What is trust? Is it something you can measure? Is it something you can prove?
Trust is the most important facet of any content marketing campaign. Instead of worrying about clicks and traffic, you should be worrying about creating a large community of customers that grows because of your marketing efforts.
If you focus more on creating trust instead of just fishing for traffic, then you should have a long-term marketing approach that will bring repeat revenue and valuable referrals.
Displaying expertise, listening to your audience, and using consistent messaging
can help you build trust with your content marketing.
While it is true that citing other experts can give your content credibility, you should also endeavor to publish your own expertise as well. Brandanew.co reminds us that people flock to authorities, and that includes customers looking for products. When you create your content marketing, you should lean on your own company's expertise and provide information that proves that you are an expert in your field.
When you are perceived as an expert in your industry, that helps to perpetuate the idea that you are an industry leader. People generally prefer to buy from industry experts, and they tend to trust the marketing of industry leaders.
>> See how images can also help strengthen your content marketing efforts. Check out our article "4 types of images that elevate content and attract more shares."
If you want to stay socially relevant to your audience, then you have to acknowledge and address its concerns in the content that you develop. Social media and blogs are ideal ways to measure the concerns of your client base and get real input about the topics that interest your audience.
Listening to your audience helps to provide social proof that your company and products are relevant. By incorporating the concerns of your audience into your content, you can enhance the emotional commitment your audience has to helping your business succeed.
Earlier we discussed using your own expertise to inform your customers, but there is still a lot to be said for citing industry experts. When you can put your own statement side by side with the statements of other people recognized as experts in your field, you are giving your statements a greater sense of legitimacy. Your audience is going to trust your expertise more when they see that it is in line with what other experts have to say.
Citing industry experts and reliable sources will help increase
the trustworthiness of your content.
Few things destroy trust more than inconsistent information. As you develop your content marketing, be sure to keep your messages consistent and use information that is going to keep your content headed in the right direction. The moment your content shows inconsistencies, you will start to lose the trust of your audience.
When you use content that establishes trust with your audience, then you are building a community that will buy your products and recommend your company to others. All of your subsequent marketing should be focused on fostering and growing that community to give you the maximum return on your marketing investment.
Like any marketing deliverable, your content needs to be measured, analyzed and scrutinized to determine its true effectiveness and its ability to build trust with your audience.
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