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If your prospects can't or don't trust you then you have a problem. A big problem. How can you build trust in what you do?
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Saturday Sales Tips
Trust is earned when actions meet words - Chris Butler
 

Hi

Welcome to another Saturday Sales email! 

How did your first full week into the new year go?  Were you straight off the starting block and back into the swing of things, or have you found it hard to get going?  Sometimes, when we have a long, well-needed break, it can be hard to get back into the routine. If you’ve found this week tricky, take some time over the weekend to plan for the week ahead and go out and smash it come Monday morning.

The new year seems to have started much as it ended, more to-ing and froing over whether we leave a certain ‘Union’ come March (where did those three years go?). I don’t want to say the ‘B’ word… but there is little trust in those we hold in government right now, whichever side you’re on!

The importance of Trust

This got me thinking about how big a part trust plays when it comes to converting prospects into customers.  I would actually go as far to say that it’s the number one factor when it comes to getting sales results. Think about it, however, good someone was, if you couldn’t trust them, would you then work with them? And if you did decide to ignore that gut feeling, would you ever feel truly comfortable with your decision?

So, how can you instil trust in your prospects to help get them to the decision to want to work with you?  What can you do to demonstrate that you and your product or service can be trusted?

Before we go into the ways in which you can demonstrate that your prospect can trust you, I wanted to share with you what I felt must’ve been the ultimate act of trust.  See the image below

This crazy couple wanted to get the ‘ultimate selfie’ and how better to do it than hanging from a building! With no safety harness or net to catch her, this Russian model had only her hand held whilst she dangled from a high rise building whilst her picture was taken. There is no doubt that this is a totally bonkers thing to do, and no picture is worth risking your life, but for the purpose of this email, it does demonstrate how much trust she must’ve had in this chap in the first place.

If you need further clarification, take a look at the stunt on YouTube… if you’re able to stomach it all the way through!!

Think about the sorts of companies you put your trust in as a consumer. Why do you pick certain providers? It’s because they solve a problem for you and you trust them. If one of those factors fall down, you usually end up going elsewhere sooner or later.

If you can solve your prospects' problem and you are reputable and trusted, then you can easily move them onto the next stage of becoming a customer. So what things can we do to demonstrate that we are a trusted provider?

Here are seven ways in which you can establish trust in your prospects and help turn them into customers.

Be positive

People who are positive are more successful than their negative counterparts.  Positivity breeds passion, and if you are passionate about what you do, this will come across to your prospects.  People like to work with those who love what they do as that instils a sense of pride in their work.

Lead by example

Winston Churchill is a great example of someone who led by example.  He outlined his vision and encouraged and motivated everyone to follow that vision.  As a result of this, he built and gained the trust of his peers and the British people.  

If your prospects see you leading and inspiring the marketplace with a clear vision of what you want and working towards it – it will confirm in their minds that you are someone they want to work with. Social Media is a great platform to spread your message to the masses and become a person of influence and knowledge in your field.  Don’t be afraid to use it!
 
Keep to your word and follow up on actions

There is nothing more frustrating than working with someone who doesn’t keep to their word and deliver when they say they are going to. Think about how you felt the last time someone didn’t do as they promised.  Inconvenience for your prospect will quickly give you a bad reputation so it needs to be avoided at all costs.

If you have a meeting and promised a proposal, then ensure you make this a priority and deliver it when you say you will. Showing that you are a person of your word will go a long way in building trust and helping your prospect to see that you will deliver on promises should they chose to work with you.

Have a reliable service or product

There is nothing worse than entrusting your hard-earned cash into something that then doesn’t live up to expectation.

Be sure to test out your product or service first.  Ask your target audience about their needs and address them.  Test your product with focus groups – you can then extract some great testimonials if your product is a hit.  Recommendations go a long way in building trust in a product or service.

Be accessible

Being available to answer questions in a timely manner helps to give you credibility.  In this digital age, so many things are more accessible straight away and you need to keep up. People don’t like to be kept waiting for answers when looking to make a decision and if left too long, you could miss out. Answer queries as soon as you can, whether that be an email, telephone message or via social media. Your prospect will make a judgement on their trust for you based on the speed in which you respond.

Be honest and transparent

Be able to recognise your strengths and weaknesses.  It’s impossible to please all of the people all of the time and it’s pointless trying to hide, ignore or block any negative feedback. If you do receive negativity, especially on-line, it is a sensible idea to acknowledge it, apologise and do your best to resolve it.

If you are unable to solve a problem for a prospect, be honest about it. Better still, recommend someone who can help them.  They will appreciate your honesty and hopefully will mention your name with they approach someone else which demonstrates your integrity as a business owner


Be consistent

Your prospects should know what to expect from you… from your brand, your message, even down to your tone.  If you mix things up, your prospect won’t know what you’re about which is unsettling. I ensure that I produce a weekly Sales Tips email every Saturday come hell or high water and also produce a Sales Tip video on Facebook on a Friday.  My followers and subscribers come to expect this from me and this, in turn, helps to install trust. 

Keep your message, tone and branding consistent – it’s an easy win to build trust.

So, there are seven elements which I think are key to building trust with your prospects.

What have you found works for you? How do you show that you are a company or person to be trusted? I’d love to hear about your experiences either as a business owner, or a consumer in the comments below.

Don’t forget, if you have any questions about how to get better sales success, drop me a message on email, or connect with me on social media.  Just search ‘Jameswhitesales’ on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.  I’m passionate about helping you get even better results, so if there is anything I can help with, don’t hesitate to reach out.

See you again next week and good luck with your sales plans!
James

www.jameswhite.business

Sales Trainer and Mentor

I specialise in working with successful service businesses who want even greater sales success

 
 
 

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