Perhaps the greatest delusion suffered by small businesses is that they are simply selling products and services. A small business is not selling products and services, it is selling a brand. Sure, people may be drawn to what you are selling at first but, in the end, it is the credibility of your brand that will determine whether they buy or not. In the end, they have to trust you and your company or they are going elsewhere.
- One blunder that gets seen time and time again are brands that use vague descriptions and grandiose accolades that actually mean nothing. They declare that they are “the best in the industry” or “high quality”. These superlatives mean nothing to the average consumer. Research declares time and time again that such empty phrases actually end up severely damaging a brand’s reputation. So you are the best? What does that mean? Show them why. Tell them why.
- Many brands crash and burn because they don’t pay any attention to comments, reviews and testimonials. Positive comments and reviews will boost the credibility of your brand and no business can possibly survive without testimonials glowing forth from their home page. Showing potential customers and clients that there are many others who have trusted you is the best possible credibility factor a business can get.
- In a similar strategy, get out there and prove why you are the best. Show them how great you are. Start blogging and flooding them with quality content that is engaging as well as helpful. Show them how you will solve a problem or bring added value to their lives. Also, use video to enhance your brand by bringing people behind the scenes. Show them that there are regular people all around just waiting to make things happen for them. By humanizing your company, you build trust especially for new customers who are leery of trying out a new brand.
- Finally, believe it or not, old school ways have been crashing brands for a long time. Put a human voice on the end of a customer support call and see how your bottom line begins to soar and word of mouth begins to fly. Research has always confirmed that almost 80% of people will drop a company over a nightmare customer service experience.
-Written by Kevin Sawyer
