By Katie Mientka
How do you become a trusted resource for your prospects – and why do you need to?
Henry Ford once said, “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants… so long as it is black.” Oh, the good old days. Decisions are easy when there are limited (or no!) options. When it was a choice between this brand and that, price or quality was the deciding factor. But today, consumers are confronted with hundreds of brands; the options are overwhelming. Price and quality are not the primary differentiators anymore. What is? Trust.
Brand trust is a competitive advantage; when your prospects and customers trust you:
- You’re top of mind when it comes to purchasing decisions
- Customers are more loyal
- Customers advocate for your brand
In fact, 62% of consumers say they are loyal to brands they trust – and never discount the power of loyalty. It can increase lifetime profits per customer by as much as 85%.
To build that loyalty, you need to become a trusted resource for your prospects and customers. You need to become the answer for which they’re looking and the voice they need to hear. How?
1. Understand Them
Who do you want to reach? What do they care about? What do they need or want? What are their pain points, their interests, their concerns, their questions? Developing a fully fleshed concept of your target audience is an essential component of any marketing strategy. Leverage this information and insight to plan your approach.
2. Deliver Relevant Information and Education
The best way to become a resource for your prospects… literally become a resource. Create and promote relevant, authoritative blog posts, articles, whitepapers, infographics, videos, and other content that answers their questions.
Do they want to know the pros and cons of steel entry doors versus fiberglass? Do they need to know how to choose the right custom home builder? Are they wondering whether to go with Marvin or Pella windows? Teach them!
The goal is not to sell yourself; it is to provide your prospects with the education they need to make informed decisions. You are the resource: they need to trust that you have the best interests in mind. And remember, when they trust you, your brand becomes top of mind when they make their purchase decisions. It’s selling without selling.
3. Meet Them Where They Are – And When They’re There
Content marketing is like that invaluable employee who happily works late. In fact, it works 24/7 (and you don’t have to pay overtime!). Many people conduct their research in the evenings, at night, or on the weekends – when they have a few extra minutes. Online content empowers you to become a resource for prospects any time they need.
Make sure you can also reach them anywhere they are. Multi-channel marketing means you can be in multiple places at once – Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, your website, review forums, Quora… If your prospects are there, you’re there.
4. Align Your Physical and Digital Presences
You build trust through consistency. Prospects need to know exactly what to expect when they interact with your brand. If the experience they have in your physical location, for example, is wildly different than that they had online, it is disconcerting. It is jarring. It leads to questioning: which is the real Brand X? And if they don’t know, they can’t trust. Stay consistent in terms of messaging, personality, language, tone, and style elements.
5. Follow Through
When you deliver information and education, you make an implicit promise that you can provide a solution (whether or not they take you up on it). You need to take the next steps and follow through: do what you say you’re going to do.
If, in your content, you talk about the importance of transparency and communication in home builders, for example, it doesn’t reflect well if you take too long to respond to inquiries, fail to return calls or emails, or present a confusing invoice.
Say what you do, and then do what you say. This is a fundamental pillar of trust.
Build Brand Trust with Haven
Haven is committed to taking the worry and anxiety out of marketing so you can focus on what you do best: satisfying your customers and running a thriving business. We can help you become a resource for your prospects and leverage the power of trust. Contact us today, and let’s tell your story of expertise in a way that resonates with prospects.
