely effective content marketing strategy without you, or someone else in your organization, becoming a trust agent, at least to some degree.

Some methods of content delivery don't require building this kind of personal trust, such as putting out a custom magazine. The consistent delivery of quality information that your prospects or customers want to see builds its own kind of trust. Trust that this ability is representative of how future business transactions will go.

But having a trust agent as your voice on the web puts a more human face to it all. It's worth at least skimming Trust Agents to see if the idea applies to your business or career.

Further Reading from the Authors

Chris Brogan blogs about community and social media over on chrisbrogan.com.

Julien Smith keeps what looks like a pretty random blog, called in over your head, that touches on his interests in human connections and systems.