Source: http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/5573/New-Research-Top-10-Ways-Buyers-Find-Professional-Services-Providers.aspx/?source=RT-CoW-hspd

Here we are in an era that’s spawned every conceivable communication technology breakthrough, and yet no one has managed to replace the “human referral.”

Is it possible that we’re not droids after all? Is it possible that we make irrational calculations? That we trust a data-driven, sophisticated Web site less than the unsubstantiated opinions of our 7-year-old’s beer-bellied, chain smoking soccer coach?

Sure, you might take your babysitter’s recommendation for a new non-dairy creamer. But complex professional services too?

You betcha.

And so it’s always been our goal to merge technology with the human factor—an effort that’s led to the recent social media revolution.

Balance is the key element. And that’s precisely why the most effective social media vehicles are technologically unobtrusive—mere conduits for distinctly human expressions.

So pay more attention to the man behind the curtain. Particularly if he’s a chain smoker.