Step 1: Know your brand-trust goals (and how to measure them) Do you want your customers to be raving about your company on review sites? Be authentic by telling stories, which can better engage your customers and help develop a relationship, and, therefore, build trust. Step 4: Offer consistent customer experience Customer service, while critical to any business, is somewhat limiting in its ability to develop a trusting relationship. The better the experience your customers have, the more likely they are to trust you as a brand. According to PwC, 73% of consumers cite customer experience as an important factor in their purchasing decisions, yet only 49% say companies deliver. These brands have taken time to understand their customers and made efforts to build relationships. According to research by Reach Solutions, 58% of consumers don’t trust a brand until they’ve seen “real-world proof” that it’s kept its promises. Transparency, for example, could be publishing third-party research about your products, divulging ingredients for your products, or responding openly and honestly to queries on social media. TIP: Interact regularly on industry-related review sites with customers who are talking positively and negatively about your business. It is communicated in your transparency – how you own your mistakes and inject your personality – and how you prioritize relationships over sales.
There’s a crisis in consumer trust. At least that’s the word in the research.
The 2018 Edelman Trust Barometer revealed that only 48% of the U.S. population trusts business as an institution (a 10-point drop from 2017).
Yet, brand trust is one of the biggest factors in consumers’ purchasing decisions.
According to PwC’s Consumer Insights Survey (2018), 14% of respondents put trust as their No. 1 reason for choosing a retailer. “Trust in brand” was the second most frequently cited reason for purchase decision-making.
14% say trust is their top factor in choosing a retailer via @PwC Consumer Insights Survey. Click To Tweet
But while 72% of CMOs feel pressure to secure brand trust, it’s not always clear how to take ownership of it. This guide can help.
Step 1: Know your brand-trust goals (and how to measure them)
Do you want your customers to be raving about your company on review sites? Do you want them to recommend your products or services to friends and family? Do you want loyal customers who patronize your business?
Define what brand trust means to your organization. Detail what success looks like and how you will measure it.
To monitor how your brand is talked about online, set up Google Alerts for your brand keywords. When they appear online, you’ll receive an email from Google.
You can also monitor how well your audience trusts your brand by checking out relevant review sites – Google My Business, Yelp, Trustpilot, or industry-specific destinations. You can track mentions and conversations on social media with social media management tools like Hootsuite.
Monitor how well your audience trusts your brand by checking out review sites @trustpilot or @yelp. @IAmAaronAgius Click To Tweet
You can ask your customers directly for their opinions on your brand through online tools such as Survey Monkey, which provides templates you can customize. You can conduct an online survey to find your Net Promoter Score (how likely they would be to recommend your business to a friend or colleague) or assess customer satisfaction.
Step 2: Appoint a brand trust lead
Although this step isn’t mandatory, consider it if you’re keen to get your brand trust right.
Your brand trust lead is responsible for ensuring that your brand’s goals and vision are well detailed – how you want to be perceived and how you go about achieving trust. The lead can develop blueprints and protocols for how to achieve trust in your content, across your marketing activity, and in your customer service.
This person also can be responsible for monitoring and evaluating perceived trust of your brand, and for leading changes to continually improve your brand trust.
Step 3: Be authentic through brand storytelling
Authenticity is proven to be at the heart of trustworthiness. Consumers today are not interested in the sales pitch, the marketing lingo, or the “key benefits.” They want to know who your brand is.
Achieving authenticity comes down to your company’s DNA – your values, your goals unrelated to profit, your culture, etc. Out of this comes your brand’s unique and authentic voice.
Be authentic by being present – respond to…
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