Steve Harrison may not have taken on board the true implications of technology on marketing and creativity, but Keith Lee finds plenty to savour in his latest book

Social media has revolutionised people’s relationships with brands. Fact. Passive consumption has rapidly mutated to active control. Consumers can quickly spread word about a brand, share their perceptions and voice their opinions (and all often quicker than a brand itself can achieve).

The control is out of the hands of the company. The best you can do now is manage your presence, but relinquishing of the reins is nothing to fear – it’s a fantastic opportunity.

The digital age has made it easier than ever to find ”instantaneous feedback” about your target and what they think about your brand. It’s what Allen Adamson form Landor Associates in his upcoming book ‘BrandDigital’ terms our “transparent, shareable environment”. Brands can be infinitely more agile and address immediate customer needs by just listening to the conversations from their customers about their brand online with blogs, Twitter, and any other number of tools. Therefore making the brand more relevant to the customer. Listen, react, reap.

While, the fundamental principal that a brand needs to stand for something meaningful in the hearts and minds of the consumer remains true – hollow brands quickly disintegrate. What is now equally true is that you need to stand for this something in every way you communicate with your consumer. Answer concerns, address mistakes, be upfront. Manage your social media presence correctly and you can have an even more powerful brand than ever percieved possible.