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It’s vital that as a small and medium business you build trust in your company name and distinguish yourself from the cowboys. One of the sad truths of modern life is that there are people out there, some of them could be your competitors, who don't meet the standards that are expected and therefore give customers a bad experience of your industry sector. If people have had a bad experience already they may come to you already sceptical, or if a customer has done their research they may know your business puts a lot of focus on customer service and that your USP is quality. The key is to communicate this to potential customers to build trust in your online brand.

How to build trust

Reviews
Word of mouth has always been, and likely will always be, one of the biggest ways to get new customers. In most cases, word of mouth (or referral, as this is often called) is the most effective converter of new sales/enquiries. With the technology boom of the last decade, word of mouth is no longer restricted to physical conversations where these recommendations take place but can occur organically online, on social media, in forums and within review engines such as Feefo. People looking for your services or products are much more likely to choose your business if they’ve read recommendations and reviews from real customers on your website, social media or review websites. Positive (and negative) reviews can be one of the biggest influencers in peoples decision making process when it comes to who to spend their hard-earned money with. A good way of generating more reviews is to ask. Every time a customer has had an experience with your business, ask them for a testimonial. Good reviews help you to see where your strengths are and can influence potential customers to trust your brand readily. Negative reviews should be flagged, actioned and responded to so that you can develop as a business and improve your own processes. You might also consider adding a section to your own website where customers can add their own reviews pro-actively, without being prompted, or suggest that they leave them on your social media pages.

Content marketing
Another effective way to build trust is by providing quality content that demonstrates your expertise, and crucially allowing it to be shared online. By sharing your own expert knowledge and advice, relevant to your industry, your business will become known as an authority in your field which adds relevancy to your business for certain keyterms. Avoid being too overtly sales orientated, but provide valuable advice that demonstrates your service expertise, so potential customers will refer to you more often as their first port of call and you become a trusted source. How your content is created and shared is important as it could affect how often it is shared or how easy it is to understand. Images and video are a visual devices with high-impact, whereas text could be more appropriate if more informative and descriptive detail is required. The whole idea is that your content marketing reaches out to people and educates, entertains and/or informs them.

How to spread the word

Once you’ve started establishing your trustworthiness as a company, it’s important to carry on the good work and make sure the wider community is aware of your stellar reputation. Here are some ideas to help you do just that.

  • If you actively seek out customer reviews, you can increase your credibility further by making sure other potential customers can see them. Don’t restrict them to just your website. Also use them in sales leaflets, include them in your email marketing and distribute them across social media. All this helps to amplify your positive reviews so that even more people associate your company name with quality. Remember to link people back to the testimonials section on your website so that they can read more.
     
  • Make sure you post all of your great advice on your social media pages, such as Facebook and Twitter, so people are aware it’s there. Make sure you put any videos on YouTube too, and images on platforms such as Pinterest and Instagram.
     
  • On your website give people the option to sign up to a newsletter where they can receive this advice on a regular basis. You can make sure that they then keep coming back to your business time after time, securing your place at the forefront of their minds (this will also help you build up a great mailing list).
     
  • And don’t forget about spreading your expertise offline too. Attend seminars or networking events locally that are relevant to your industry where you can share your knowledge so that you become known as the go-to person in your field.

 

Building trust takes time and effort, but the payoff for your business can be enormous. Use a combination of your expertise and satisfied customers to boost your professional credibility online and offline. Then, when it comes to making a buying decision, your potential customers will recall the good reviews, the referral they received, or the top advice they read on your website to trust you with their custom.