What’s the one marketing KPI that every team should track? According to Melanie Deziel, international keynote speaker and author of Prove It, the answer is trust.
If your brand cannot earn the trust of your community, then it will be significantly harder—if not impossible—to get them to purchase from you. Every message you send or post you write is an opportunity to prove your claims and show that you are trustworthy, and we want to teach you how.
In this #ContentChat recap, Melanie (@MDeziel), founder of StoryFuel and co-founder and VP of marketing at The Convoy, and the community discuss how content marketers can build trust with their content. Read the full recap below to learn:
- What type of content can help to earn and nurture your community’s trust
- Common business or marketing claims that need to be proven
- How to audit your content for opportunities to build trust
Q1: Why is it important for content marketing teams to build trust with their brand communities?
According to Melanie, trust is the precursor to every KPI you track.
A1: We optimize for lots of different KPIs but the reality is, Trust is a precursor to all of them!
People don’t click, subscribe, follow, download, buy, etc, without trust!#ContentChat
— Melanie Deziel (she/her) (@mdeziel) November 14, 2022
If your brand doesn’t seem trustworthy, then people will hesitate to purchase from you.
A1: Trust is a big factor when it comes to making purchase decisions—whether you are B2B or B2C. If you don’t seem trustworthy, why should someone purchase your product or services?#ContentChat pic.twitter.com/iviiMJSc1T
— Erika Heald | Content Marketing Consultant (@SFerika) November 14, 2022
A1. Trust is absolutely crucial to be able to sell anything. Content marketing needs to develop trust, nurture the interest and only then get folks to convert #ContentChat #contentmarketing
— Shruti Deshpande 🇮🇳🇬🇧 (@shruti12d) November 15, 2022
And without trust, you can’t build relationships.
A1 Without trust, you can’t build relationships. People may/will hear what you have to say, but they won’t *listen*. They won’t connect. And they almost certainly won’t buy. They’ll remain an “audience,” not a “community.” #contentchat
— Martin Lieberman (@martinlieberman) November 14, 2022
Agreed. In a nutshell, trust is the difference between a community and an audience. And an audience is one and done, while a community stays with you (and your brand) over time.#ContentChat https://t.co/zYyEmnvF5p
— Erika Heald | Content Marketing Consultant (@SFerika) November 14, 2022
A1 What’s the point of saying anything if no one believes you? Who’s going to come back to a source they don’t trust? #ContentChat
— Dan Goldberg (@Jonas419) November 14, 2022
When customers trust you, they will be honest with you and help you create a better experience for them.
A1: Trust fosters conversations. By building a brand community based on trust, you can personalize your products and services to your customers needs. Why? Bc they will be honest with you!#ContentChat
— Sweepsify 🎈 (@Sweepsify_) November 14, 2022
A community that trusts your brand is so much more likely to come to you directly when there is a product or service delivery issue, too, instead of just venting on social. Trust is critical for maintaining your reputation. #ContentChat
— Erika Heald | Content Marketing Consultant (@SFerika) November 14, 2022
Treat your community with respect to earn their trust. Take their questions and needs seriously, and help them overcome their challenges.
A1: Customers build trust by answering specific questions in their heads. Businesses build a different trust unique to their business.
Building trust means answering those questions and proving that you take them seriously.
It’s key for moving customers up the decision funnel
— Vahag Aydinyan (@vahaging) November 14, 2022
Trust is easily broken. Be genuine. Stay consistent. And use content to prove that you are trustworthy.
And just as trust takes longer to build it can be broken quickly. So the key is to be genuine, persistent and helpful all the way #Contentchat
— Shruti Deshpande 🇮🇳🇬🇧 (@shruti12d) November 14, 2022