9 Guaranteed Ways To Build Trust & Reputation For Your Startup

When you’re a small business or startup, all you have is a great product and bags of potential. Unfortunately, it takes more than that to get the profit rolling in. Just like in the real world, your business relies on a degree of trust and reputation. People don’t all flood to try a new product without having trust in its quality. It’s a tricky aspect to get right as a young company. You don’t have the money to pay for big PR campaigns, but you can’t sell products without a presence.

It’s a catch 22 situation, and I’m afraid there’s only one real answer: sheer hard work! You’ve got to build that customer base one-by-one. In those early days, it’s all about spreading the word slowly and cherishing every purchase. Of course, there are plenty of additional things you can do to grow that trust and reputation. Today, we’ll break it down and show you the secrets to inspiring trust and building a fierce reputation.

1. Show a human face and tell your story

The first way to inspire trust is to show customers you’re human. Let them know that they’re dealing with passionate, devoted people who are eager to help. Set up an ‘about’ section on your website and tell customers why this product or service is so important to you. Bring people into your world and share your story. Across your channels, adopt a welcoming and friendly tone. Show your faces and take pictures behind the scenes. Let people know there’s a real beating heart to the company.

2. Blogging

Make time for blogging at least once a week. It will help customers get a real sense of who you are and what your experience is. Choose your content carefully and show off your expertise within your niche. Give readers the answers to their questions, teach them something new or make them laugh. Make an emotional connection with them and you’ll soften them up for the sale. More importantly, you’ve given them something they can take away. When they need your product or service, they’ll remember you and come rushing back. It will transform your business and help you reach new audiences.

3. Online reviews

Nearly 90% of the digital population trust online review sites. After all, it’s a reliable gauge of overall public opinion. Whatever industry you’re in, online reviews are essential. If you’re in the hotel or restaurant business, Trip Advisor is your new best friend. Encourage satisfied customers to leave positive feedback for you. The same goes for tradespeople and reviews on Yelp. If you’ve made an app, make sure your happy customers rate it on the App Store. The same can be said for positive product reviews on Amazon. Google now index Tripadvisor and Yelp reviews when ranking sites. Apple and Amazon are more likely to showcase a product with good reviews too. It’s more important than ever to build a reputation here.

4. Brand awareness

Brand awareness has always been a key part of any business strategy. Marketing experts say that customers need to see your branding eight times before they’ll trust you enough to buy. That’s a tall order for a small team with low budgets. You’ve got to get creative with your branding here. Most importantly, you’ve got to keep it consistent across every single platform.

5. Social media

When people come across a new product or company, they instinctively turn to Google and social media. They’re looking to find out more about you and get a sense of your reputation. A positive presence on social media is vital here. As consumers, we trust the crowd. It’s simple psychology. If we find social media platforms with lots of followers and engagement, we feel more confident in their service. Make it a priority to build a social media presence and engage with your community.

6. Search engine optimisation

As we mentioned, we naturally turn to Google to find out more about you. That means investing some time and effort in your search engine optimisation (SEO). People trust the results Google shows them, and it’s up to you to make sure you appear at the top. Everything from defining and strengthening your keywords to building a network of organic links to your site will help.

7. PR and guest blogging

Most small businesses don’t have the money for a PR kick early on. And, in fact, without a solid foundation, PR campaigns can often fall flat. But, you can certainly make the first steps on your own. Reach out to peers in your community and offer to guest blog on their site. You’ll extend your contact list, get your name out there, and build credibility in your niche. It will also help direct people to your site and strengthen your SEO. Look for creative ways to get featured on relevant websites.

8. Customer Service

Customer service is the single most important aspect on this list. Those first early customers are the lifeblood of your company. They are early-adopters who have taken the leap and trusted your service without much to go on. Reward them with loyalty, kindness and impeccable customer service. If you get this right, they’ll become promoters of your company. Engage with your customers and ask them for feedback. Always look for ways to improve and build that strong foundation of early adopters. Building things one customer at a time is a slow process, but it picks up, trust us.

9. When it all goes wrong…

Sometimes, in the land of the internet, reputations are lost before you even get started. A couple of bad reviews on Trip Advisor or an ill-advised tweet and the internet can turn against you! Similarly, you can follow all of this advice and nothing sticks. Building a reputation from zero is tricky, and first timers will often struggle. To address both these issues, you could employ the services of professionals. A company like Reputation Rhino can turn around a tarnished online image or build something from nothing. The most important thing to remember is that reputation building is a long game. Don’t expect overnight results and take one customer at a time.

Building trust in your new company is probably your toughest task as a business owner. Start with your customers and treat them with impeccable service. Let things grow and build organically and you’ll soon see results.

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