Building Customer trust is key for any business that wants long-term revenue and loyalty. Still, it isn’t easy to get the trust of customers because many are skeptical and have different experiences.
But how to build customer trust and why is it so important for any business?
What is customer trust, and why is it important?
Customer trust isn’t any different than any other trust you put in your personal relationship with your colleagues or your go-to news publication. It is the trust a consumer puts in a business. Like any trust to earn it, you have to work for it.
The trust of customers is given and can’t be faked. You need it over time through interaction. Every contact is a chance to build a strong foundation in the customer relationship or break it.
When trust is broken, it is a lot harder to rebuild. Of course, you can make mistakes, and some can be forgiven once you establish trust again. But it depends on how big the mistake is and how much it affects the customers.
It is very important to know you to build customer trust in today’s business environment. When you go the extra mile for your customer, you are on the best route to building consumer trust and a loyal customer base.
Customers today are increasingly selective, judging, and doubtful about their purchasing decisions. Customers trust companies less than they used to, according to research by HubSpot.
But if you can deliver a better customer experience than your competitors, you get repeating purchases when your customer service is excellent.
How to build customer trust
Consumers today have more on the line than only money; they also share their personal data. So at stake, it is literally their identities.
You need the data of customers to better the experiences of your buyers. But to get those valuable metrics, you need the trust of your customers.
There are some good methods to gain and retain the trust and confidence of your customers and get a loyal fanbase.
1. Share your story
Telling a story is an important part of building a brand. It determines how your audience views you and allows them to look beyond your products and understand the company’s values, mission, and history.
You can write an about us page or create a video/flyer where you showcase the brand’s history, your expertise if you have any awards, and so on. This helps develop a brand where people can identify themselves, and that is loved for its values, authenticity, and approach.
You are on the right track when you provide a story that brings out emotions and makes customers naturally drawn to your brand. Of course, you shouldn’t make up fake stories and overpromise you want to be authentic.
2. Honesty and transparency
You can’t gain customers’ trust with the shortcut you need to earn it. A great starting point is to be transparent and open about your products and services and what potential customers can expect of you as a company.
Don’t make exaggerated claims that you invented the best thing ever. Modern customers are wise enough to see behind the gimmicks and hype. So be straightforward.
Provide customers with all the information they need with clear pricing and even limitations to help them make better decisions. The more the customers become familiar with your brand, the more likely they will buy again.
A wrong and extravagated headline can destroy the trust in a business. But if you are honest and be with your critic’s heads on, you can see what difference it can me in the trust levels of your customers.
Also, be transparent about what data you collect, use and share. Make it easy to opt-in and out and respect their privacy
3. Know your audience
Market and target audience research is important when you want to offer customers a personalized experience. Find out what your customer’s needs are, their common issues, and their pain points. These will help you develop better messages and copies where consumers resonate with you. You can get more sales if you focus on the right audience.
When you offer a deep understanding of their need and have a service that not solves their problem but also delivers value, your customers are far more likely to trust you.
4. Share reviews
Most consumers look for references to find out if the business and people there are dealing with are trustworthy and reliable.
We trust the experiences of others over the claims of cooperation. Reviews help customers build a strong and immediate impression of the brand’s goods and their customer service credentials.
Reviews, whether positive or negative, influence purchasing decisions. The power of recommendation is when you display unedited reviews on your website, share positive feedback across social media profiles, and respond to reviews quickly and professionally to build a healthy trust.
One of the most popular reviews sites is Google My Business. You can also use other channels like Facebook and Trustpilot. Link your reviews on your website.
You need new and existing customers to trust your business to secure social proof.
5. Testimonials
While writing testimonials is effective, a video testimonial can be even more powerful for demonstrating the worth of your product and service.
Brand ambassadors are willing to record and share their experiences with your company. They are a much more compelling and engaging proposition than trying to share the same message yourself.
Costumers trust unbiased opinions more than corporate messages. A testimonial video can be a great tool to pursue customers and buy into your business.
Don’t be afraid to approach your customer for a testimonial; when they are satisfied with your service, they will be more likely happy to tell other people about it.
6. Brand yourself
If you can’t meet your customer, they are technically only a certain number. You should aim to show your team and yourself. It makes customers feel connected to your brand and builds empathy and trust.
So customers know they deal with real people. Give you consumes meaningful human interactions possible cement the relationship.
7. Have great customer service
Your company’s customer service has a major impact on customer trust and loyalty. It is critical to hire a dedicated support staff who are trained to have a high standard.
You not only need a good service tool for your website like LiveChat, but you also need to give the team the freedom to treat every customer issue on an individual basis.
Provide an efficient professional and personal experience for your customers. If they feel like your team goes above and beyond, they will likelier come back and recommend your brand to others.
8. Build a reputation
As Warren Buffet once said, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.”
Only consider Facebook’s many scandals like the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data privacy scandal. Facebook seemed untouchable, but overnight reports were disclosed in 2018 by Christopher Wylie that show the data misuse of Facebook.
Even well-established, this huge cooperation isn’t saved from scandals that impact customers’ trust. Customer experience starts with well-trained employees. If your team is happy chances, are your customers are also.
9. Provide valuable content
You know more than anyone about your product and industry. It is a good idea to share valuable content with your customers.
You can also promote your product but don’t overpromote. It helps when writing and gives insights to you about similar topics in your industry and products.
Another method is to have a FAQ page where you answer often asked questions about your products, return and delivery policies, etc.
10. Offer many contact options
A contact page gives customers a way to interact with your business. It is guaranteed that it is one of the most visited pages on a website. Still, many overlook the significance and design of their contact page.
But you can improve the conversion rate of your contact page can benefit your business. It provides human contact with your team that can help convert potential customers into buyers.
For connecting, you can share your phone number, email address, and social media channels and integrate a live chat function.
11. Social Prof
While customer reviews are necessary, it is even better when you have secured the trust of big-name clients. When you deliver great service in the process, it gives you a huge amount of social proof and credibility.
Showcase the logo of big companies you work with. It is an easy and effective way to build customer trust.
The future of customer trust
Businesses become more and more human every day, and the nature of how we work relies more on customer trust and emotional intelligence than ever.
It is a long game to establish and maintain customer trust. So you shouldn’t take advantage of customers’ trust just to make a quick buck because they won’t do business with you again.
To succeed long, your brand needs to show empathy for its customers. It means not only getting to know them but also respecting and maintaining the relationship.
Business is personal so make your customers a top priority. Give them excellent products, provide responsive and personalized customer service, and be honest, authentic, and transparent.
This will help you boost your sales and grow a loyal customer base.
