For businesses, customer trust is key. If people don’t trust your business or feel like they have a direct relationship with it, they will be less likely to come back. This is strongly linked to customer loyalty. When customers feel like they can really trust your business, they will be more likely to stay loyal to it. This is a bad thing for your rivals and a very good thing for your business. But making it happen in reality can be a real challenge. It’s not easy to make people feel like they can truly trust your brand.
But don’t worry, there are some steps you can take. Making changes to the way your business is run is a huge step to take. But this is what will be required if you want your business to be trusted by its customers. Read on to learn more about seven ways in which you can change your company methods and improve trust in your business.
Offer Consistency
When you treat some customers as if they are better than others, this will understandably annoy people. It’s not the kind of approach if you really want to run a successful business. No customer should be regarded as more important or valuable than others. So, whether a customer is spending a small amount of money or a large amount, it shouldn’t make any difference. It will be so much easier for your customers to trust you if you offer them this consistent kind of approach. You’re not likely to win people over if they think that you take an inconsistent or elitist approach to the work you do.
Talk Directly on Social Media
Social media can be revelatory for your business. It offers you the chance to communicate with all kinds of people in a way that is simple and straightforward. You can fire off messages to all of your followers. But you can also respond to individual messages. This level of precision can really help your business to create a kind of trust that is one on one. It’s a rare thing, and not all businesses manage to achieve it. You really need to work hard to cement those relationships and talk to people directly. Offer the kind of tone that is going to appeal to the kind of people that you want to turn into customers of your business too. Facebook ads and Instagram marketing can make a difference to how customers engage with your company too.
Show Each Customer That They’re Important
When a business has been up and running for a long time, it’s very easy for customers to be taken for granted. That’s not really the kind of message you want your customers to get. If they feel like they’re being taken for granted, they might be tempted to head elsewhere and consider a competitor. So, find new ways in which you can show every customer that they really do matter to your business and what you’re trying to achieve. You could offer a loyalty scheme. This will show that your business is not just a corporate entity and that it really does care about its customers.
Allow New Ways of Communication Between the Business and the Customer
These days, people don’t want to phone up your business or turn up in person when they have something to say. So, offering an address and a telephone number on your website is simply not enough. Instead, you need to think about how you can open up the lines of communication. The way in which your business communicates with customers should meet the needs of customers. They’re the ones that matter most. So, don’t worry about what’s convenient for you; worry about what’s convenient for them, instead. You could set up an enquiry form on your website. This would allow them to type in their problem or question, and it will be sent to a private email address. When that’s done, you can respond swiftly.
Ditch the Jargon and Be Yourself
If your business spurts out too much jargon, customers are going to be intimidated by what you’re saying. This is not what you want, so you should do everything possible to minimise the amount jargon that you use. Of course, this is something that will be different for different businesses. Some businesses don’t have to worry about it so much. For example, if you are operating a B2B business, then jargon will be expected because both sides understand it. But if your business is trying to appeal to the general public, you need to take a more relaxed approach. It should be possible for anyone to understand what you’re saying.
Don’t Make it Hard to Speak to Managers
When a customer has a problem or a complaint, your employees will often be asked to put them in contact with a manager. Once this request arrives, you should do everything possible to make it happen. Of course, it’s not always easy for your employees to put customers in touch with a manager. But when that doesn’t happen rapidly, it only causes the situation to escalate even further. That’s not what you want to happen, so it’s much better to put processes in place that make it possible for managers to be contacted. Customers often won’t rest until they get what they want, so break down those barriers, and make it easy to speak to managers.
Be Professional But Not Distant
People still want the businesses they buy from to be professional. They want to be sure that they are buying from the best. But doing that is not the same as being distant. This can lead customers to feel like you think that your business sees itself as being better than its customers. That’s never a positive thing, and it only breeds discontent. So, offer a friendly but professional kind of service. You can make customers feel relaxed and comfortable without having to sacrifice professionalism. It’s all about being reassuring to your customers without seeming intimidating or condescending. It’s not always easy to do this, but you should make the effort.
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