A friend of mine asked me recently, while we were in Starbucks:) – “Just what the heck is credibility marketing anyway?” I think if I were to describe it honestly, it would be the purposeful acts and actions you take to build the credibility of yourself and your brand. Credibility builders are things that create “trust” between the client or customer and you.
Seals
You probably don’t even pay much attention to this, but when you go to a retail website to purchase something, you are subconsciously relieved when you see trusted seals such as the UPS logo, Fedex, Mastercard or Visa, BBB (Better Business Bureau), TRUSTe, HackerSafe etc. This is because these companies (among others) have spent zillions:) of dollars building their credibility – so much so that if you add their logo to your own site, you get to piggyback off of their trust factor. Just make sure you are adding a logo that you actually use and are affiliated with, because if you fake it and someone finds you out — that defeats the point of credibility right?
Associations
If you align yourself with the “right” associations and organizations in your field, that will go a long way in helping you build your credibility as a “trusted professional”. This will work in building credibility with colleagues as well as the public. Even if your customers don’t know what the organization actually does in respects to your profession, that’s okay – because once they see that you are even affiliated with some sort of larger entity, they tend to trust you more. Whether they recognize the organization or not. Of course ones that they know are better. Google your niche’s name plus the word association (ex. marketing + association) and see what results you come up with. While there is a fee to join most organizations, it’s worth it to piggyback off of the credibility they offer and they actually may have information, workshops, and conferences that you could use!
Information
What kind of content are you putting out in the world about you and your business. Do you sound like you know what you are talking about? Do you have a pulse on what your potential customers and clients want from your industry? Have you published a LOT of articles, white papers, reports, ebooks, etc. on topics in your field? It is key when you are looking to build credibility in your field that you appear knowledgeable and professional. Don’t put out crap! Put out good content and put it out often.
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