A is for advocacy

Just when you thought you'd mastered CRM, push/pull marketing, relationship marketing, dynamic selling, and whatnot, along comes another buzzword to wrap your arms around: advocacy. In a forthcoming book, MIT professor Glen Urban propounds what he calls Theory A (for advocacy), whose premise is that if you represent your customer's interests, that customer will reciprocate with trust, purchases, and enduring loyalty. This is hardly revolutionary stuff, although the author likens it to “the shift from subsonic to supersonic flight.” But it is an interesting new way to look at the marketing and advertising experience.