One of the quickest ways to sum up the changes that digital brought to the world of brand building is this: we are moving from the paradigm of 'telling the brand' to 'agreeing the brand'.

It is difficult to avoid the conclusion, at least if judged by the spirit of the industry news in recent times. 'The loss of brand control', 'the need for conversations', 'social networks optimisation' - all seem to be an irresistibly growing trend in how we manage our brands. Even the word 'manage', to many, doesn't apply any more, as the process is increasingly becoming a two-way street.

We can argue that 'old' brand-building model was based on 'telling' the world what your brand is all about. This had its media expression in the broadcast model of advertising. The new age seems to bring another approach. A brand now needs to be 'agreed' between all stakeholders, of which customers, traditionally, tend to be the most important.

So,  a brand needs to listen, big time. A big pair of ears is the most important brand management tool. 'Listening' could be anything: market research, web fora, online panels, user generated content. Even better, lets grade listening, from more passive, to more active methods. Market research is more passive, user generated content is more active way to do it.

It will be interesting to see how the two paradigms will play against each other in the years to come. What seems certain, though, is that smart brands are already practising their listening skills. They are evening learning how to stay quiet sometimes.

It must be difficult.