The word “trust” is one of the most commonly used buzzwords in the marketing space this year for many good reasons.
Between data breaches, GDPR rollout, and fake accounts popping up everywhere, it’s never been more important to build brand trust than now.
This is especially true when positioning a brand online.
That’s because it’s the first place consumers go to decide if they want to buy.
What we’re now living in is called the “trust economy.”
An economy where the sharing of knowledge and information can buy brand trust and value.
According to TechCrunch, “trust is quickly becoming the global — and most-valued — currency of modern time.”
What this means for businesses is this, the value you offer your customers must be meaningful on a human level.
Build Brand Trust: Make Valuable Content a Priority
A great way to build brand trust online and on social media is through your content marketing.
When considering content in this trust economy, the value lies with high-quality content which speaks directly to your target audience.
Intelligent, thoughtful, and compelling content is worth its weight in gold for your brand, and your brand trust. But, only if you know how to execute it.
This is especially true for enterprise content marketers.
They face unique challenges such as scaling, integration, globalization, content governance, and communication across all areas of their organization.
According to a study from Content Marketing Institute, only 22 percent of enterprise marketers said their organizations were effective at content marketing last year. That’s down from 28 percent the previous year.
Valuable content must be a priority if you want your business to succeed in the trust economy.
Let’s outline five reasons why.
Valuable Content Builds Credibility
Sharing content helps us connect with each other, which helps us engage with one another.
By engaging, we are building relationships, which in turn builds brand trust.
If you’ve been paying attention to the shift in buying habits lately, you know trust is money in the bank.
When people trust you, they hold you to a higher standard.
Because of this, they’ll spread the word about your product or service to their friends, family, colleagues, and social audience.
For example, let’s say a company you follow posts a blog about an issue or pain point you’ve been grappling with.
And they provide a simple, tactical solution to solve your pain point.
Seeing the post demonstrates to you that they “get it.” And, they get YOU.
Moving forward, you’re more likely to trust content from that organization. Even if it doesn’t directly relate to your personal experience.
Understanding your audience on a deeper level can position you as a thought leader in your market.
And, more people will be compelled to read your content and try out your product or service.
It Separates Real from Fake
As we all know, we’re living in an era of “Fake News.”
Also known as “the rush to be the first one to put out information that isn’t totally factual just to beat out the competition.”
Because of this, consumers of online content are savvier than ever about spotting and calling out BS.
If your content is fact-based, well-curated, and well-written, you immediately set yourself apart.
You’re seen as a credible source, further building brand trust, and a loyal audience.
Content that Shows You Care
It takes ample time and effort to put together an informative blog post, a creative video, an interactive quiz, or a robust case study.
By taking the time to thoughtfully create these assets, it shows you care about your audience, and you want to add value to their lives.
A great example of this was when enterprise tech giant SAP ran their “Future of Food” campaign, a content marketing effort launched in 2016.
The goal was to create captivating stories about the future of the food industry and show how technology plays a part in making us all healthier.
It included blogs, videos, social promotion, and online forums opening up the topic for an honest conversation.
That extra personal touch creates a curiosity within your audience that can be impactful enough to make them share it with everyone they know.
On the contrary, if you put a piece of sloppy content out there without research and facts backing it up, or you don’t provide a thoughtful solution to your target audience’s problem, no one will take you seriously.
You’ll end up losing them (check out these content fails that did just that, and learn from their mistakes).
Creates and Nurtures Good Conversation
Technology allows us to question, criticize, agree with, and rally around topics and issues with more immediacy than ever before (think about your Facebook feed during election season).
Content creation can help nurture these conversations.
By opening a dialogue on a platform easily accessible to your audience (i.e., blogs and social media), they can share their feelings and connect with other like-minded individuals.
At our core, humans are social animals.
We still need something to spark connections and make us feel like we have a voice in the conversation.
Humanizes Your Brand
Most everyone researches a company before deciding to buy their products and services.
So it’s helpful to give your audience an inside look into the people behind the business.
Content showing the faces and voices of the company can work to connect people on a very human level.
For example, if they see a video interview with your CEO which is funny, engaging, and informative, they may think “hey, they really know their stuff and are approachable too – maybe I should check out their business.”
By using your expertise, and that of your colleagues, you can create meaningful content that puts you on top of the competition.
In today’s uncertain world, trust is everything.
And if you have it, you’re succeeding!
