“Trust me!” says the used car salesman. We’ve all heard that before from somebody! And what’s our instant reaction internally: “Hell no!”
I’ve recently taken up basketball coaching, which I am absolutely loving!
It hurts too much to play now as I keep breaking bones (played a lot growing up, time to return the favour to the next generation), so I figure coaching is the next best thing. I started with the under-14 rep team my son plays on, and we had a blast (although I’m sure he would have preferred another coach, that’s a story for another day).
Got to be honest! I found the first few sessions really tough – It seemed the youth of today just don’t trust their elders! They wouldn’t listen to me; they stuffed around, wasted time and were generally little Sh**zus. After the third training session, I’d had enough. I was fuming – who did they think they were?
That was when my wife stopped me by asking – have you given them a reason to trust you? Do they know what you’ve done in your glory days of being a basketball player?
Good question. And the answer was no. So why would they trust me?
I’d committed a deadly sin when it came to building better relationships. I hadn’t given them any reason to trust me – to listen and take in my words of wisdom (I do have some occasionally!).
At the start of the next training session, I shared some of my playing accolades when I was their age and the 15-odd years of playing at a pretty high level!
BOOM! Game changer.
I had proved to them that I knew my stuff and was worth listening to. After that, they listened, engaged, trained hard, and respected me – and they became a much better team! But unfortunately, we did lose the grand final.
This brings us to…
Deadly Marketing Sin #3: Thou hast instilled no trust!
According to a recent Trinity Mirror and Ipsos study titled “When Trust Falls Down”, 69% of consumers no longer trust brands or their marketing messages.
You can’t just say you are different and better than your competitors. You need to prove why you are different and better.
Proof builds trust. It demonstrates that you are as good as you say you are. Your marketing messages must be dripping with statistics and social proof!
Vague, sweeping statements just don’t cut it anymore – your customer just isn’t buying it.
- “We provide the best service” -> How? Prove it.
- “We’ve got the most skilled experts in the industry” -> How? Prove it.
- “Our customer service is second to none -> How? Prove it.
The strongest form of trust is numbers!
Numbers don’t lie. They can’t be fudged (ethically, anyway!). They communicate a very clear and concise message that you are as good as you say and you deliver. It also sets you apart as most people shy away from the numbers.
Here are some examples for you:
| General | Better |
|---|---|
| We provide great customer service | 98% of our customers have rated our customer services as the best in the industry. |
| Great product quality | Our return rate is 0.1% versus the industry average of 0.9% |
| We understand small businesses | 100% of our marketing experts that have run their own small businesses before and know firsthand the challenges you can experience. |
Here are ours:
| General | Better |
|---|---|
| We provide a leading marketing service | 34%. The average year-on-year growth achieved for all our clients. |
| We are a boutique marketing agency | 25. The maximum number of clients we work with at any point in time. |
| We have a senior team of marketing experts | 15 years. The minimum amount of marketing experience every Due North expert has. |
| Our first priority is to deliver quick wins | 20%. The average increase in performance improvement we achieve in the first 90 days. |
This is what ultimately becomes your competitive advantage.
By doing this, you clearly communicate why I should choose you over your competitors. It’s time to stop saying “trust me” and start showing them why they should.
Need help identifying your competitive advantage proof and numbers? Book a competitive advantage scoping session today on 1300 628 085!
