There are all kinds of ways to promote your brand’s products or services: Online ads, social media campaigns, discounts and couponing, even traditional advertising.

 

But one of the best ways to get people to trust your brand is to get other people to go to bat for your business. Things like testimonials, awards or recognition from reputable organizations, and being the focus of articles or features in media related to your market are powerful tools for advancing brand trust.

 

Truth in Testimonials

 

The owner of a local small business spent hours talking about his services at an area trade show. He gushed about his reliability, competitive pricing, and expertise to thousands of booth visitors without getting anybody to fill out a lead card.

 

Then somebody who once used his service happened to tell another trade show visitor about the quality of his brand and the next thing you know he ran out of cards and had to start writing down phone numbers and emails on his smartphone.

 

The moral of this story is that even if people don’t believe you, they will believe other people when they talk about your brand. Testimonials are one of the fastest and most effective ways to build trust in prospective customers, even more than direct marketing or personal appeals from the business owner.

 

Brag about Yourself

 

You may have three advanced degrees, awards from national organizations, and the highest rating from your industry’s most

 

prestigious organization, but nobody is going to know about it until you tell them.

 

Promoting your personal or brand’s achievements isn’t bragging, it’s marketing. And it’s one of the best ways to build brand trust. When other people say your brand is worth recognizing, it can open doors to people who otherwise may have ignored your brand entirely.

 

Traditional marketing is important. But equally or even more important is getting other people to share their faith in your brand. Most people are more likely to believe others when they say your brand is trustworthy than believe you when you say the same thing. Get over it and get going promoting brand trust.