Content Credibility; It’s a Matter of T-R-U-S-T

As political candidates dive into their campaign rhetoric, issues related to trust and authenticity keep rising to the surface, putting some presidential hopefuls at risk of sinking in the polls. As content marketers, we know all too well the importance of building trust with our constituency of prospects and customers.

The bad news is that even one piece of deceptive marketing content can drain your trust bank and cause customers to turn away from your brand. The good news is that building trust and loyalty is easier than you think and can be achieved one piece of content at a time.

So what are the characteristics of authentic content that build trust over time?

Transparency. Communicate clearly with your customers and avoid trickery or deceptive marketing practices that can quickly empty your trust bank. Avoid sender lines, subject lines, headlines and offers that overpromise and under deliver, and try using intrigue and humor as ways to capture attention without losing credibility.

Respectfulness. Don’t waste your customers’ time with self-serving promotion that’s too focused on you. Instead, pinpoint their challenges, and then create messaging and content that delivers valuable insight and information targeted to their needs and aligned with your services.

Usefulness. Don’t overwhelm your customers with too much technical information too quickly. Consider where they are in their sales journey. At the top of the sales funnel, provide content and messaging that acknowledge their challenges and provide workable solutions. Make technical details easy to find and compare when customers are closer to making a purchase decision.

Simplicity. A BlueHornet study reveals that 80% of customers who receive an email that doesn’t render correctly on their mobile device will delete it – and 30% will unsubscribe. Reduce customer frustration and churn by creating content that’s optimized for mobile and easy to digest. Chunk information, and use lots of headlines and subheads to make it simple for on-the-go readers to scan and understand.

Truthfulness. If you can’t back up a claim with facts, then don’t use it. The surest way to lose the trust of customers is to make false or unsubstantiated claims. Instead, tap into trends and tie them to your brand. Create content about these trends to establish your brand as a thought leader. If customers can trust your content, they are more likely to trust you with their business.

Ready to bring more authenticity into your marketing content? Contact us for a message strategy that builds your trust bank and your business.