Transparency is salesmanship. Sounds counteruntitive doesn't it? We've been conditioned since an early age to "distrust" salespeople yet we are all selling something, at one time or another in our lives.

Sales 101- Get all the objections out in the open. Remove their ability to say "NO" whenever you are ready to answer the buying question (NB: notice I didn't say "close"?)

Pay close attention to this essay by Greg Swann:

Why do we link in the Web 2.0 world? Not because a link is a footnote, and not because a link leads to more information. Not to give link love, and not to build the community. The purpose of a link is transparency: This is the truth and here is proof.

Transparency and verisimilitude both mean the same thing in this context: This is real. People are so used to marketing trickery that they expect it everywhere. The challenge for anyone seeking to change minds in the Web 2.0 world is to take away that expectation. Transparency doesn't mean I am obliged to disclose to you the color of my underwear. Transparency means that if there is any possibility that you could entertain the smallest doubt that I am effecting some kind of sleight of hand to trick you into doing something you otherwise would not do, I have to give you the means of eradicating that doubt to your own satisfaction.

Why do I have to do this? Because I'm trying to sell to you! If I don't take away every fear, doubt and objection you have to buying my product, you will not buy it - even if you end up buying the exact same thing - same terms, same price - from someone else.

How do I go about taking away your fears, doubts and objections in the world of Web 2.0 persuasion?

By linking, more than any other way. Linking is not about footnoting. Linking is not about providing resources for more information. Linking is not about sending link love to your buddies. Linking is not about building a community. Linking is not about engaging in conversations. All of these are ancillary factors, secondary consequences - but the purpose of linking is to demonstrate to your audience that you are telling the truth.

Greg is showing you how to sell your prospect without selling. Linking is deep proof to remove consumer distrust. It addresses objections before they ever appear. It is that built trust that sells a prospect before they even call.

Dan Kennedy (I know, I always quote him) taught us that a properly written sales letter can attract the right prospect so that she is "low-hanging fruit" by the time she calls; the sales letter does all the work and produces a trusting person with a huge need for your service. What Greg Swann has done is to show you how to IMPROVE on the Kennedy-esque sales letter by providing proof for every statement in a living document.

The blog post or the landing page, then, can be a useful work-horse in your marketing efforts because it is a perpetual yet living document. It can be internally linked (which helps SEO) from other pages on your website. It can be externally linked from others. It is the ultimate "closing statement" removing every bit of doubt while funneling the prospect to the ultimate goal...

...conversion.