As an experiment, I followed the world’s twitters during the first Obama-Romney presidential debate. Amidst the flurry of messages passing by my eyes, I finally understood in my gut and not just my head how social media has changed the balance of power when it comes to controlling brand image. In an era when everyone single one of your customers can shout their opinions from an easily accessible “bloody pulpit,” how do you influence what these customers will say? They certainly aren’t going to copy messages from your mass market advertisements! The answer lies in making sure that your company’s actions live out the brand image you want to build. That is the only way to have an authentic message that will be repeated by customers you cannot control. How do you do that? Lessons about leadership apply. Leaderhip gurus Jim Kouzes and…