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It has been said that our society seems to be heading towards a "decline of trust" and that trust is important in capitalism. People who don't trust other people or businesses don't buy from them, don't invest in them, and don't associate with them.
Researchers say that a 15% increase in a country's belief that "most people can be trusted" adds a full percentage point to annual economic growth (and that's a lot).
One of the most important keys to building trust is doing what you said you were going to do when you said you were going to do it. And that's where good marketing comes in. If you stretch your marketing message too long and your product performance and/or service delivery is poor, it damages your customer's trust and is one of the hardest things to recover from.
A company's marketing message should be based on authenticity in terms of product quality, on-time delivery and overall business value. Companies should never hesitate to tell their customers and key audiences what they stand for and what they don't.
The real foundation of trading is someone offering a reliable solution to someone who values it enough to be willing to pay for it.
Corporate trust also has an internal component. The challenges of managing the COVID-19 pandemic and virtual workforce have seen some companies succeed due to high levels of trust in their employees, while others see a fundamental lack of trust creep in when it comes to determining motivation. and employee engagement. and how customers perceive them.
It is true that trust in companies, the media, scientists and governments has been significantly shaken in recent years, which makes the role of corporate communication even more complex and important.
To meet these challenges, communicators must be truly direct and timely, and marketers must understand what their company's products and services can and do, and not overpromise. Marketing's role has shifted from primary promotion to being the company's primary delivery system for clear information and reliable dialogue with stakeholders and customers.
Cathy Ackermann, founder and president of Ackermann Marketing and PR, can be reached at cackermann@thinkackermann.com. For the online version of this episode, visit www.thinkackermann.com/ .
This article originally appeared in the Knoxville News Sentinel; Confidence plays a big role in Kathy Ackerman's marketing